tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21999805.post2451204363028727594..comments2024-03-28T11:28:31.364-05:00Comments on Anecdotal Evidence: `The Ornament of Beauty is Suspect'Patrick Kurphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08436175583386298032noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21999805.post-15885484812140296642010-08-04T17:49:50.190-05:002010-08-04T17:49:50.190-05:00Clearly, the antecedent for “crow” in Sonnet 70 is...Clearly, the antecedent for “crow” in Sonnet 70 is “ornament,” which corresponds to the “slander’s mark,” connoting the perception of a something small but noticeable to challenge the youth’s perfection. <br /><br />I don’t see a negative judgment of crows, here. For that I’d go to Ted Hughes, who wrote a whole book on crows as the most human of the animals, fooling itself, fighting creation, denied consciousness of immortality, living what he called “the story of mind exiled from nature.”<br /><br />Here’s one in the series:<br /><br />Crow’s Fall<br />When Crow was white he decided the sun was too white.<br />He decided it glared much too whitely.<br />He decided to attack it and defeat it.<br /><br />He got his strength up flush and in full glitter.<br />He clawed and fluffed his rage up.<br />He aimed his beak direct at the sun's centre.<br /><br />He laughed himself to the centre of himself<br /><br />And attacked.<br /><br />At his battle cry trees grew suddenly old,<br />Shadows flattened.<br /><br />But the sun brightened—<br />It brightened, and Crow returned charred black.<br /><br />He opened his mouth but what came out was charred black.<br /><br />"Up there," he managed,<br />"Where white is black and black is white, I won."WAShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10403669322174979974noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21999805.post-52633064248744476102010-08-04T08:26:40.099-05:002010-08-04T08:26:40.099-05:00On birds and spicy food:
http://books.google.com/...On birds and spicy food:<br /><br /><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=DbahEn-y6AoC&pg=PA410&dq=birds+spicy+food&hl=en&ei=WlxZTKf-BMiMnQfK_MyaCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=birds%20spicy%20food&f=false" rel="nofollow">http://books.google.com/books?id=DbahEn-y6AoC&pg=PA410&dq=birds+spicy+food&hl=en&ei=WlxZTKf-BMiMnQfK_MyaCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8&ved=0CFIQ6AEwBw#v=onepage&q=birds%20spicy%20food&f=false</a>Dave Lullhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01053227199985293516noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21999805.post-9564455227561946412010-08-04T06:42:05.124-05:002010-08-04T06:42:05.124-05:00Interesting. I've never seen it in demonstrate...Interesting. I've never seen it in demonstrated in action, but it's down to birds not having receptors sensitive to capsaicin: see <a href="http://www.straightdope.com/columns/read/1857/are-birds-immune-to-hot-pepper-enabling-them-to-eat-vast-amounts-and-spread-the-seeds" rel="nofollow">The Straight Dope</a>.Ray Girvanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05556764642402680159noreply@blogger.com