The language of the psychiatric assessment is mixed with that of the tax form in a heady brew of four-syllable words meaning “nice.” The author’s long struggle to master the stilted, deracinated language of officialdom has left him believing that writing must be flat and lifeless to be smart. Especially indigestible is the version in which said language is employed with an intrepid disregard for its actual meaning (see “The Crepuscular Handbag,” chapter 8).
