Aug. 31st, 2005

undyingking: (Default)
#1 in an occasional series -- your challenge is to use it at least once today.

Hysteron proteron



Literally, something like "latter first".

Means: transposing the natural order of concepts in a sentence, ie. putting the cart before the horse. An example from Shakespeare: "Th' Antoniad, the Egyptian admiral,/ With all their sixty, fly and turn the rudder" -- actually they turn the rudder and then fly, but this way round it supposedly has more rhetorical force (and better fits the scansion).

I don't think people really use this device these days, it feels rather forced. I guess a related modern practice though is for the second concept to be a modifying clause, eg "I'm going home, after I send this email" rather than the natural sequence "I'll send this email, then I'm going home" -- the effect is to emphasize the going home, and to suggest that the email is less important.

Gastrofake

Aug. 31st, 2005 02:21 pm
undyingking: (Default)
Interesting article about how easy it is for chefs to avoid having to cook properly. Saw quite a few dishes there that I've encountered recently...

I think I might have to send off for some of those catalogues though, sounds like they'd be just as good for making easy dinners!

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