My Typewriter is Changing State Flags Again.
I have previously written of the grand history of the Oregon state flag --see post for Dec 23, 2005-- the only state flag with two different sides.
Now let us consider another glorious banner, that of the state of Virginia.
Yes, you are correct, the man holding the spear in his right hand is wearing a toga.
Yes, he cradles a sword awkwardly with his left arm.
Yes, this is the only state flag displaying a human nipple.
Look downward.
Yes, the man with the spear, the sword and the cold chest muscle is resting his heel on the throat of a man lying on the ground.
Yes, that is a crown placed in such a way as to suggest it was felled from the head of the supine-ed man.
No, that is not a correct usage of the adjective supine.
And yet, it is not wrong.
The phrase does describe the picture resembled on the flag, especially the position of the subdued foe.
Yes, you are correct, the last phrase also contains an incorrect usage.
The word resemble, although a verb, should not be used in the manner I have typed it. Something in the tense is wrong, though I can't say exactly what.
Our brains, though, find it useful to accept the incorrect usage in order to keep from stopping its reading.
This acceptance comes grudgingly from an experienced, close reader.
However, an ever enlarging number of people report pleasure at finding words used differently than they were taught to use them, or are used to seeing them used, and the pleasure they derive from viewing such shenanigans acts as motivation to keep them reading & to seek out more to read.
So I do it.
It is important to know grammatical correctness in order to communicate to a civilized & literate society.
Since most of us do not spend much time in a civilized & literate society, yet wish to communicate with those around us, it behooves us to learn to write and speak in ways which draw to us an audience rather than in ways, however correct, that push the eyes of our brothers & sisters away.
Which is the small task I am about now, here:
I hope I have not explained myself overly much.
Thank you for your interest.
Now let us consider another glorious banner, that of the state of Virginia.
Yes, you are correct, the man holding the spear in his right hand is wearing a toga.
Yes, he cradles a sword awkwardly with his left arm.
Yes, this is the only state flag displaying a human nipple.
Look downward.
Yes, the man with the spear, the sword and the cold chest muscle is resting his heel on the throat of a man lying on the ground.
Yes, that is a crown placed in such a way as to suggest it was felled from the head of the supine-ed man.
No, that is not a correct usage of the adjective supine.
And yet, it is not wrong.
The phrase does describe the picture resembled on the flag, especially the position of the subdued foe.
Yes, you are correct, the last phrase also contains an incorrect usage.
The word resemble, although a verb, should not be used in the manner I have typed it. Something in the tense is wrong, though I can't say exactly what.
Our brains, though, find it useful to accept the incorrect usage in order to keep from stopping its reading.
This acceptance comes grudgingly from an experienced, close reader.
However, an ever enlarging number of people report pleasure at finding words used differently than they were taught to use them, or are used to seeing them used, and the pleasure they derive from viewing such shenanigans acts as motivation to keep them reading & to seek out more to read.
So I do it.
It is important to know grammatical correctness in order to communicate to a civilized & literate society.
Since most of us do not spend much time in a civilized & literate society, yet wish to communicate with those around us, it behooves us to learn to write and speak in ways which draw to us an audience rather than in ways, however correct, that push the eyes of our brothers & sisters away.
Which is the small task I am about now, here:
I hope I have not explained myself overly much.
Thank you for your interest.
15 Comments:
Actually, a woman is holding the spear. Girl Power! Here's what I found from google:
The woman, Virtue, represents Virginia. The man holding a scourge and chain shows that he is a tyrant. His fallen crown is nearby.
I still refuse to use "office" as a verb. Curse you, Kinko's, and your early '90s shenanigans.
You don't use a typewriter.
Good to see your back, Fenske.
Godspeed.
I mean "you're" back.
Fucking typos.
Back to a small office with no window, sitting at a desk and waiting for someone to wander in so you can teach them something. Back to buying beer for the small band who bothered to show up for swagger. Back to telling folks to read the NYT, not to smoke, not to listen to your teachers, and to just DO THE OPPOSITE. I think I speak for a great many students and alumni when I say thank you for going back. You are needed.
HA!! AH HAH! Sweet justice at last!
First year.
Well... my first first year.
I misused a word in a presentation on my favorite day of the week in creative thinking.
You probably don't remember it.
I said "and God laid smite upon all humanity by introducing vanilla extract, which smells like heaven and tastes like ass."
You corrected me. I retorted. You told me to sit down.
And now I find you using the same device here in your post.
I too, found it interesting to use the word in a different way, but you didn't accept it.
Wait... am I the teacher now?
please don't punish me in class.
Dear anonymous,
The woman, Virtue, wears a toga that deliberately reveals her naked breast? I guess there's more to heraldry than I ever thought before. Thanks for the lesson.
Dear butch brown,
Yes, I use a typewriter. IBM Selectric.Not on the web, though.
Dear anonymous,
Thanks for the nice words.
I would like to clear this up for those who care about these things: I don't encourage people to do the opposite of everything. I see little value in taking an unthinking contrarian position on everything--as I imagine do you. Doing the opposite is a trick it is useful to keep in the pocket of one's mind to be used as a conscious goad to one's imagination when trying to make something up out of nothing.
Again, thanks for the good hopes.
I'm glad to be doing what I like doing best.
Dear Mr. Ramirez,
I am nothing if not inconsistent. You're going to wear out your keyboard pointing it out to people.
I stand corrected. But I'm not standing. So I guess I sit corrected. I sit corrected.
Oh crap. As a native Virginian, I can't help but cringe at the discovery of a (insert gasp here) woman's naked breast on our state flag. Have we not endured enough banner changes for the sake of political correctness throughout the South? Now you folks have to go and point out the Janet Jackson-like similarity of our great ensign? I can see it now: one seemingly innocent blog post by a university professor will lead to local and state representatives with nothing better to do standing on their soapboxes and imploring us all to save our children from this pornographic banner. Shit.
"Some Final Words." Billy Collins.
Perks,
So rarely is the word "ensign" used, and well. You have my admiration. Also, you funny.
Welcome back, Fenske. You were missed.
As for the PC crowd invading my native state, I'm just glad they had their way with that ridiculous creation known as Lee-Jackson-King Day.
Grammar? Now there's a divisive issue...
Since we are all being pedantic I must point out that ensign refers to a national flag, specifically one flown from a ship. Therefore, the smutty state flag of Virginia would not qualify as an ensign.
I stand amended.
You're not standing, Perks.
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