On 16 Feb 2006 at 14:41, Andrew Stiller wrote: > On Feb 15, 2006, at 5:04 PM, David W. Fenton wrote: > > > The reason I use the term "voodoo" is because the stereotypical > > example of voodoo is sticking pins in a doll that represents a > > person in order to hurt the person the doll represents. That > > practice represents a belief that doing one thing will cause > > something to happen that is different and operates on a different > > object. > > Leaving aside the question of whether that is a valid characterization > of Voodoo as a religion, . . .
I recognize that my definition of "voodoo" is mostly the conventional stereotype that is found in mid-20th-century movies and TV shows, and that it really has almost nothing to do with the real religion. > . . . I feel compelled to point out that sticking > pins in a doll to hurt someone represented by the doll *works* quite > reliably (as do other forms of curse), if the person under attack > believes that such curses are effective. . . . Of course, the person under attack has to *know* that they are under attack for their belief to kick in, which leaves us pretty much where we started -- depending on shared beliefs in that which is not evident or clear, instead of just going with what is unambiguous in the first place. > . . . In the case of exaggerated > dynamics, the analogy is perfect: if the performer understands what > the composer means, then the desired result will be obtained. The > purpose of language is communication, and if communication is > achieved, no further justification is required. If you understand that when I say "I hate you" I actually mean "I love you" then, well, there's no breakdown in communication. But how much easier to simply say what I mean in the first place, rather than depending on nudge-nudge-wink-wink-you-understand-what-I- really-mean. I think it's much easier to say what you mean literally and let people interpret it transparently than it is to use a "metaphorical" utterance and hope that people understand what you're getting at by using the metaphor. -- David W. Fenton http://dfenton.com David Fenton Associates http://dfenton.com/DFA/ _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list Finale@shsu.edu http://lists.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
