Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 4 of 5 1 2 3 4 5
#30699 06/06/01 10:57 AM
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 427
addict
Offline
addict
Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 427
This is one of my favourite quotes:

"A woman of taste, Eve chose to pick wisdom, and with her courage for the unknown translated eternity into time, her word into memory, and her entire self into the eternally ticking earth"
Willis Barnstone, The Poetics of Translation, 1993 (p. 82)

As wow remarks, it all depends on the point of view...

Marianna





#30700 06/06/01 11:57 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
P
addict
Offline
addict
P
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
There was an article in Saturday's Melbourne Age, reprinted from The Atlantic Monthly [no issue specified], in which Simon Winchester (author of 'The surgeon of Crowthorne') asks "how did Roget's Thesaurus become synonymous with the intellectually second-rate?" A fascinating read.


#30701 06/06/01 12:06 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
P
addict
Offline
addict
P
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
A report in today's Melbourne Age informs us that

" … the Lewis estate and its publishers [HarperCollins] have started shaping a marketing makeover of Aslan and assorted Narnian habitues to expand readership and extend the brand. They have struck deals to licence plush Narnian toys … [and] to create new Narnia novels by unidentified authors … Most striking of all, they have developed a discreet strategy to avoid direct links to the Christian imagery and theology that suffused the Narnia novels and inspired Lewis."


#30702 06/07/01 01:40 AM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
In reply to:

"how did Roget's Thesaurus become synonymous with the intellectually second-rate?"


Whoever said it had?

Bingley



Bingley
#30703 06/07/01 01:57 AM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
Yes, I've heard about this C. S. Lewis extension from other sources. This is my childhood they're mucking about with. If they want to add to the series, well fine. People have been adding to the Sherlock Holmes corpus for a long time now, but they haven't been able to surpass or come anywhere near the original. But Lewis's Christianity was an essential part of the series. Why change it? Are there really that many people out there who will read the books if the Christian elements are taken out but otherwise wouldn't?

Bingley


Bingley
#30704 06/07/01 02:34 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Lewis's Christianity was an essential part of the series.

I agree, Bingley. It was a board member who suggested that I read the Narnia series, so my first introduction to them was just about a year ago. I thoroughly enjoyed them, I might add. I don't recall that the name of Christ was belabored; but the values run through the very core of the books: they are, by and large, what make the characters do what they do.


#30705 06/07/01 09:50 AM
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 387
J
enthusiast
Offline
enthusiast
J
Joined: Feb 2001
Posts: 387
I only noticed the Christian parts when it was obvious, like when Aslan was killed on the table, and otherwise I didn't care. These guys shouldn't be changing it. When I think about it, the plots would need major revising.It seems communistic.

jimthedog

#30706 06/07/01 11:54 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
P
addict
Offline
addict
P
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
Hi Bingley:

Winchester argues that "Roget's Thesaurus no longer merits the unvarnished adoration it has received. It should be condemned as a crucial part of the engine that has transported us to our current state of linguistic and intellectual mediocrity."

It's an interesting argument -- anyone seen the original article in The Atlantic Monthly?


#30707 06/07/01 12:00 PM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 11,613
paulb, there you are, trying to stir up trouble again,
aren't you? Ugh.


#30708 06/07/01 12:26 PM
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819
G
old hand
Offline
old hand
G
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 819
"A woman of taste, Eve chose to pick wisdom, and with her courage for the unknown translated eternity into time, her word
into memory, and her entire self into the eternally ticking earth"


Very good quotation, Marianna! Now, would you care to comment on the old Hebrew legend of Lilith?

There's the story about the creation wherein once Adam realised that he had no partner, he asked god if he might have one. God replied that he could have someone who would be at his side constantly, answering to his every whim, providing for his every desire. "What will such a creature cost me, " Adam asked. "An arm and a leg," the creator replied. Then Adam asked, "What can I get for a rib?" and the rest is history.


Page 4 of 5 1 2 3 4 5

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,912
Posts229,283
Members9,179
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
TRIALNERRA, befuddledmind, KILL_YOUR_SUV, Heather_Turey, Standy
9,179 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 444 guests, and 3 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
tsuwm 10,542
wofahulicodoc 10,510
LukeJavan8 9,916
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5