[lit-ideas] Re: Dylan's Implicature
- From: "Donal McEvoy" <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> (Redacted sender "donalmcevoyuk" for DMARC)
- To: "lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 11 Dec 2016 09:34:26 +0000 (UTC)
From the site referenced by Torgeir:
Not once have I ever had the time to ask myself, "Are my songs literature?"
So, I do thank the Swedish Academy, both for taking the time to considerthat
very question, and, ultimately, for providing such a wonderful answer.>
The emphasis, missing from JLS's version, may be important to the sense here.
Also important may be the reference to Pearl Buck.
Dylan treds a very Dylan line. I think an implication of that line is that
maybe the issue of whether or not his songs are "literature" is, in many ways,
not very important - even though on this occasion he finds the positive answer
given wonderful.
At least that's what Bob told me.
DL
From: Luigi Speranza <dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Sunday, 11 December 2016, 0:50
Subject: [lit-ideas] Re: Dylan's Implicature
Here below Dylan's utterance. H. P. Grice suggests that a conversational
Implicature is best attached to a proposition, atomic or molecular. I haven't
counted the implicatures but McEvoy might. Or not, of course.
i. Dylan
Good evening, everyone. I extend my warmest greetings to the members of the
Swedish Academy and to all of the other distinguished guests in attendance
tonight.I'm sorry I can't be with you in person, but please know that I am most
definitely with you in spirit and honoured to be receiving such a prestigious
prize. Being awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature is something I never could
have imagined or seen coming. From an early age, I've been familiar with and
reading and absorbing the works of those who were deemed worthy of such a
distinction: Kipling, Shaw, Thomas Mann, Pearl Buck, Albert Camus, Hemingway.
These giants of literature whose works are taught in the schoolroom, housed in
libraries around the world and spoken of in reverent tones have always made a
deep impression. That I now join the names on such a list is truly beyond
words.I don't know if these men and women ever thought of the Nobel honour for
themselves, but I suppose that anyone writing a book, or a poem, or a play
anywhere in the world might harbour that secret dream deep down inside. It's
probably buried so deep that they don't even know it's there.If someone had
ever told me that I had the slightest chance of winning the Nobel Prize, I
would have to think that I'd have about the same odds as standing on the moon.
In fact, during the year I was born and for a few years after, there wasn't
anyone in the world who was considered good enough to win this Nobel Prize. So,
I recognize that I am in very rare company, to say the least.I was out on the
road when I received this surprising news, and it took me more than a few
minutes to properly process it. I began to think about William Shakespeare, the
great literary figure. I would reckon he thought of himself as a dramatist. The
thought that he was writing literature couldn't have entered his head. His
words were written for the stage. Meant to be spoken not read. When he was
writing Hamlet, I'm sure he was thinking about a lot of different things:
"Who're the right actors for these roles?" "How should this be staged?" "Do I
really want to set this in Denmark?" His creative vision and ambitions were no
doubt at the forefront of his mind, but there were also more mundane matters to
consider and deal with."Is the financing in place?" "Are there enough good
seats for my patrons?" "Where am I going to get a human skull?" I would bet
that the farthest thing from Shakespeare's mind was the question "Is this
literature?"When I started writing songs as a teenager, and even as I started
to achieve some renown for my abilities, my aspirations for these songs only
went so far. I thought they could be heard in coffee houses or bars, maybe
later in places like Carnegie Hall, the London Palladium.If I was really
dreaming big, maybe I could imagine getting to make a record and then hearing
my songs on the radio. That was really the big prize in my mind. Making records
and hearing your songs on the radio meant that you were reaching a big audience
and that you might get to keep doing what you had set out to do.Well, I've been
doing what I set out to do for a long time, now. I've made dozens of records
and played thousands of concerts all around the world. But it's my songs that
are at the vital center of almost everything I do. They seemed to have found a
place in the lives of many people throughout many different cultures and I'm
grateful for that.But there's one thing I must say. As a performer I've played
for 50,000 people and I've played for 50 people and I can tell you that it is
harder to play for 50 people. 50,000 people have a singular persona, not so
with 50. Each person has an individual, separate identity, a world unto
themselves. They can perceive things more clearly. Your honesty and how it
relates to the depth of your talent is tried. The fact that the Nobel committee
is so small is not lost on me.But, like Shakespeare, I too am often occupied
with the pursuit of my creative endeavours and dealing with all aspects of
life's mundane matters."Who are the best musicians for these songs?" "Am I
recording in the right studio?" "Is this song in the right key?" Some things
never change, even in 400 years.Not once have I ever had the time to ask
myself, "Are my songs literature?"So, I do thank the Swedish Academy, both for
taking the time to consider that very question, and, ultimately, for providing
such a wonderful answer.My best wishes to you all,Bob Dylan****CheersSperanza
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