The Spell of the Song: Letters, Meaning, and English PoetryThis book investigates the nature of the alphabet as a medium of communication. The general thesis is that writing is not a merely transparent or empty item like air or glass; rather, the alphabet is both modifier and enabler of meaning itself: The book investigates the general implications of this thesis. |
From inside the book
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Page 168
... remain virtually unthreatened by all at- tempts over the centuries to contravene or supplant it " ( Firmage 2000 , page 226 ) . Both single words and whole texts could become lastingly sa- cred . In Augustine's time Scripture was ...
... remain virtually unthreatened by all at- tempts over the centuries to contravene or supplant it " ( Firmage 2000 , page 226 ) . Both single words and whole texts could become lastingly sa- cred . In Augustine's time Scripture was ...
Page 212
... remain constant . The inference is not that they will one day somehow merge with the neural system totally . Rather , both will remain virtually autonomous , each ever more refined , to their mutual advantage . Summary . The alphabet's ...
... remain constant . The inference is not that they will one day somehow merge with the neural system totally . Rather , both will remain virtually autonomous , each ever more refined , to their mutual advantage . Summary . The alphabet's ...
Page 214
... remain distinct from each other for their combinations to flourish . But this same discrete- ness also enables distribution , the mode of operation of letters in all their aspects . The richness of our language suggests that distribu ...
... remain distinct from each other for their combinations to flourish . But this same discrete- ness also enables distribution , the mode of operation of letters in all their aspects . The richness of our language suggests that distribu ...
Contents
Acknowledgements | 9 |
The Abecedary Some Historical | 39 |
Beginnings | 46 |
Copyright | |
21 other sections not shown
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The Spell of the Song: Letters, Meaning, and English Poetry John Powell Ward No preview available - 2004 |
Common terms and phrases
aaaaa abecedary abecedary's aesthetic alliteration alphabet already appears Aquinas Aristotle Augustine Augustine's brain Cambridge century cited consciousness consonants contrast critics cultural ddddd Dickinson distribution earlier ecedary eeeee Eliot embodied Emily Dickinson English equally evoke expression Faber feel Four Quartets Gerard Manley Hopkins grapheme Greek Greek alphabet Harold Bloom Herbert Homer human invention John Kabbalah kind kkkkk language later letters lexicon lines linguistic literary London look matter meaning metaphor Milton mind mmmmm mode nature neural oral Oxford Paradise Lost passage Penguin Books perhaps phrase physical Plato poem poem's poet poetic poetry postmodern reader rolle sacred Scripture seems semantic sense sentence signs sound speech spelling stanza suggested syntactical T. S. Eliot Thaetetus thee things thought Tintern Abbey tion Translated University Press utterance verb virtual voice vowels Waste Land William Wordsworth words Wordsworth writing written