RE: MD MoQ platypuses

From: David Buchanan (DBuchanan@ClassicalRadio.org)
Date: Sun Sep 14 2003 - 01:33:22 BST

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    -----Original Message-----
    From: MATTHEW PAUL KUNDERT [mailto:mpkundert@students.wisc.edu]
    Sent: Tuesday, September 02, 2003 2:51 PM
    To: moq_discuss@moq.org
    Subject: Re: MD MoQ platypuses
    Matt and all muscular readers:

    DMB asked Matt how a "strong misreading" is different than mere dishonesty.

    Matt answered:
    It has to do with intention. "A “strong misreading” is a stance taken
    towards a text. The critic asks neither the author nor the text about their
    intentions but simply beats the text into a shape which will serve his own
    purpose. ... He does this by imposing a vocabulary ... on the text which may
    have nothing to do with any vocabulary used in the text or by its author,
    and seeing what happens.  The model here is not the curious collector of
    clever gadgets taking them apart to see what makes them work and carefully
    ignoring any extrinsic end they may have, but the psychoanalyst blithely
    interpreting a dream or a joke as a symptom of homicidal mania.”

    dmb says:
    Imposing a vocabulary which may have nothing to do with the text or its
    author just to see what happens? Why would one want to do that? What the
    point of doing such a thing? How could the product of such an exercise be
    anything other than a narcissistic fantasy of little of no value to anyone?
    How is such an exercise legitimate? I mean, how is it NOT just a profound,
    even if intentional, misinterpretaion? Seriously? These are NOT rhetorical
    questions. I really don't get it. Like I said, how is this different that
    mere dishonesty? You see what I'm asking, don't you?

    And you said that Pirsig does this? Why not show it to me?

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