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Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,788
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 2,788 |
I love the little advert for this board which AnnaStrophic and Faldage tacked onto the end of this on-line chat. Well done!
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,803 |
advert for this board
We PMed Anu about it, sent it in about twenty minutes before the chat ended, and Anu held it till the end.
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 1,055
old hand
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old hand
Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 1,055 |
> advert for this board
Yeah, good job. Just read the transcript; interesting chat, nice bloke is Quinion.
I did get a little confused about his repeated truth vs. fable comments though, when you consider that so many etymologies stand on such shaky ground, despite the tremendous work by him and his peers. Can one really speak in such absolutes? Isn't all of language a story where we all consult our internal dictionaries to create a relative meaning for that moment? Or does a consensual, objective truth exist to words or to things (units of thought) at any one time or at all? Isn't it often a question of what, of the myriad of possibilities (or etymologies), we grant more of our attention? Anyone?
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Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 1,692
Pooh-Bah
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Pooh-Bah
Joined: Mar 2002
Posts: 1,692 |
I don’t know if I’m following your point here, but in everyday contexts I think there *is a consensual, objective truth or meaning to the symbols - vocal, written and body language - that we use as communication tools. But at other times I agree that interpretation varies from person to person and place to place.
In striving to convey meaning (like uh, heavy, dude) the poet takes one route and the narrative writer another and as aids to imagery both use analogies and metaphors that are sometimes a challenge to unravel. The rest of us do our best and that includes stealing from the poets and writers!
The frustration of being unable to find words, or even a series of sentences, that exactly get ones meaning across is a common felt thing. This frustration can be seen as soon as a child is old enough to grasp that communication is possible. Then form and structure are learnt and then still later comes the realisation that language is actually more about efficient communication than it is about form and structure. Hopefully grace and beauty retain their place in language alongside efficiency.
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