[Date Prev] [Date Next] [Archives Home]

Dr. Mardy's Quotes of the Week -- February 21-27, 2004



DR. MARDY'S QUOTES OF THE WEEK  -- 2/21/2004 to 2/27/2004
 
This is the week of February 21, 2004 to February 27, 2004

THIS WEEK'S OXYMORONIC PUZZLER:

In his 1839 poem "Hyperion," this American poet helped advance the
oxymoronic theme of "Sounds of Silence" when he wrote:

"There is no grief like the grief which does not speak."

Who wrote this famous line?     (Answer below)

OXYMORONICA: THE BOOK

My new "Oxymoronica" book (to be formally published next week) received
a nice little mention in the March issue of "Esquire" magazine.  In a
feature titled "The Nine Most Remarkable Things in Culture This Month,"
they called the book "a delightful collection of paradoxical wit and
wisdom through the ages" and hailed the following quote from comedian
Randy Shakes as "The Wisest Purchase":

       "Last month I blew $5,000 on a reincarnation seminar.
       I figured, hey, you only live once."

The book is now available for purchase, either for yourself or as a
special treat for a language-loving friend.  For more information, go to:

       http://www.oxymoronica.com/thebook.shtml

QUOTES IN HISTORY
(AND THE HISTORY BEHIND THE QUOTES)

On February 22, 1832, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe died at age 82.  Goethe
was one of the greatest minds in world history, excelling as a writer,
educator, journalist, critic, theater manager, statesman, educator, and
philosopher.  The last European to attempt the widespread erudition of
the great Renaissance thinkers, he was extraordinarily prolific (his
writings on science alone fill about 14 volumes).  His version of
Marlowe's "Faust" is considered a literary masterpiece.  He once offered
this chiastic insight:

       "We do not learn to know men through their coming to us.
       To find out what sort of people they are, we must go to them."

He also authored these provocative oxymoronic observations:

       "The unnatural, that too is natural."

       "You can never get rid of what is part of you,
       even if you throw it away."

       "Everything in the world may be endured
       except continued prosperity."


     * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On February 23, 1821, John Keats died of consumption (now tuberculosis)
in Rome, his life cut short at age 25.  The son of a livery stable worker,
he abandoned his medical studies to devote his life to poetry.  With
masterpieces like "Endymion," "Ode on a Grecian Urn," and "To a
Nightingale," he became one of the greatest English Romantic lyric poets. 
In 1964, professor J. Donald Adams wrote, "There is no greater poem in
English than the 'Ode on a Grecian Urn'." The poem contains a famous line
that fits nicely into the "Sounds of Silence" theme:

       "Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard
       Are sweeter."

"Ode" also contains one of the most famous chiastic passages in literary
history:

       " 'Beauty is truth, truth beauty'--that is all
       Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know."


      * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On February 24, 1998, Henny Youngman died at age 92, after a long career
in which he became one of America's most popular comedians.  Known as
the "King of the One-Liners," his most famous line was the classic "Take
my wife--please."  Like many comedians, Youngman made many incisive
observations about serious topics, as in this penetrating chiastic comment
about the reason for marital failure:

       "Most marriage failures
       are caused by failures marrying."

Chiasmus appeared frequently in his routines:

       "The reason some people become old before their time
       is because they had a time before they got old."

       "The good die young because
       only the young die good."

       "Ad in Variety: 'Lion-tamer,
       looking for a tamer lion.' "


      * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On February 25, 1910, Millicent Fenwick was born in New York City (her
mother died five years later in the sinking of the Lusitania).  Raised in
comfortable circumstances, she attended college at Columbia and the New
School for Social Research, married and divorced, and worked for 14 years
as an editor at Vogue magazine.  In the 1960s, the fifty-something Fenwick
became involved in politics via the Civil Rights Movement.  Blessed with
exceptional intelligence, striking good looks, and a keen wit, she rose
rapidly in the ranks of the Republican Party.  Elected to congress in 1974
at age sixty-four, she became a media darling.  During her four
congressional terms she emerged as one of the most colorful politicians in
American history (many believe she was the model for the character of
Lacey Davenport in Garry Trudeau's "Doonesbury" series).  Fenwick once
participated in a hearing where a conservative male congressman attacked a
piece of equal rights legislation with the words, "I've always thought of
women as kissable, cuddly, and smelling good."  Mrs. Fenwick offered one
of history's Truly Great Replies when she responded:

       "That's what I've always thought about men,
       and I hope for your sake that
       you haven't been disappointed
       as many times as I've been."


      * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On February 26, 1802, Victor Hugo was born in Besancon, France.  Regarded
by the French as one of the country's greatest poets, Hugo is mainly known
throughout the world for novels like "Les Miserables" (1862).  He
developed a novel approach to writing.  In the morning, he gave all his
clothes to his valet, who was instructed to return them only after Hugo
had finished writing for the day.  "Les Miserables" contains many quotable
quotes, including these examples of oxymoronica:

       "Melancholy is the pleasure of being sad."

       "The malicious have a dark happiness."

       "Strong and bitter words indicate a weak cause."

As baby-boomers started reaching middle age, one of Hugo's chiastic
aphorisms began to enjoy renewed popularity:

       "Forty is the old age of youth;
       fifty is the youth of old age."


      * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On February 27, 1934, Ralph Nader was born in Winsted, Connecticut.  After
graduating from Princeton and Harvard Law School, Nader established a law
practice in Hartford.  He burst on the public scene in 1965 with his
scathing indictment of the automobile industry, "Unsafe at Any Speed." 
Over the next several decades, Nader and his associates (often called
"Nader's Raiders") became the best-known consumer advocates in American
history (with many consumer protection laws directly traced to their
efforts).  He gradually turned his attention to public policy and
politics, and has been a significant third-party candidate in recent
presidential elections (he is currently considering another run in this
year's election).  During the 2000 campaign, he was quoted as saying:

       "If you don't turn on to politics,
       politics will turn on you."


      * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

On February 28, 1533, Michel de Montaigne was born near Bordeaux, France. 
Tutored in his family's chateau, he received an classical education. 
After a brief attempt at a legal career, he returned home to devote
himself to reading, writing, and meditation.  With his 1580 book (titled
"Essais" in French) he established a new literary form, the essay.  In a
famous essay on marriage, he made this widely-quoted chiastic observation:

       "It may be compared to a cage,
       the birds without try desperately to get in,
       and those within try desperately to get out."

Montaigne's essays also contain many examples of oxymoronica, including:

       "Nothing fixes a thing so intensely in the memory
       as the wish to forget it."

       "He who would teach men to die
       would teach them to live."

       "I have seen people rude
       by being over-polite."

PUZZLER ANSWER:  Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

SUBSCRIBER QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

This week's quote comes from long-time subscriber Amy Brennan who writes:

A thought from my husband James, who is home for a bit before more
training and deployment to Kuwait

       "A great warrior must be
       as devoted to peace
       as much as he is to war."
                     Spc. James William Etter

James Etter lives in Seattle, Washington.  He has served in the military
for over 16 years (in the Navy, Army, and National Guard), and enjoys
studying history and geography.

DR. MARDY'S THOUGHTS OF THE WEEK:

       "In the best stage performances,
       the audience becomes a part of the show
       and the show a part of the audience."     (chi)

       "The brutal truth is generally
       closer to falsehood than it is to truth."     (oxy-para)


Until Next Week,

Dr. Mardy Grothe


--------------------------------------------------

To subscribe, send a blank message to chiasmus-on@mail-list.com
To unsubscribe, send a blank message to chiasmus-off@mail-list.com
To change your email address, send a message to chiasmus-change@mail-list.com 
    with your old address in the Subject: line

To give a free gift subscription to Dr. Mardy's Quotes of the Week:
    http://www.chiasmus.com/giftsubscription.shtml

To peruse the mailing list archives:
    http://www.chiasmus.com/mailinglistarchives.shtml

--------------------------------------------------