by snowbird 54 Replies latest social entertainment
OK, let me tell y'all how this came into being.
One day the poster, John Doe, was hassling me about something.
CoCo - bless his dear heart - asked if I wanted him to create a literary piece in which Doe would be dispatched.
I said, "Oh yes! Could you?"
CoCo said it was a work in progress, but he hasn't been around lately.
Therefore, I attempted to fill in for CoCo.
End of story.
Syl
MUCH great literature has deeper meanings...
That doesn't mean that the writer DELIBERATELY set out to put it there!! People often "read" symbolism and meaning into fairly straight-forward tales...
Look at the people who think "Valley of the Dolls" has deeper symbolism...
Or - my personal pet peeve - "Moby Dick" - supposedly all about the "symbolism" of the white whale and Cap'n Ahab... "Moby Dick" isn't nearly as "symbolic" as the scholars would have one believe - and I've read it many times...
It just contains a fairly accurate description of the mentality and atmosphere of whaling ships - which included a LOT of superstitions amongst the sailors...
Then there are those who see deeper symbolism in "South Park"... Wait, there actually IS deeper symbolism in many of the episodes of "South Park"...!!
Never mind...
Zid 
Ok Zid. I think I see that for you the issue is more whether or not the writer intended a deeper meaning. Since you are a writer, I can see why you are passionate about the reader not trying to "see" a meaning you did not intend. As a reader though, part of the joy of reading for me is to be moved to think, imagine, and to learn. I think that whether or not a certain work is seen by the reader as having a deeper meaning/between the lines meaning is fairly subjective, and thus cannot be right or wrong, it just is. Isn't that the purpose of book clubs? People get together and share their viewpoints about a work, what it meant (for them), etc.
Or - my personal pet peeve - "Moby Dick" - supposedly all about the "symbolism" of the white whale and Cap'n Ahab... "Moby Dick" isn't nearly as "symbolic" as the scholars would have one believe - and I've read it many times...
I'm calling your bluff on that one. I suffered through that book one time, hoping it would get better. It never did.
I'm interested in the pscyhological makeup of Sylvia at this point.
I think the words are a demonstration about what she thinks about, even subconsciously. Consider the words "the last supper" are almost never used without a reference to christ. Further consider that the story is about an execution, and a protagonist mimicking Jesus's words "why have you forsaken me?"
What threw me for a loop though, is the middle name "Philip." That has been referenced in the past as a make believe boyfriend Sylvia had when she was a child.
Thanks for pointing out this thread to me, dear Baba!
Thank you, Sylvia, for starting it. The questions and answers fascinate me.
Several here - Syl, John, the Jeffs, Zid, Terry, Farkel [apologies to any whom I've inadvertently overlooked] - are excellent writers, though style and subject matter are often poles apart. My unsolicited advice is that all of you must continue to write daily, not allowing ennui, perceived reader apathy, and, perhaps, a personal sense that your writing is unimportant, impede your slow-but-sure progress.
I'm not a born marketer; however, I do send out my stories daily to housewives, friends, businessmen, published authors, actors, artists, etc. Most by e-mail, some hand-delivered, a few mailed via the USPS, many blogged. I get replies and most of them are good, the readers appreciative. Ask Happy Homemaker! is an absolute zero here, but people elsewhere love it. Go figure. I was told by a writer whom I respect that, though he likes my writing very much, there is likely only a small market for it because, well ... you know my goofy style! But that's me....
Oh ... much of my writing is full of symbolism because I'm still in a state of paradoxical repression, not yet having truly emerged as an authentic personality ... [what did he say?].
PLEASE, keep writing! You especially, John!
CoCo
Pig tails? Who in the world eats pigs tails?!?
StAnn
I'm interested in the pscyhological makeup of Sylvia at this point.
Psychological.
So is my doctor.
Tee hee hee.
Pig tails? Who in the world eats pigs tails?!?
StAnn
Hi, and welcome back, Saintly One.
Lots of folk eat pork/pig tails in these here parts.
They're really good.
CoCo, I thank you for those winsome words. You are beginning to get an idea of how much you and others on here have inspired me.
Thank you, my friend.
Syl
Oh, thanks Zid, for those links.
I especially enjoyed the John Reed's.
John Doe, you should become a pyschologist instead of an attorney.
Syl
Yer Welcome, Sylvia!!
John Doe, what the heck didn't you like about "Moby Dick"??? I found it FASCINATING - the reference to the giant squid, the stories about the other rogue sperm whales, Melville's descriptions of a wide variety of other whale species - some of which must be extremely rare...
The harpooneers, the rowing out after the whales, the "Nantucket sleigh rides", sailing into the teeth of a typhoon - and having to set in to Japan for a replacement mast...
Very telling that you assumed I was lying based only on YOUR opinion...
I agree to an extent with Sylvia - you definitely SHOULDN'T be a lawyer... Since every element and fact presented to you is discolored by YOUR perception, instead of observing neutrally and letting situations "shake" themselves out...
Zid
P.S. You ought to check into the story of the whaling ship "Essex" before you condemn "Moby Dick" as boring... Tho, to be quite frank, you sound as if you're the sort who would also find the "Donner Party" and "Alfred Packer" to be boring, too...
