|
Amazon
Conversation With The WordMan
Rakestraw Books
Bucknell Bookstore
Category:
Language
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN-10: 0595303471
Type: Non-Fiction
Pages: 132
Copyright: February 16, 2004
"Conversation With The WordMan" provides insight into the incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan.
The incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan, have been frequently cited and quoted in the worldwide media whenever language-related events occur.
Book Description
Conversation With The WordMan provides insight into the incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan. Lovers of words and language will better understand why The WordMan has been frequently cited and quoted in the worldwide media whenever language-related questions arise:
- the origin of the word, chad, during the 2000 Presidential Elections,
- the number of words in the English Language,
- the most frequently spoken word on the planet (OK),
- the phenomenon of Bushisms (as in misunderestimate), and
- the impact of lingo that impact the language, such as the word bling-bling from ‘hip-hop’ artists.
Payack has collected several dozen of The WordMan’s creative works that all involve various aspects of language. These include ‘meta-histories’ that describe the invention of the Zero; essays on the invention of the infinity symbol, the history of chess, and the Ides of March; as well as ‘metafictions’ that describe ‘the Dream-table,’ ‘the Versificators,’ and ‘Mythomania’.
The incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan, have been frequently cited and quoted in the worldwide media whenever language-related events occur.
Book Description
Conversation With The WordMan provides insight into the incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan. Lovers of words and language will better understand why The WordMan has been frequently cited and quoted in the worldwide media whenever language-related questions arise:
- the origin of the word, chad, during the 2000 Presidential Elections,
- the number of words in the English Language,
- the most frequently spoken word on the planet (OK),
- the phenomenon of Bushisms (as in misunderestimate), and
- the impact of lingo that impact the language, such as the word bling-bling from ‘hip-hop’ artists.
Payack has collected several dozen of The WordMan’s creative works that all involve various aspects of language. These include ‘meta-histories’ that describe the invention of the Zero; essays on the invention of the infinity symbol, the history of chess, and the Ides of March; as well as ‘metafictions’ that describe ‘the Dream-table,’ ‘the Versificators,’ and ‘Mythomania’.
The incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan, have been frequently cited and quoted in the worldwide media whenever language-related events occur.
Book Description
Conversation With The WordMan provides insight into the incisive analysis of words and language by Paul JJ Payack, The WordMan. Lovers of words and language will better understand why The WordMan has been frequently cited and quoted in the worldwide media whenever language-related questions arise:
- the origin of the word, chad, during the 2000 Presidential Elections,
- the number of words in the English Language,
- the most frequently spoken word on the planet (OK),
- the phenomenon of Bushisms (as in misunderestimate), and
- the impact of lingo that impact the language, such as the word bling-bling from ‘hip-hop’ artists.
Payack has collected several dozen of The WordMan’s creative works that all involve various aspects of language. These include ‘meta-histories’ that describe the invention of the Zero; essays on the invention of the infinity symbol, the history of chess, and the Ides of March; as well as ‘metafictions’ that describe ‘the Dream-table,’ ‘the Versificators,’ and ‘Mythomania’.
Excerpt
“Conversation With The WordMan,” started before there actually was a ‘wordman,’ at least in his present incarnation.
When I wrote the title essay about a decade ago my intent was to document
that which had never been documented: the invention of words. So I decided to
interview the inventor, as if words were the invention of a single human being. I assumed that The WordMan’s invention was the work of his individual design, labouring in an all-too-human manner, fraught with the false starts, pitfalls, and altogether wrong guesses and surmises that accompany any, if not all, human
endeavours. Language Version 1.0, if I might borrow the current ‘high tech’
phraseology.
In the late 20th century linguistics, psycholinguistics and, to a large extent, logic and even philosophy, had become the domain of complex and seemingly abstruse linguistic analyses far beyond the grasp of the educated reader. For example, there are raging debates about what actually constitutes an idea, a concept, or even a word. And please ignore, if you will, the all-too-plausible answer to that last query you might get from the typical grade schooler.
My interview was quietly published in a literary journal but subsequently took
on a life of its own when it appeared as an essay on yourDictionary.com (YDC),
which had since become the leading global language portal. Back in the year
2000, I took on the persona of The WordMan for YDC (as well as President)
and, as such, was able to address many topics related to language and linguistics in various forms. My favorites were the short-narrative and short-story formats. I was rather surprised at the questions generated from readers regarding “Conversation With The WordMan”.
In the interview, for example, The WordMan states that he was the first to
create “a technique both intricate and arcane. A lost art” in the invention of
words. He also claimed inventing “the bases upon which all later constructions
have been executed”. However, he concedes that it was his grandfather who actually invented the distinction between consonants and vowels but adds that “it was my own father who first understood their true significance”.
One researcher into the topic, in a question directed to The WordMan, asked
if I might supply the names and academic affiliations of my august relatives, apparently missing the intended irony of my very self (PJJP) interviewing myself (The WordMan).
Nevertheless, my WordMan persona has been frequently cited and quoted in
the worldwide media whenever language-related questions or events arise. These
include:
• the origin of the word, chad, during the 2000 US Presidential Elections,
• the number of words in the English Language,
• the most frequently spoken word in any language throughout the world (OK),
• the impact of what we in the States call 9-11 has had upon worldwide language usage,
• the phenomenon of Bushisms (as in misunderestimate), and
• the impact of lingo and specialized vernaculars that linguistic communities
have upon the language at large (such as the word bling-bling from ‘hip-hop’
artists).
I’ve collected several dozen of The WordMan’s creative endeavours that each
in some way involve words or various aspects of language. These include ‘metahistories’
that describe the invention of the Zero and the ‘lament’ of the last person
to speak Proto-Indo-European; essays on the invention of the infinity symbol,
the history of chess, and the Ides of March; as well as ‘metafictions’ that
describe ‘the Dream-table,’ ‘the Versificators,’ and ‘Mythomania’.
I’ve also included essays on CorporateSpeak™, Sales Lingo, and another entitled, “The More is More Principle,” where I attempt to prove that contrary to contemporary thought, more is actually more and less is actually less.
Finally, I’ve included a few interviews that demonstrate the continuing interest
of the worldwide media in both the word and language.
I’ll conclude with my answer to the frequent interviewer’s question: “What is your favorite word?”
I always answer that it is the one that carries all the following meanings:
• the whistling of an arrow
• the sound of a shepherd’s pipe
• the splashing of water
• the rustling of leaves
• the hissing of a serpent, and
• the scuffling of feet
You can find it in the Expositor’s Greek Testament.
|
