Introduction
Recently, my ability to remember, review, analyse, synthesize, a coherent narrative about any reading has been suffering. Those who see me read, say this is because my input is immersive reading, with no output.
Therefore, I am going the old school way.
Following are some difficult words I encountered while reading A Slip of the Keyboard by Terry Pratchett. Then, I made sentences, properly expecting a class 5 kid to be kind vis-à-vis this effort. This is because making sentences should help me figure out what I lack as a reviewer - what do I want to say. Maybe inarticulateness is best described when at least tried.
Sentences
sciatica - When I was a child interested in cornflakes who made no fuss about how soggy the broth was, my grandmother fell from a flight of stairs. Our family of distant to nearest, along with a doctor collected in the courtyard. Thankfully, it wasn't sciatica but she now wears a belt.
hermetically -Basically my grandmother, who I fantasied about as some superhero while munching on those cornflakes, wasn't hermetically sealed from pain.
disgorge - The crowd was so thick in the courtyard that when grandmother asked water, I regarded them keenly, disgorging that request, transforming it into an order, as her voice traveled from one person to another.
simulacrum -As a result, I created this simulacrum in my head of a tumbler passing from hand to hand and reaching my lady on a ply.
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unbirdled - Reading and walking are acts of searching that should unbirdle my mind, but these days, both of these acts seem to generate erasure of thoughts.
peeved - That is why as soon as I pick a book, I am peeved as I know for a fact that more than making me think, it is going to make me forget to think.
remit - It seems like reading remits my thoughts about reflection.
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budgerigars - Budgerigars are small birds found in Australia.
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scythe - Sycthe was mentioned in the book by Pratchett when he mentioned about Grim Reaper and some very logical reason about why fantasy should not be defined by presence or absence of dragons as according to him that can't be the only criterion being introduced to children as they already know that dragons exist!
ecclesiastical - The use of 'ecclesiastical' has thankfully reduced since 2010s. Otherwise, I had also planned the following sentences inspired by memories from Pratchett book - What is the point of view on assisted death according to ecclesiastical society?
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connived - The above sentences seem like being connived with force of 'i have to make sentences' as not much thought or process was spent on the logic or sensibilities of above sentences.
Note
A Slip of the Keyboard is collection of speeches and writings by Terry Pratchett, written during various points of his life. The oldest is from 1963 c/a Letter to Vector. The latest is from 2011.
If I say I absolutely love the sarcastic tone, I might as well tell you that the words you are currently seeing are in black. The sarcasm is vivid.
Perspective from Pragati Maidan
Two years ago, standing in the most crowded stall of Madan, Hall no. 17 (or was it 21), in a crowded Pragati Maidan book fair, sweating and seeing my fellow shoppers wipe off dust from back covers of remotely accessible books; unusual smell of carpets and footwear seasoning that haul, I was experiencing a bout of sneezes, when I saw A Slip of the Keyboard. Before this, I had only heard of Terry Pratchett as a fantasy writer in book club discussions.
On the cover, the author was dressed in a black hat. The subtitle read 'Reflections on Life, Death, and Hats'. I joined my fellow, sweaty, book hoarders, in dusting off the spine and tightened my grip on this cuboid piece of wonder.
After two hours, I had chosen seven books. My brother had chosen five. He explained why he chose what he chose. Meanwhile, I thought back to my shelf of 'still-to-be-read' books. When we moved out of the hall, we had five books in a carry bag (that we remembered to carry from home). Three books, for my brother and two, for me.
This March I took out the bag from the shelf. In May, I began reading. Within two days, the cover detached from the spine,but not fully, nudging me to remember Nearly Headless Nick. What held the book, was just the glue along the left hand margin of the back cover.
The first essay is called 'Thought Process', which in Pratchett's words is 'a pretty accurate description of the creative process at work', pretty much summing the indelible question for a writer about the process of writing everyday. The entire collection made me think of sarcasm.
A Slip in Sarcasm
Sarcasm is understood as a form of irony in which the speaker's statement contradicts the state of affairs, is critical towards the topic being discussed, and is often critical of the person to whom the statement is addressed (Leggitt & Gibbs, 2010).
The most sarcasm to have been gathered by me comes from a familial set up. "I am going to play cricket. Will return at 8." "Beta, aane hi ki kya zaroorat hai? Poori raat vahin raho." [What is the need to even come back? Just stay there whole night.]
Whether people are looking for comedic relief, or taking anchors to task for hate speech, or trying to decipher what Rowling meant in her latest tweet, sarcasm is a tool for many.
Is it necessary though? Can it lead to more cynicism rather than understanding? Does it mean that the speaker completely understands what they are saying or is it just a 'cool' tool?
What shall be response in such cases? Does sarcasm have any relation to being inarticulate?As a person who likes reading words of many, I believe words have power.
Oxford's Advance Learner's Dictionary 8th edition, has an entry on sarcasm: a way of using words that are the opposite of what we mean in order to be unpleasant to somebody or to make fun of them'.
The collection of essays understand and use sarcasm as a literary device, very well. Is Pratchett really making fun of booksellers when he advices them to make sure there is a 'real table and a real chair, not a stool in front of of a shelf unit with no room for knees' when he has book signing tours or is he making fun of librarians when he says:
Not long ago I was invited to a librarians' event by a lady who cheerfully told me, "We like to think of ourselves as 'information providers.'" I was appalled by this want of ambition; I made my excuses and didn't go. After all, if you have a choice, why not call yourselves "Shining Acolytes of the Sacred Flame of Literacy in a Dark and Encroaching Universe"? I admit this is hard to put on a button, so why not abbreviate it to "librarians"?
What makes sarcasm work (sometimes), is, this inability to process the ongoing entirely. I make sentence after sentence in order to apprehend my own understanding of the book, hoping something, somewhere would click. Sarcasm becomes a practice in practising inability.
Contrary to popular belief 'inability' is not about being dumb or unable to understand. The world is stuffed with inabilities. It is almost impossible to 'not understand'. No, the role of inability here in sarcasm is stating the very obvious, everyday, right there, happening in front of you, behind you, adjacent to the tapri.
Inability is in not even trying to surprise you anymore. The writer has become a traveler, who is laying down and just stating what they see.
I'm just capable of entertaining the fantastic idea that, in certain circumstances, Homo sapiens might actually be capable of thinking. It must be worth a go, since we've tried everything else.
The inability strikes when there is at least an attempt to understand some things of life - like why are orangutans being killed in Indonesia, why are people still thronging Burger King when they have watched Before The Flood documentary.
Sarcasm mocks, sarcasm babysits anger, but sarcasm rests its case in consequence and more consequences.
Ladies and gentlemen, may I suggest you let fun out of your lives? For it is, brothers and sisters, a mongrel word, an ersatz word, a fast-food bucket of a word! What does it mean? Consider the shameful usage: "I was doing it for a bit of fun," or "I thought it would be fun," or "I was only having fun" and, worst of all, the little bit of white on the top of this chicken dropping, "Are we having fun yet?" Why have fun when you could have enjoyment.
In such cases, sarcasm can make one see a very ordinary thing. Sarcasm blurs 'blur', that humour proactively creates.
It is where this division of what the writer is writing, and what they are referring to, is so clear. Sarcasm makes thing clear, I think. As a result, something like a 'city' is formed. A city made of granite blurs and cotton candy blurs. The reader lives in it but the writer has lived through it.
Get up, have breakfast, switch on word processor, stare at screen.
Stare at screen some more.
Carry on staring at screen, but cock ear for sounds of postman . With any luck it will be a large bag of post, leading to a busy morning's work…
You remember it so well that once you start describing, seriously, very seriously, making sure there is no gap, just a window to let the photons speak then and only then does it entertain light. If one looks at things for long enough, it is bound to tease some inordinate links to humour. But sarcasm is such a terrific make up to something that can be so terrifying. Like how to write every day, how to write best sellers, how to write fantasy, how to write for children, how to not be angry at all the trees being 'replanted'. You cannot replant a forest.
Got a vague idea that a talking tortoise is essential part of action…
Find a book on tortoises in box in spare room.
Will definitely get bookcases rebuilt any day now (clever idea was to prefabricate bookcase in garage…
…this goes on for 80 words). In this essay, 'stare at screen' appears 11 times. I could have written 'repeats' but every time, the phrase appears, it's quite clear that the purpose is not just to draw attention to how hard (or easy)writing is, rather it also being used as a break. This let's the reader in one more observation - Research. Sarcasm can be a tool for research as well.
Wonder if eagle has anything else that a desperate tortoise could hang on to. Look up biology of birds in enyclopedia in a box on stairs. Gosh. Supper…
Midnight…
Stare at screen. Vaguely aware right hand has hit keys to open new file. Start breathing very slowly.
Write 1943 words.
Bed.
For a day there, thought we weren't going to make it.
At the end, sarcasm becomes emotion.
But it also being used as a research tool and I think this is what really lets me hang to the entire book. Two or more images collide.
This might happen because of the division caused by 'self-conscious alienation' and a 'reference' to what the writer wants to say. When news anchors are being sarcastic, they are criticising audience's ability to connect and invest in a particular narrative.
When Terry Pratchett uses sarcasm, he is using it to emote, thrash and analyse something so well, that it led me to begin this essay on the first hand.
It made me research this 'inability to write review', prod my inarticulateness, my understanding and sentiments, and later on, resurface by seeing a slip in the process of forming sentences. I became divided between making sentences and writing a review, thinking it to be something sarcastic about sarcasm itself. It is not. Not as of now.
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Discovery of sarcasm is difficult. It is a performance. A type of performance which when used by ordinary speakers, like me, pretending to take an attitude that is not authentic to how they actually feel, are in this perpetual state of being unable to do something about killing of Orangutans, birds and trees.
Terry Pratchett is in rage. And so am I.