Subject: RE: fruits & nuts
From: Mattis Fishman (mattis@argoscomp.com)
Date: Fri Jul 27 2001 - 13:11:08 GMT
Scottie:
> ...are - apart from their great literary intelligence - characterised
> by balance, kindly decency & a sort of grown-up tolerance:
> something notably lacking in mine (...)
>
> That’s really what appeals to me as a natural born head-banger:
> the feeling that - you never know - it could suddenly go all
> pear-shaped with tears & reproaches & hysterical laughter.
Zazie wrote:
>Is this fishing for compliments or WHAT? In this I borrow from Valérie,
>who wrote: ....
Dear Zazie,
I think I can assure you that in the good doctor's case, his words
should generally assumed to be: "or WHAT?".
I find your assertion that he is fishing for compliments to be very
interesting. After a discussion of literary criticism in which
quite a few members (and I believe you were one of them, no?) protested
against readers putting their own words, in an authoritative manner,
into the mouths of writers, it is revealing that you would interpret
Dr. Bowman's words in such a way. After all, soon afterwards
he states clearly that he enjoys participating in conflict, so it
would seem that he was not expecting to be complimented on his
"kindly decency", yet you appear willing to stamp your own interpretation
(a negative one, and stated in a rather demeaning way) as practically fact.
And we are not even talking about an interpretation of an inanimate book,
but rather a negative charaterization of a feeling human being (though
in Scottie's case, a decicedly resilient and uninsultable one).
This is only intended to be food for thought.
all the best,
Mattis
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