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hiromichi
Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 1380
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 Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 1:51 pm Post subject: metaphor |
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What does "the hobgoblin of little minds" represent?
How can you not like a book that offers the following characterization of the illustrious Bertrand Russell's notorious inconsistency? ''There is nothing like a timely death to lend vigor and consistency to a life's work. Russell had to contend with staying alive; and by the time he was ninety, consistency must have seemed to him less like the hobgoblin of little minds than the hallmark of a short life.''
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ESL-ish
Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 44
Location: Arizona
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| Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 2:23 pm Post subject: |
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Here's a good definition, and the origonal quote!
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hob�gob�lin (hŏb'gŏb'lĭn):
1..An ugly, mischievous elf or goblin.
2. An object or a source of fear, dread, or harassment; a bugbear: �A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds� (Ralph Waldo Emerson). |
http://www.answers.com/hobgoblin&r=67
hobgoblin of little minds = a source of fear, dread or harrassment that is harbored by people with little or no understanding.
In other words, people with little or no understanding accuse Bertrand Russel of being inconsisitant. This makes Russel feel uncomforatble because it is an unflattering accusation.
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hiromichi
Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 1380
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| Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 2:41 pm Post subject: |
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ESL-ish, Thank you, but still I can not understand in what point Russel is inconsistent.
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Philo Kevetch
Joined: 01 Feb 2006
Posts: 564
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| Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 5:22 pm Post subject: |
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Hello Hiromichi -
His "most notorious inconsistency"......
he was a noted pacifist and anti-war activist......
yet, wrote "Humanitys' Last Chance" and, along with Bernard Baruch (et. al.), the "Baruch Plan" proposing pre-emptive nuclear strikes against the Soviet Union after World War ll.
If memory serves....he also found a little religion "on his deathbed". Philo |
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hiromichi
Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 1380
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| Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 5:39 pm Post subject: |
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Philo Kevetch、Ｔｈａｎｋ ｙｏｕ ｆｏｒ ｙｏｕｒ ｒｅｓｐｏｎｓｅ．
I can not organize the following elements.
Ｈａｄ Ｒｕｓｓｅｌｌ ｈａｖｅ ｄｉｅｄ ｅａｒｌｉｅｒ， ｈｅ ｃｏｕｌｄ ｈａｖｅ ａｖｏｉｄｅｄ ｉｎｃｏｎｓｉｓｔｅｎｃｙ． Ｂｕｔ ｈｅ ｄｉｅｄ ｍｕｃｈ ｌａｔｅｒ.
Consistecy is to be feared by little minds because it means earlier death
To Russel consistency is a hallmark of a short life.
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ESL-ish
Joined: 07 Nov 2006
Posts: 44
Location: Arizona
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| Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 10:09 pm Post subject: |
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I'll try to break it down for you.
Let's go back to the original sentences.
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| ''There is nothing like a timely death to lend vigor and consistency to a life's work. '' |
"There is nothing like..." introduces something that is best.
"a timely death" means a death that was on time, or at a good time
"to lend" is another way of saying "to give"
"vigor" = strength
"consistancy" = never contradicting oneself
"a life's work" = the entire collection of an author's writings.
You could rewrite this in simpler terms: Someone who lives a short life doesn't have enough time to write weak pieces or contradict himself.
next sentence
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| Russell had to contend with staying alive; and by the time he was ninety, consistency must have seemed to him less like the hobgoblin of little minds than the hallmark of a short life. |
"Russell had to contend with staying alive" Russell had to struggle with the difficulty of staying alive for a long time because he lived to be 90 years old.
"consistency ... like the hobgoblin of little minds" Some people say that if you think consisitancy is the most important thing, it's because you have a small mind.
"and by the time he was ninety, consistency must have seemed to him less" = By the time he was ninety years old, he must have had a different view of what consisitancy really was.
"than the hallmark of a short life" = Russel must have thought that consistancy was a sign that you had lived a short life.
Notice how much shorter the original sentence is. By using powerful words like "contend" and "hallmark" as well as different clause structures and a reference to a famous statement, the author has made his point very efficiently.
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hiromichi
Joined: 12 Oct 2005
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| Posted: Thu Nov 16, 2006 11:06 pm Post subject: |
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ESL-ish, Now I am clear what the passage means. Thank you very much for your patience and valuable lesson.
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