Aphorisms from a to Z: A User's Guide to Life - Softcover

Friedenberg, Jay

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0985147237 ISBN 13: 9780985147235

Publisher: Golden Palace Pub, 2012

Synopsis

Aphorisms from A to Z is the result of more than a decade of work. It is one of the most comprehensive and qualitative sources of sayings from any single author, consisting of over two thousand different aphorisms on more than six hundred topics. The book is intended to inspire and serve as a practical guide to living a better life. It starts with an overview of aphorisms, describing what they are in relation to other sayings such as proverbs and quotations. Also included in the introduction are interviews with contemporary aphorists and aphorist scholars, describing the role that this ancient literary form now serves today. The book concludes with lists of both classical and current aphorists for the interested reader who wants to pursue more.

About this title

About the Author

Jay Friedenberg is professor of psychology and chair of the Psychology Department at Manhattan College. His research interests are in vision and he has published articles on symmetry detection, center-of-mass estimation, and art perception. In addition, Dr. Friedenberg has written a number of books on cross-disciplinary topics. These include undergraduate texts in cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and nonlinear dynamics.

Review

“What is an aphorism? In brief, it is a short saying that states a general truth.” In his book, Jay Friedenberg, chair of the Psychology Department of Manhattan College, pursues one of his many interests: the exploration, definition, and creation of aphorisms.

Friedenberg begins by dividing aphorisms into classic categories, with examples of each: the chiasmus, in which two parallel clauses are reversed; the definition; the joke; the metaphor; the moral; the observation; the paradox; and the pensée (thought). There are short interviews with other “contemporary aphorists and aphorist scholars.”

The author composed all the aphorisms in the volume, over two thousand in all, and states that they came from either spontaneous inspiration or purposeful concentration; some are reworkings from older sources. Friedenberg groups them alphabetically, including such unusual classifications as “Cinema” (“Don’t judge ... a movie by its trailer”) and “Inflation” (“The best monetary policy is no monetary policy”). An offering under the heading of “Wonder” is especially enjoyable: “Wow! What would it take to make you say this?”

Certainly this book represents great industry on Friedenberg’s part. The text is set in attractive fonts, and the author makes good use of spacing and bulleting. The cover art—the title set in a field of aphoristic phrases—is quietly appropriate. Though many aphorism collections exist across ages and cultures, the sheer number composed by one person here is impressive, and some of the compositions are sterling: “There’s no expiration date on justice,” and “Not all bygones can be bygones.”

However, some of Friedenberg’s creations fall flat: “If you keep throwing things away, eventually you are left with nothing.” Others are too derivative, as with this version of the March Hare’s line: “Say what you mean and mean what you say.” “Still water quickly turns foul” seems needlessly to overturn the pleasant, classic “Still waters run deep,” with no new inspiration. Some aphorisms seem merely churlish: “If opportunity knocks on the door, don’t answer. It could be a Jehova’s witness [sic].” And though the author states that he has “endeavored to make all of these sayings unique,” this is surely not the case with “Home is where the heart is.”

There are some obvious defects in the book, such as the misspelling of “Imitation” as “Immitation” for one of the category headings. And there are not just a few ungainly constructions. For example, Friedenberg writes, “Even when people are honest there are still circumstances beyond our control that require the need for enforced contracts.” There are no offerings for the letters X or Z—no “Xenophobia,” no “Zeal.” These anomalies indicate a less than total dedication to the polishing of the work, as though the author grew tired of the task toward the end.

Friedenberg’s students and fellow aphorists will probably comprise the audience for this book since it is, more than anything, a hobbyist’s fancy.

--Clarion Review, Barbara Scott, June 12, 2013

Edition details

• Publisher: Golden Palace Pub
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0985147237
• ISBN 13: 9780985147235
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 228