GRGR(5) Katje: in close up

[rj]

Terrance,

You have written two direct posts and an oblique and unedited monologue
about Plato and Aristotle since the two sentences and a YUP. You haven't
added or discussed or explained anything as far as I can see. I shall
repeat my points for you:

1) In distinguishing between "novelists" and "Critical Theorists and
Literary Critics" you were in fact making a discrimination to the effect
that it was the latter group only who were voicing the idea, as Paul
phrased it, of "the novel's being in decline as an art form."

2) The idea of the 'decline of the novel' was one you seemed to be
dismissing out of hand, ridiculing, and the deliberate capitalisation of
the C.T. and L.C. category seemed to me to be a further condescending
embellishment. Neither the occupations of novelist nor gypsy roofer are
capitalised in your lexicon. Why the capitals here? Is it a sneer?
Sarcasm? A type of reverse discrimination? 

I have no problem if you do personally resent being mistaken for a
literary critic or theorist or academic and feel the need to assert your
(more respectable?) calling as a gypsy roofer. What I merely raised was
a concern that your obvious distaste for "Critical Theorists and
Literary Critics" had caused you to make a factual error, and I provided
examples and references to support my claim. The word "squirms" was
meant to accompany the "can of worms" you envisioned yourself opening in
the post you wrote entitled 'Death of the critic', itself another
indication of your bias.

I can see you must be offended by the way you've chosen to resort to
parody and selective quotation so I will certainly understand if you
don't wish to address the points I've repeated above, or any of the rest
of the content I've offered on the topic. Perhaps this would be, after
all, the most satisfactory solution.

best

> rj wrote:
> 
> > Terrance squirms:
> >
> > But you don't say what the "huge difference" is. You question merely to
> > discredit. You offer no substance.
> >
> 
> I offered Two sentences and a YUP!
> 
> YUP! But it wasn't novelists talking, it was Critical Theorists and Literary
> Critics. And the "decline" began after the war or Post Modern.
> 
> Next,  I attempted to explain away your explanation of what those two sentences and a
> Yup! were meant to convey. Please allow me the opportunity to explain my two sentences
> and a Yup! OK? It is my sense that we have a real difference of opinion on this subject
> and that's a good thing as far as I am concerned. Now, can we agree to discuss our
> differences and perhaps learn a little about this very complex and long debated topic?
> If we can, we can go on. If not, I will squirm away with my "yup!" and you can raise a
> glass to your  "not so!"
> 
> best, no offense taken