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 2 of 4 1 2 3 4
#104455 05/30/03 06:17 PM
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 48
W
newbie
Offline
newbie
W
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 48
Father Steve: There was more on my link than male with a round face and is missing most of his nose -- scroll down to about the middle, right before the words "extant portraits."

But yeah, maybe the original quote meant more the guy's attitude than his appearance.


#104456 05/30/03 08:09 PM
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 67
A
anchita Offline OP
journeyman
OP Offline
journeyman
A
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 67
Okay, to quote what websafe is talking about:

"Ancient sources, both written and visual, provide a consistent view of Socrates’ physical form. His appearance was often compared to that of a Silenos, with regard to his stocky, broad-shouldered body (Plat. Symp. 215a ff.; Xen. Symp. 5.7), thick neck (Cic. De Fato ch. 5), protruding belly (Xen. Symp. 2.19), baldness (Sidon. Apoll. Epist. 9.9.14; Lucian, Dialog. mortuorem 20, Menippi et Aeaci 417), prominent eyeballs (Xen. Symp. 5.7), broad nose with wide nostrils and large mouth with thick lips (Xen. Symp. 5.7)."

I do agree that in this case, 'Socratic' refers more to the guy's facial expression/attitude ("frowning on a younger world,") than his actual features.

That le Carré used facial definition as a means to convey the person's attitude, using this very specific adjective otherwise limited to qualify philosophy and not physical description, seemed intriguing to me.


#104457 05/30/03 08:10 PM
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,788
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,788
scroll down to about the middle, right before the words "extant portraits."


I did, I did. Most interesting.

PS: Too bad about his nose.

Padre


#104458 05/31/03 08:43 PM
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 2,661
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 2,661
...a wise-looking man.

Jackie - What the ***** is that supposed to mean???

The first "*" in that group of five actually® is an asterisk.


#104459 06/01/03 06:28 PM
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 247
W
enthusiast
Offline
enthusiast
W
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 247
"...a framed photograph that hung centre stage on the back wall, showing a Socratic, bespectacled gentleman in rounded collars and black jacket, frowning on a younger world."

John le Carre knows he is writing a spy thriller which will become a blockbuster movie so he has left the details of his "Socratic" portrait to the casting director or prop department, as the case may be.

Few writers have the opportunity to write so self-consciously for readers and viewers at the same time. [Perhaps he also visualized Pierce Brosnan in the lead when he wrote the story.]

#104460 06/02/03 08:48 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
John le Carre knows he is writing a spy thriller
And at the time, writers of such literature were busily fighting for respectability. One ploy was to sprinkle the text with more or less enigmatic "classical" references.


#104461 06/02/03 10:35 AM
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Poor old John le Carre. He had a niche which he did really well - cold war spy scenarios - and which I reread again and again, still stunned by the attention to detail and the word pictures he could build up of the situation. A Small Town in Germany is still, I think, the best, although of course the Smiley books were absolutely brilliant.

But now he's floundering around looking for a new genre. None of his post cold war novels have really grabbed me. The Little Drummer Girl came and went, quality-wise, and The Tailor of Panama was downright boring IMHO.

Another author of that ilk, and who has had his most famous book filmed, is Martin Cruz Smith. The Renko trilogy (which has, of course, become a quadlogy) were absolutely brilliant, a Soviet-era policeman stumbling through life in an amazingly believable welter of competence, incompetence, blind luck and sheer bloodymindedness. Smith is another author who doesn't do so well outside of his normal milieu; Gypsy in Amber was laboured by comparison with Gorky Park or Red Square. Red Square would film well, although I think they'd have to alter Polar Star quite considerably to make it "fly" as a film.

Sorry. Rambling rather than working. Software testing is NOT fun ...


#104462 06/02/03 10:38 AM
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Poor old John le Carre

Does he still write them, his own se'f?


#104463 06/02/03 11:17 AM
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
Joined: Jun 2002
Posts: 1,624
Yes, unless (a) he's died (possible, (b) I didn't hear about it (likely) or (c) he's stopped writing books which I believe would be dependent on (a).

I don't think anyone could ape his style anyway. I've tried and failed, since I admire his approach so much. You have to think the way he does ...

And BTW, "The Constant Gardener" was pretty good, in direct contradiction to what I posted above.

I don't think le Carre has ever written a book with the screen play in the back of his mind.


#104464 06/02/03 01:00 PM
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
I just asked cause so many of these thangs are franchised these days. A writer gets so popular that demand outstrips supply and Bonzo's yer uncle. If the quality's been slipping that might be what's happening.


Page 2 of 4 1 2 3 4

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,580
Members9,187
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
Karin, JeffMackwood, artguitar, Jim_W, Rdbuffalo
9,187 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 332 guests, and 0 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
wofahulicodoc 10,713
tsuwm 10,542
LukeJavan8 9,931
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