[lit-ideas] Re: Pleonetetic Implicatures
- From: Mike Geary <jejunejesuit.geary2@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 7 Jun 2012 14:58:24 -0500
I have no truck with the English and their silly clutching to the
monarchy. Why should I care what they adore? All human societies have
their absurdities. If the English choose to lavish fortune and fame on a
group of purposeless human beings, so be it -- for then they are not
purposeless -- they have been saddled with the ambition of the whole
goddamn culture. Are they still empty of any inner worth? Yes, certainly,
but so what? 99.44% of the human race live lives of private desperation --
let the children believe in a myth of grandeur.
Mike Geary
grandeurist of Memphis
On Thu, Jun 7, 2012 at 2:16 PM, <Jlsperanza@xxxxxxx> wrote:
> We are discussing Prince Charles's utterance for the Diamond Jubilee:
>
> "Diamond Jubilee celebrations: Queen 'touched' by 'happy atmosphere'"
>
> by NBC News and msnbc.com staff at
>
>
> http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/06/05/12062377-diamond-jubilee-cel
> ebrations-queen-touched-by-happy-atmosphere?lite<http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/06/05/12062377-diamond-jubilee-celebrations-queen-touched-by-happy-atmosphere?lite>
>
> "In a tribute to his mother delivered from the concert stage late on
> Monday, Charles sought to sum up public affection for a monarch who is a
> symbol
> of stability at a time of economic gloom and political disillusionment. As
> a
> nation this is our opportunity to thank you and my father for always being
> there for us, for inspiring us with your selfless duty and service and for
> making us proud to be British, proud at a time when I know how many of our
> fellow countrymen are suffering such hardship and difficulties," he said."
>
> But what did he implicate?
>
> A. Palma thinks the implicature is obvious.
>
> In "Re: A Princely...", a message dated 6/6/2012 5:56:54 A.M. UTC-02,
> Palma@xxxxxxxxxx writes:
> who gave you the right to quote that sad sack of shit?
> the prince of what?
> of popping zit on his horse's ass? as long as the unfortunate british
> suffer under this bloodsucking family, with dianes and catherine, there
> is no
> hope
>
> ----
>
> Part of Palma's problem -- being an Italian -- is with the colloquial (I
> prefer 'royal') use of "how many". In Italian, and indeed, Latin, it was
> the
> quantum that was used.
>
> "Quantum", in Latin, was what Grice called "implicature-free":
>
> How many eggs? --- One.
>
> "One is NOT many eggs".
>
> "I never said there were many eggs".
>
> What the prince uttered was, inter alia:
>
> "As a nation this is our opportunity to thank
> you and my father for always being there for us,
> for inspiring us with your selfless duty and
> service and for making us proud to be British, proud
> at a time when I know how many of our
> fellow countrymen are suffering
> such hardship and difficulties".
>
> To simplify:
>
> "I know how many Englishmen are suffering great difficulties."
>
> Palma: How many?
>
> ---- Palma is suggesting that if the Prince knows that ONE Englishman is
> suffering great difficulties, there is no reason to be pride to be English
> (he isn't).
>
> ---- To contradict Palma, I would like to suggest a zero-scenario: the
> extreme scenario where the Prince, upon request, is asked to expand on the
> "how
> many". Suppose he says: "One, Tommy Atkins". Tommy Atkins is brought, and
> he grants that perhaps he is not suffering such a GREAT difficulty. In
> this
> case, it's
>
> zero
>
> Englishmen who are suffering great difficulties. In terms of the
> implicatum, what the Prince said is still true: even if no Englishman is
> suffering
> great difficulties (or a great difficulty), the Prince, by courtesy of
> what
> we call the 'royal' "how many", is entitled to say that he still
>
> KNOWS
>
> how many Englishmen are suffering great difficulties.
>
> "For he might have been a Roosian, a French, or Turk, or Prossian,
> or perhaps I-ta-lian. But in spite of all temptations to belong to
> other nations -- he remains an Englishman!".
>
> Geary expands on 'pride' as used by Charles in "Pride: the sixth sin", Acts
> of the Metaphysical Ministry of Memphis, vol. 6 (the essay following his
> "Why the Civil War was fought" -- with a ps by Speranza, "And lost".).
>
> Cheers,
>
> Speranza
>
> ----
>
> "Abrams."
> "Jewish?"
> "Nay -- I am an Englishman!"
> ------ script from "Chariots of Fire" now on HD 3D DVD.
>
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