[lit-ideas] War Is War
- From: Jlsperanza@xxxxxxx
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 27 May 2010 01:43:13 EDT
In a message dated 5/27/2010 2:08:00 A.M., jejunejesuit.geary2@xxxxxxxxx
writes:
The first use of "boys" refers to young males, the second use of "boys"
refers to all the attributes associated with young males. It's more like
saying, "What did you expect? He's a stupid guy for Christsake."
It seems to me that most such tautologies follow that pattern: War is war.
----
Since I detect no pattern, it is difficult for me to follow Geary's point:
BOYS WILL BE BOYS.
Strictly, as he notes, it's "Boys ARE Boys" which is tautologous.
---- In Geary's reading, this becomes
The Subject (S) is The Subject (S)
S is S
A BOY is A BOY
Geray:
"The first use of "boys" refers to young males, the second use of "boys"
refers to all the attributes associated with young males."
So, with
WAR IS WAR
"The first use of 'war' refers to war. The second use of 'war' refers to
all attributes associated with war."
"It's more like saying, "What did you expect? He's a stupid guy for
Christsake.""
Why? Surely it's more LIKE saying. Surely it is NOT saying, "What did you
expect? He is a stupid guy for Christake"
War is war ====> What did you expect? It's a stupid ???? for Christsake
I disagree.
---------- He's gone and done it again.
--------------- "Boys will be boys, I told you"
---- "He killed the whole population of the village. And he was never
ordered. He volunteered."
--------- "War is war"
The implicature of "War is war" INVOLVES, "What did you expect?" But I'm
less sure about the "For Christsake" or 'stupid'.
(Cfr. "It's the economy, stupid").
---
"War is war" only has ONE implicature: "Don't criticise it". It can NEVER
be uttered to condemn war. Only to praise it.
Grice compares it with
"Women are women"
which can be used "in a praising or condemning tone".
---- "the intonation, in this case, yielding what type of implicature is
intended by the utterer".
JLS
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