At first the Lacedaemonians trusted the words of Themistocles, through their friendship for him; but when others arrived, all distinctly declaring that the work was going on and already attaining some elevation, they did not know how to disbelieve it.
Thucydides: The History of the Peloponnesian War
"O Conspiracy,
Sham’st thou to show thy dang’rous brow by night,
When evils are most free?"
Julius Caesar by Shakespeare
"At the same time, we tend to take pleasure in the notion that great men are, in various ways, human, all too human"
Nietzsche, Beyond Good and Evil (Pg. 23 is in the Introduction)
'What do you mean?' asked Gerstäcker uncomprehendingly, but without waiting for an answer he spoke to the horse and they moved on again.
"In his working clothes, Joe was a well-knit characteristic-looking blacksmith; in his holiday clothes, he was more like a scarecrow in good circumstances, than anything else."
Charles Dickens, Great Expectations.
"They were called criminals, and the outraged law, like the bursting shells had to come to them, an insoluble mystery from the sea."
Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
What a fabulous thread to stumble upon, right after registration! Also Hi everyone :-)
"They were the only group that consistently refused to acknowledge the gods of their neighbours, send gifts to their temples or participate in festivals honouring these gods."
From - A Convenient Hatred: The History of Antisemitism by Harold Evans and Phyllis Goldstein
I know, great thread, isn't it.
Welcome :wave:
I pay my taxes and insurance myself.
'He loved to consort with low people.'
Doctor Thorne, Anthony Trollope, 1858
She learned circumspection, judgement, the need for strict self-control and the virtues of silence - but also the necessity to speak out for herself, with all her courage and eloquence, when the occasion demanded.
Bit of synchronicity here:
"The cold was bitter; he guessed several degrees of frost already, and the worst of the night was still to come." -- Pavane by Keith Roberts.
They don't believe in God, but they pretend to because their charges, they think, need this belief.
The Problem of the Soul, Owen Flanagan, 2002
One thing that makes this a great thread is the great writing it contains, proof that great writers make every sentence, every word, count.
...then rolled a joint, lit up the dollar/franc debate.
Having Fled the Cite Universitaire - Robert Graves
I looked like I wasn't at a cocktail party but an airport, waiting for my life to take off.
"Interpreter, this is Lavonnya over at Triple A."
Here, indeed, was a map of a kind, presumptuous where it was not a blank.
Il fit sensation.
Can anyone here please explain to me why this thread is so popular? What possible significance does "the 4th sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside my hand" have to do with anything? What is the importance of its revelation to anyone living or dead? What insights or contribution does it make to the world of literature or anything else? Why would anyone take the time to look up and then post "the 4th Sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside his or her hand?
I realize I'm getting old but has the world changed so much in my lifetime that people in the present would consider taking the time to look up and post " the 4th Sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside their hand"? Is anyone actually and seriously interested in what "the 4th Sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside anyone's hand" actually says?
I think its just a random game/thread that gets members talking and also encourages people to discuss what they are reading at the moment.
Its not particularly sensible but I have never been a fan of being sensible :smile5:
Good Sunday morning DATo and welcome. This thread caught my eye sometime back to the point that I’ve been compelled to contribute from time to time. Below I offered my thoughts to your questions.Quote:
Originally Posted by DATo
1..Can anyone here please explain to me why this thread is so popular?
R: It’s a catchy, random little respite from the more heady threads out there.
Think of it as a perpetual double dutch jump rope game taking place in the alley. There you are out on the forum bogged down in a scrum against Joyce, Plato, Tolstoy, etc., suddenly you desire to break out for a brief moment of mindless fun.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Isx1Q5wyJZg
2..What possible significance does "the 4th sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside my hand" have to do with anything?
R:..No more than the 8th sentence on the 46th page, but again; it’s the randomness at play here.
3..What is the importance of its revelation to anyone living or dead?
R:..For the living, a glimpse into the life of the poster such as their reading interests, trends. Maybe spark interest toward a book or author for a young reader that happens by.
For the dead, authors at least, the name lives on. Can we name the 23rd Spartan out of 300? (Here’s where Calidor will jump in with the name), but we know damn well who wrote Hamlet. (or do we?...duhn, duhn, duhhhn). My post below, brings back fond memories of my deceased father.
4..What insights or contribution does it make to the world of literature or anything else?
R:..See number 3 response for the living, particularly the young reader.
5..Why would anyone take the time to look up and then post "the 4th Sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside his or her hand?
R:..See response to number 1 above. I’ll add that given the stipulation that the book is readily available beside the hand, the time to find the sentence is drastically reduced versus, let’s say, having to go the library and find the book beside your hand.
6..I realize I'm getting old but has the world changed so much in my lifetime that people in the present would consider taking the time to look up and post " the 4th Sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside their hand"?
R:..For us old timers, (I’m 51 can I consider myself OT?) I actually admire those people of the present, presuming you are referring to younger people, who take time to disconnect from the Gaga’s, gadgets and post Goldsmith.
7…Is anyone actually and seriously interested in what "the 4th Sentence on the 23rd page of the book beside anyone's hand" actually says?
R:..Let’s thank God on this beautiful Sunday morning, we have a few, albeit endangered species left, who would still take interest in “the 4th sentence on the 23rd page…”
Consider the large chunk of society, that invasive species, who would rather spend time Keeping Up With the Kardashians
------------
Whew…okay here’s what I found by my hand…
(click on thumbnail for larger image)
Page 23 turned out to be a table showing the performance of the 4th stage “Altair” motor.
http://i963.photobucket.com/albums/a...ps0018cc24.jpg
http://i963.photobucket.com/albums/a...pscff29e76.jpg
My father was a literal rocket scientist who, for most of his career, was guidance systems engineer for the Scout missile program. I happened to have a stack of mementos on the desk, including this^ manual on Scout published by NASA in 1960.
You mean to say you don't know that everything points to 23!Quote:
Originally Posted by DATo
I thought everyone did?!
According to Douglas Adams it points to 42 *LOL*Quote:
Originally Posted by MajorLordRoxbro
That's Life, the Universe and Everything, not,Quote:
Originally Posted by DATo
The Number 23 is a 2007 American psychological thriller film written by Fernley Phillips and directed by Joel Schumacher. The film starred Jim Carrey. It was subsequently released on DVD on July 24, 2007 (23 July in the UK), and premiered on HBO on Saturday April 19, 2008.
"You go to hell," José Arcadio Buendia shouted at him.
After a long time, forever and ever, she found herself safe among the lions. -- The Chalk Girl by Carol O'Connell
"What is the count of the scores or hundreds of years between us?" (Walt Whitman - Crossing Brooklyn Ferry) - Norton Anthology of American Literature, Seventh Edition, Volume C.
As yet, the cautious critic may well regard the one as a fantastic experiment of "mental philosophy," and the other as a mere fashion in logic and epistemology.
Susanne Langer - Philosophy in a New Key
They call it reaction time. -- The Inner Wheel by Keith Roberts
Fourth complete sentence?...
There's a college off in the distance and there are roads you are now free to travel.
Eighteen In Cross-country Odyssey by Benjamin Anderson
Only book beside me.
"apple-pie order has little to do with the culinary arts."
From Morris Dictionary of Word and Phrase Origins
The entry continues on with describing etymology and what not, behind the phrase.
When one journeys from one homestead to the next nothing seems more likely than that they all bear the same name and that the same man and the same woman work them all; yet that is not so.
Most of us grew up speaking a language that encourages us to label, compare, demand, and pronounce judgements rather than to be aware of what we are feeling and needing.
Non-Violent Communication: A Language o Life, Marshall B. Rosenberg
And because no one answered or cared and a conversation went on without her, she felt profoundly lonely, suspecting once more for herself a particular doom of exclusion.
She was referring to an old-fashioned bicycle of Mama's that I sometimes used.
She is not one of us; she is not like us.
Le substitut du procureur s ecria, d un ton narquois.
This result of her long and persistent economy seemed gigantic.
"Chuck takes one step, grabs Derek by the upper arm and lifts him off the floor like a stick." No good comes of this, of course.
It was not in the room known at the red house as Mr. Royall's "office" that he received his infrequent clients.