Theatre/theater?

[davidm at hrihci.com]

> From: Paul Mackin  
> Why the clause "perhaps it's theater, though they SEEM no longer to be
> Allies" chooses to use the "er" spelling is anybody's guess. 
> The meaning
> of the word here is "illusion." This isn't a very usual figurative use
> of the word I wouldn't think. Spectacle or sphere of action are more
> usual. Still nothing quite seems to justify a change of spelling.
> Just thinking out loud.

I remember somebody (hmmm, who was it?) a while back saying he found parsing
GR to be unfrunctillyicious, or something like that.  Personally I find
parsing very frunctifying, but I can't find any foothold in this
theatre/theater thing.  But here one take:

Main Entry: 2theater
Function: adjective
Date: 1977
: of, relating to, or appropriate for use in a theater of operations
<theater nuclear weapons> 

It's all War!

DM
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: not available
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 2481 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://waste.org/pipermail/pynchon-l/attachments/20000225/134ef88b/attachment-0001.bin>