Giving solidity to pure wind - Temporising as transformation
At a Glance
Section titled âAt a Glanceâ| Metadata | Details |
|---|---|
| Publication Date | 2015-04-29 |
| Journal | TEXT |
| Authors | Julia Prendergast |
| Institutions | Film Independent |
| Citations | 1 |
Abstract
Section titled âAbstractâJared Diamond asked the acclaimed evolutionary biologist Ernst Mayr (1904-2005) why Aristotle didnât come up with the theory of evolution. Mayrâs answer was âFrage stellenâ which Diamond translates as âa way of asking questions [sic]â (Byrne 2013). The idea that a particular way-of-asking might generate a particular way-of-knowing and, indeed, a particular branch-of-knowledge, is utterly intriguing, especially when we frame the practice of creative writing in those terms: as a way of asking questions. Drusilla Modjeska unpacks the concept of âtemporisingâ in her article âWriting Poppyâ (Modjeska 2002: 75). This discussion invites us to consider the generative capabilities of the temporising space - as an imaginative space for writers, as an alternate way of asking questions ⌠of seeing, being, knowing. In narrative, the questions that underpin the work do not necessarily appear in the surface-content of the text. In this way, the story is a metaphorical representation of the questions that lie beneath. As Aristotle suggests, metaphor relies on âan intuitive perception of the similarity [to homoion theorein] in dissimilarsâ (Ricoeur 1977: 23). In narrative we contemplate a question, or an idea, within the context of a metaphorical other. This is a form of temporising: of âslip[ping] into other time framesâ as a means of âretreat[ing] and consider[ing]â (Modjeska 2002: 75, 76). In narrative time, we consider one thing through an alternate temporal lens. We prevaricate in otherness. Fiction-making represents a very particular way of asking questions. With reference to the process of writing the short story - âEverything that matters is silvery whiteâ - it is clear that âmakingâ narrative is a way of asking questions that is assisted by the transformative temporising space.