by Zara » Mon Apr 29, 2013 3:55 am
Pat, you make me smile. I'm learning that whenever you meet with silence instead of conversation, frustration ensues. Yours is such an interesting outlook to me. New, even.
I'm always curious to see how different authors handle descriptions of Vincent. I'm not overly fond of "lion man" either, because I feel it is too specific. The phrase certainly gets a sketchy image across quickly, but also limits Vincent's characteristics to those of "lion" and "male human." Thus, leonine doesn't sit well with me either, as a general adjective. My preference is for "feline," "bestial," "animal," variations of "monster," and of course "Beast." A special case is "freak," but few people know how to use that term appropriately, so I am wary when I see it in a story. More than any of these one-shot descriptions, I like to read specific details about what makes Vincent lionish, beast-bodied, man and animal at the same time. How does he move? How does he behave? What blend of instinct and reason motivates his actions? What shapes and textures are present in his physical form? What kinds of shadows does he cast? What is his coloration, how is his hair arranged and how is he dressed? What abilities and attributes does he possess that make him something more (or less) than human?
MR uses words and phrases like: dark form; crouched; moving shadow; secretive lion man; prowled; instinct; night-sighted eyes; no sound; barely a rustle; deftly moved; swallowed by the enclosing shadows; silent ear; lurking in the shadows; shadowy companion; favorite haunt; ever vigilant; elusive lion man; unseen company; keen hearing; cat burglar quality of movement; unique, golden flesh; a playwright's nightmare come to life; over six foot, massive, leonine form; a featureless black form.
By contrast: Charlie was a short stocky man; his weathered face etched by time and sagging jowls. His graying hair was reduced to a grizzled silver crown of laurel around the dome of his head. He was sixty-three and sporting the typical round middle of a nighttime watchman grown fat from all the years of coffee, donuts and little activity.
In this story, the author has tailored her descriptive language to reflect the setting: a large public building, empty at night, save for thousands and thousands of books. She gives us two characters who know and love a library. This is a place of silence, where sudden sights and sounds are shocking, where whispers are loud, where the deaf and mute activity of reading constitutes a valuable skill or virtue rather than a handicap. The story is about waiting, watching, listening. It's about a long, slow game of hide and seek, a progressive treasure hunt, and the rewards of great patience. <smiles at self> In short, all the things that appeal to a reclusive bookworm like me.
Cosby's
Why Is There Air? Oh, heavens, it is SO funny. My mother has audio tapes of several Cosby comedies and I would love to transfer them into .MP3 files someday. Does it make me old if I take such delight in artifacts from the era of my childhood?
~ Zara
Pat, you make me smile. I'm learning that whenever you meet with silence instead of conversation, frustration ensues. Yours is such an interesting outlook to me. New, even. :)
I'm always curious to see how different authors handle descriptions of Vincent. I'm not overly fond of "lion man" either, because I feel it is too specific. The phrase certainly gets a sketchy image across quickly, but also limits Vincent's characteristics to those of "lion" and "male human." Thus, leonine doesn't sit well with me either, as a general adjective. My preference is for "feline," "bestial," "animal," variations of "monster," and of course "Beast." A special case is "freak," but few people know how to use that term appropriately, so I am wary when I see it in a story. More than any of these one-shot descriptions, I like to read specific details about what makes Vincent lionish, beast-bodied, man and animal at the same time. How does he move? How does he behave? What blend of instinct and reason motivates his actions? What shapes and textures are present in his physical form? What kinds of shadows does he cast? What is his coloration, how is his hair arranged and how is he dressed? What abilities and attributes does he possess that make him something more (or less) than human?
MR uses words and phrases like: dark form; crouched; moving shadow; secretive lion man; prowled; instinct; night-sighted eyes; no sound; barely a rustle; deftly moved; swallowed by the enclosing shadows; silent ear; lurking in the shadows; shadowy companion; favorite haunt; ever vigilant; elusive lion man; unseen company; keen hearing; cat burglar quality of movement; unique, golden flesh; a playwright's nightmare come to life; over six foot, massive, leonine form; a featureless black form.
By contrast: Charlie was a short stocky man; his weathered face etched by time and sagging jowls. His graying hair was reduced to a grizzled silver crown of laurel around the dome of his head. He was sixty-three and sporting the typical round middle of a nighttime watchman grown fat from all the years of coffee, donuts and little activity.
In this story, the author has tailored her descriptive language to reflect the setting: a large public building, empty at night, save for thousands and thousands of books. She gives us two characters who know and love a library. This is a place of silence, where sudden sights and sounds are shocking, where whispers are loud, where the deaf and mute activity of reading constitutes a valuable skill or virtue rather than a handicap. The story is about waiting, watching, listening. It's about a long, slow game of hide and seek, a progressive treasure hunt, and the rewards of great patience. <smiles at self> In short, all the things that appeal to a reclusive bookworm like me.
Cosby's [i]Why Is There Air?[/i] Oh, heavens, it is SO funny. My mother has audio tapes of several Cosby comedies and I would love to transfer them into .MP3 files someday. Does it make me old if I take such delight in artifacts from the era of my childhood? :D
~ Zara