Comments for Trochaisms

Comment on Remembering Riddley Walker’s writing by Jeremy

Jeremy — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 19:26:07 +0000

Og [Bud] probably knew Russell Hoban in person, since Bud was so well-connected to the science fiction world. I wouldn't be surprised if Og was partly inspired by Riddley, or mebbe t'other way rown.

Comment on Remembering Riddley Walker’s writing by Henry Kahn

Henry Kahn — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 03:18:08 +0000

No, I nefer herd of Riddley Walker. He sowndz leik mi frend Og, King of Bashan. I rilly mis hum.

Comment on Gnu ears eavesdropping by Mickey

Mickey — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 15:38:34 +0000

I’m glad you enjoyed this. I certainly did! I knew Terpsichore, thanks to Praetorius, but not Melpomene, but like you, got it because of the meter (sort of).

I was telling Ellie about this and she fondly remembered your rendering of youth as YOWth

And by the way, I totally agree about the unnecessary and ridiculous statistics. What is “better” in this context anyway?

Comment on Gnu ears eavesdropping by Jeremy

Jeremy — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 23:20:18 +0000

Point!

I was perhaps overly charitable when I interpreted “speaking English better than …” to mean “cope with these perversely chosen exceptions and quirky corner cases of English spelling better than …”.

This is of course is not “speaking” at all. And it’s only “better” in that it demonstrates a certain mastery of a particular prestige trivia domain (though that mastery is closely tied to performance on the GRE verbal section, at least in my experience).

Comment on Gnu ears eavesdropping by Eldan

Eldan — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 22:28:27 +0000

Of course, there’s also the question of what it means to speak English [and which English?] “better than” other people.

Comment on Remembering Riddley Walker’s writing by eyeteeth

eyeteeth — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 23:17:18 +0000

It’s in the shape of a children’s book, because it’s about windup toys and animals, but it’s not a children’s book really — or maybe it is, because the best children’s books have a lot of menace in them and can be read with pleasure by adults. The Mouse and His Child is full of whimsy but even the whimsy is menacing: a romantic conversation between two weasels comes to a halt when an owl pierces their brains with its talons; a headless hula dancing toy is forced by a rat to perform burlesque. At its heart the book is about finding family and a place to belong, and about breaking away from what you were made to do in order to take control of your own destiny. What the mouse and the mouse child want more than anything is to become “self-winding,” and that’s something people of any age can relate to. It’s a terrifying and hilarious and gorgeous and heartbreaking book.

Comment on Remembering Riddley Walker’s writing by Jeremy

Jeremy — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 23:03:49 +0000

Maybe when I was a kid? I don’t remember it though. What did you like about it?

Comment on Remembering Riddley Walker’s writing by eyeteeth

eyeteeth — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 23:00:58 +0000

Have you read The Mouse and His Child? That book means a lot to me.

Comment on Remembering Riddley Walker’s writing by Robin Turner

Robin Turner — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 20:29:52 +0000

Russell Hoban’s dead? Shit. During the ’80s he was part of my Holy Trinity of writers, the other two being Ursula Le Guin and Angela Carter.

Comment on private key punchlines by Because Sex Tape | Corner Cases

Because Sex Tape | Corner Cases — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 00:12:34 +0000

[...] the transgressive thrill of misogyny? Also not funny, but in a totally different way.) Humor requires indirection. A knot of puzzlement provides the activation energy necessary for laughter. Here the indirection [...]