poetry and proverbs

[marycatelli]

To expand from the comments on the allusions post. . . .

Sometimes you want your characters to quote proverbs and recite poetry.  This can be a problem.


For one thing, poetry should sound like it comes from that era.  And the prosy-inclined may find it hard to write at all. 

Proverbs are worse.  Proverbs should not only sound proverbial but sound wise.  This can be regarded as the problem with sages distilled to a single line -- the fearful danger of exposing the depths of your shallowness by what you think wise.

So -- perhaps rip them off?  Figure out a real-world counterpart to your setting and use that?  But unlike ripping off real-world sages' sagacity, you have to rip them off word for word, and that makes it clearer where the theft is.  Which means it may read like an allusion to something no one in the world should know. . . .

Comments

[izuko.livejournal.com]

Could be fun to intentionally go the other way. Bad poetry. Silly proverbs.

"Is that Vogon poetry?"

"Worse; it's Nickleback."

[marycatelli]

true, though that opens the can of worms of whether you can be funny as comic relief, without turning the whole work funny.

Unless you wanted to, of course.

[lightningnettle.livejournal.com]

Perhaps have them translate the poetry from another language in the world? With apologies for not getting the beauty of the original, but trying for the spirit? That way you don't have to be a superb poet, or a comic.

For proverbs, try stealing them from another language than the one in which you write; one your readers are unlikely to know, every culture has wisdom after all, most have distilled some of it into pithy phrases.

[marycatelli]

Proverbs? It's amazing how they get around.

But for poetry, why would people quote poetry from another language in-universe? Because that would need an in-universe explanation for why they have none of their own, or instead opt for a clumsier translation.

[lightningnettle.livejournal.com]

For the same sorts of reasons people quote Greek or Roman poetry in our world, to show that they are educated or because it suits the situation better than what they know of their own poetry. Possibly because they are talking to someone from a third culture who would know "classics" of the ancient world but not necessarily those of the speaker's culture.

[marycatelli]

Ah, but all those are specific situations, not necessarily applicable. For instance, there are the uneducated.

[john-j-enright.livejournal.com]

"Prosy-inclined"... nice phrasing on that!

[marycatelli]

Glad you like it!