semantics and semen-tics

[In sff.net, we're talking about structural linguistics and Hemingway's first marriage . . . ]


Dave, I'm sure in another life you were a structural linguist. And you challenged Noam Chomsky to a duel, morphemes at dawn. The morphemes you chose were ambiguous, and you both won.

For what it's worth, although I'm not familiar with the book, the morphemes (paris), (wife), and (hemingway) open up a cascade of associations. I could sit here without opening a single reference and write you a thousand words about Hemingway and his first wife, Hadley. Most of the words would be about Paris, where they loved passionately and doted on their first baby, Bumby (conceived in Paris but born in Canada, and returned to Paris; I met him in Key West in the 70's) – and where Hadley unfortunately met and befriended Pauline Pfeiffer. Hemingway fell for Pauline like a ton of baguettes and the trio experimented with a three-way relationship in 1926, which didn't work, and Hadley became the Paris ex-wife.

Just before he died, Hemingway said he still loved Hadley best, three wives and god knows how many women later. He was no doubt drinking at the time, but veritas is where you find it.

Joe