Re: Ambiguity

• To: ingria@bbn.com
• Subject: Re: Ambiguity
• From: Michael I Bushnell <mib@gnu.ai.mit.edu>
• Date: Fri, 5 Aug 94 10:38:34 -0400
• Cc: B-GREEK@virginia.edu
• In-Reply-To: ingria@bbn.com's message of Tue, 26 Jul 94 19:04:48 -0400 <9407262304.AA00949@konitz.bbn.com>

   Date: Tue, 26 Jul 94 19:04:48 -0400
   From: ingria@bbn.com
   Reply-To: ingria@bbn.com

   This supposes that a text can be disambiguated.  Many interesting
   literary texts cultivate ambiguity and cannot be disambiguated---the
   ambiguity is integral to the meaning of the text.

Indeed!  I've just finished reading _Midnight's_Children_ by Salmon
Rushdie.  It's a very carefully ambiguous book.  In thinking about it,
nearly every event is ambiguous, of uncertain meaning.  (And the first
person narrator's constant assurances about meaning only serve to
highten the ambiguity!)  Rushdie's amazing talent in this book
certainly warranted his receiving the Booker Prize.

And now I'm reading _Ulysses_.  The thought of James Joyce being
disambiguated is like suggesting that Saturn would be nicer without
rings.

	-mib

• Ambiguity
• From: ingria@bbn.com

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