"Through the eyes of a high-flying night bird, we take in the scene from midair. In our broad sweep, the city looks like a single gigantic creature- or more like a single collective entity created by many intertwining organisms. Countless arteries stretch to the ends of its elusive body, circulating a continuous supply of fresh blood cells, sending out new data and collecting the old, sending out new consumables and collecting the old, sending out new contradictions and collecting the old. To the rhythm of this pulsing, all parts ofthe body flicker and flare up and squirm. Midnight is approaching, and while the peak of activity has passed, the basal metabolism that maintains life continues undiminished, producing the basso continuo of the city's moan, a monotonous sound that neither rises or falls but is pregnant with foreboding."
- Haruki Murakami, 'After Dark', translated by Jay Rubin.
I came across an interesting term, "Kenning". My dictionary says it is a "periphrastic expression in Old English and Old Norse poetry". The given example makes this more clear- A ship may be said to be 'oar-steed'. Elsewhere, I find words such as, Banhus: 'Bone-house' for body, Fripnebba: 'Peace-weaver' for wife (a bit optimistic, that), and a German word in current use, Gluhbirne: a glowing pear for light bulb.
Kenning has its roots in Ken, 'to know', and in Middle English it meant 'teaching'.
In the Haruki Murakami quote, which is the start of his novel, 'After Dark', we find high-flying night bird, which could be a plane. And further on, Murakami associates the city with a living organism.
This is excellent writing, of course, but when you look beyond the obvious kenning of 'high-flying night bird', a story itself is a sort of kenning- what you find in life, you turn into words, and make it interesting, give the familiar a picture of the novel.
And I like the association of knowledge and teaching with the word 'ken', stories can be some kind of teaching- even when they don't carry an explicit moral or message, but by merely portraying human lives they can teach us what it is to be human, and bring to our knowledge the amazing depth and variety of the human condition.
(In case you are interested to know more about kenning, there is a fascinating page by Ron Hale-Evans at "the Kenning Game- an Introduction", and there is also an engine by Kevin that helps you generate Kennings)
- Haruki Murakami, 'After Dark', translated by Jay Rubin.
I came across an interesting term, "Kenning". My dictionary says it is a "periphrastic expression in Old English and Old Norse poetry". The given example makes this more clear- A ship may be said to be 'oar-steed'. Elsewhere, I find words such as, Banhus: 'Bone-house' for body, Fripnebba: 'Peace-weaver' for wife (a bit optimistic, that), and a German word in current use, Gluhbirne: a glowing pear for light bulb.
Kenning has its roots in Ken, 'to know', and in Middle English it meant 'teaching'.
In the Haruki Murakami quote, which is the start of his novel, 'After Dark', we find high-flying night bird, which could be a plane. And further on, Murakami associates the city with a living organism.
This is excellent writing, of course, but when you look beyond the obvious kenning of 'high-flying night bird', a story itself is a sort of kenning- what you find in life, you turn into words, and make it interesting, give the familiar a picture of the novel.
And I like the association of knowledge and teaching with the word 'ken', stories can be some kind of teaching- even when they don't carry an explicit moral or message, but by merely portraying human lives they can teach us what it is to be human, and bring to our knowledge the amazing depth and variety of the human condition.
(In case you are interested to know more about kenning, there is a fascinating page by Ron Hale-Evans at "the Kenning Game- an Introduction", and there is also an engine by Kevin that helps you generate Kennings)
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