"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Marot's poem, in Hofstadter's initial translation (he is to compose many more), begins: "My sweet, / I bid you / A good day; / The stay / Is prison. / Health / Recover, / Then open / Your door ... "--a slim frame on which to hang 600 or so pages of text. But the book is far more than a compendium of translators' triumphs (with the occasional misstep). Most of the renderings are original and lively, some lovely, though Hofstadter often feels compelled to improve them. He lightly laments that Bill Cavnar's rendering, "though superb along so many dimensions at once, still seems to lack a bit of that intangible verbal sparkle that I associate with the deepest Maroticity."
Hofstadter's talents lie in linking his intoxication, erudition, and vision with humor, autobiography, and free association. His book takes on "rigidists," asks questions like, "Is plagiarism potentially creative?" and strives to define linguistic soul. Along the way, it accords the same level of respect to the seemingly trivial: sex jokes, Texas jokes, The Seven Year Itch, and the puzzle of how someone you love can hate a food that you adore. Throughout there is pun, ingenuity, and above all, love for language--which can compress distance and, through constraint, lead to freedom.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
US$ 4.30
Within U.S.A.
Book Description Condition: new. Seller Inventory # FrontCover0747533490
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New Copy. Customer Service Guaranteed. Seller Inventory # think0747533490
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New. Seller Inventory # Wizard0747533490
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: new. New. Fast Shipping and good customer service. Seller Inventory # Holz_New_0747533490
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # Abebooks107945