Re: A Fine Point

Charles Dickens (cdickens@RMPLC.CO.UK)
Thu, 15 Oct 1998 10:51:00 -0100 

My dear Mr Glendinning,

  You are missing something, in my judgment.  Esther is reticent, but is in
effect saying more than she wants to.  She interjects "at least" in an
effort to persuade her audience that what honesty is obliging her to divulge
is a mere detail, something that  reveals only what she knows and no more.
In fact it reveals much about the state of heart, which she would rather
conceal.  Her subterfuge is transparent and ineffectual.
  You write as if you suppose I intended Esther's narrative to be
all-knowing and open. Esther in fact is a complicated and, to my mind,
lovable character.  What she says needs to be interpreted with the help of
an understanding of her personality.


Faithfully yours,



Charles Dickens
____________________________________________________________________________
____________
>In a message dated 10/13/98 11:33:24 AM, cdickens@RMPLC.CO.UK writes:
>
><<Belief is sometimes the precursor of knowledge, and sometimes it isn't.
>You can believe something without knowing it, and subsequently have your
>believe confirmed by reliable information.  But you can also believe
>something and subsequently have it overturned by reliable information.>>
>
>||||||||
>...so far, so good
>||||||||
>
><<Esther starts to say she "believes" Alan Woodcourt not to be rich, and then
>corrects it to "knows," because she doesn't just believe, and it would be
>dishonest to imply she does.>>
>
>|||||||
>Alright, so in correcting herself, does she *want* us to believe that there is
>a deeper desire to "know" Allan Woodcourt?  If so, then I don't quite
>understand where you are going here:
>|||||||
>
><<She has been tempted to say "believe" because to say "know" lets a big cat
>out of the bag.  It indicates she has been interested enough to check up, and
>that reveals more of the state of her feelings than she is altogether happy
>with.>>
>
>||||||
>Maybe I am more dense than I give myself credit for, but it still seems to me
>rather confusing to use the term "at least."  By its use, it connotes to me
>something lesser rather than more.  If I have understood you correctly, then
>it would seem more appropriate for her to have said:
>
>"I believe -- no, I'm quite sure I know -- that he was not rich."
>
>Am I missing something?
>
>Sincerely,
>Charles Glendinning
>
>

======================
Charles Dickens
charles_dickens@rmplc.co.uk
Author