Subject
Re: Fwd: monopode and Pnin. Brazilain version
From
Date
Body
EDNOTE. Jansy's image of Brazilan "monopodal elf" follows in next message.
----------------------------------------
----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2005 16:34:04 -0300
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Subject: Re: Fwd: monopode and Pnin
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum Dear Victor Fet and List,
What a wonderful correction! I was surprised when I read about the Ethiopian
"monopodes" since in the Brazilian native folklore there is also a monopodal
elf named "Saci Pererê".
----- Original Message -----
From: "Donald B. Johnson" <chtodel@gss.ucsb.edu>
To: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Sent: Friday, August 12, 2005 2:45 PM
Subject: Fwd: monopode and Pnin
EDNOTE. A GEM! AND CHECK OUT THE IMAGES.
----- Forwarded message from fet@marshall.edu -----
Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2005 09:10:58 -0400
From: "Fet, Victor" <fet@marshall.edu>
Reply-To: "Fet, Victor" <fet@marshall.edu>
Subject: monopode and Pnin
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
Dear List:
I submit that "monopod(e)" is not (or rarely is used as) a zoological term
for a
sea creature with one foot (e.g. a snail, which has a foot but, not being
supposed to have more than one, rarely if ever is called a "monopode").
However, "monopod(e)" as given in many dictionaries and encyclopedias is a
fictional "one-footed person with foot large enough to be a sunshade"; "One
of
a fabulous tribe or race of Ethiopians having but one leg and foot", "a race
of
men fabled to have only one foot, with which they shaded themselves from the
heat of the sun, as described in Pliny's Natural History, VII, ii ". Also
called a sciopod.
http://www.imagesonline.bl.uk:
"Man of a monstrous tribe as described by Gaius Julius Solinus (fl. 250 AD)
.
They had one leg, but with a foot so large that it protected them from the
sun
by serving as a parasol.
A Beatus world map dated 1203 is attached
An illustration dated 1493 is also attached.
***************************
A good article is at
http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/monster_list.html
"Monopod (alias sciopod): The original version of the monopod legend appears
in
Pliny's Natural Histories, his series of Latin books dealing with the
wonders
of the biological and geological world. There, he describes how travellers
have
told him of the monopods, which have a broad-toed foot, with the toes curled
upward in a shape reminiscent of a little boat. Their extraordinary method
of
resting was lying flat on their backs with the single leg straight up in the
air like a parasol, protecting them from harsh sun or rain. They travelled
by
hopping from place to place, and they apparently lived in the antipodes
(i.e.,
the southern hemisphere). ... The legend did not spread very widely, but
the
monopod was resurrected in literature by C. S. Lewis' Christian fantasy
series,
The Chronicles of Narnia. Naming the creatures Dufflepods, he places them on
the
Island of the Voices, as reported in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
Aside from C. S. Lewis' book in English, most of the sources are in Latin,
and
they are not widely available in English translation. "
***************************
Additional reading: :)
Blickhan, R. and Full, R. J. (1993). Similarity in multilegged locomotion:
bouncing like a monopode. Journal of Comparative Physiology A 173, 509-517.
Victor Fet
Department of Biological Sciences
Marshall University
Huntington, WV 25755-2510 USA
ph. (304) 696-3116, fax (304) 696-3243
http://www.science.marshall.edu/fet/euscorpius/Fet.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Vladimir Nabokov Forum [mailto:NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU] On Behalf
Of
Donald B. Johnson
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2005 7:48 PM
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Re: Fwd: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
Date: Thu, 11 Aug 2005 17:36:45 -0300
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Subject: Re: Fwd: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
---------------- Message requiring your approval (168 lines)
------------------
There are other suggestions of a different kind of sensuous convergence in
VN.
If we select the sentence Carolyn Kunin has mailed to the list with her
prefatory observations included:
"All this discussion recalls a passage in Pnin in which a physician's ear
applied to a young Pnin's ailing chest ambulates about in the manner of a
sea-creature of some sort. A wonderful image combining attributes of sound
and
motion:
'Then Timofey's torso was bared, and to it Belochkin pressed the icy nudity
of
his ear and the sandpapery side of his head. Like the flat sole of some
monopode, the ear ambulated all over Timofey's back and chest, gluing itself
to
this or that patch of skin and stomping on to the next' ."
We find an aural peace while imagining an icy ear-shaped sea-creature, a
monopode, ambulating and gluing itself on Timofey´s torso, soon enhanced by
another suggestion, the fish ( a sole ) flattened at the bottom of a
sandpapery
sea. But then the fish becomes the base of a foot ( the foot
sole) and the silence turns into a "stomping".
As C.Kunin noted, while still reminiscing about an image "combining
attributes
of sound and motion", there are in the sentence she finally located in Pnin
all
sorts of sensuous elements blending and unfolding...
----- Original Message -----
From: "Donald B. Johnson" <chtodel@gss.ucsb.edu>
To: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2005 4:07 PM
Subject: Fwd: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
EDNOTE. VN's synaesthesia is described in Chapter II of SPEAK, MEMORY.
-----------------------------------
----- Forwarded message from spklein52@hotmail.com -----
Date: Wed, 10 Aug 2005 22:40:09 -0400
From: "Sandy P. Klein" <spklein52@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: SPKlein52@HotMail.com
Subject: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
http://www.health24.com/mind/Other/1284-1303,18442.asp[2] Red music and
chocolate-flavoured textures Health24.com, South Africa - 13 hours ago ...
Famous examples of synethetes include novelist Valdimir NABOKOV, composer
Franz
Liszt and artists David Hockney and Wassily Kandinsky.
...
[3] You are in: Health24[4] : Mind[5] : Other[6]
Red music and chocolate-flavoured textures
Imagine a world where you feel sounds, taste music or see letters
and
numbers in colour. This may sound strange to most of us, but for synesthetes
these perceptions are part of everyday life.
The word synesthesia (from the Greek words syn = together and
aesthesis
= perception) means "joined sensation". It is a condition in which different
senses mingle into one. One sense modality reliably causes an additional
perception in a different sense or senses.
DIFFERENT TYPES
It takes different forms. Nineteen different combinations have been
identified.
But the combinations are almost limitless because a synesthete may have more
than one form of the condition.
The most common form appears to be seeing colours in numbers and/or
letters. This is called colour-language synesthesia. But other less common
experiences are also possible. A synesthete may report that she feels piano
music tickling her cheeks or that a person's voice tastes like chutney.
In most cases, the sensation is triggered by external stimuli but in
some cases it could be purely internal, such as associating the concept of a
day or year with a sensory experience.
The sensory association is usually projected outside of the body,
such
as seeing the letter in colour, rather than in the mind's eye.
INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCE
Synesthesia is a highly subjective, individualised experience.
Colour-language synesthetes, for example, don't agree on which colour goes
with
which number or letter. However, a remarkable number agree that the letter
"o"
is white.
Intra-sensory associations remain constant throughout the person's
life.
For example, someone who sees a number in green will always see this number
in
the same colour. In a study in 1993, synesthetes were 92% consistent in
linking
certain colours with certain sounds after a year. Non-synesthetes on the
other
hand were only 32% accurate after only one week.
The condition is involuntary and sensory associations cannot be
suppressed. However, some people are able to ignore the associations.
This condition starts in childhood - in fact, synesthetes usually
say
that they have had this condition since they can remember.
Synesthetes typically think that everyone else perceives the world in the
same
way and only find out much later that their experience is unique. Because
synesthesia is so unknown and misunderstood, many people keep quiet about
their
condition for fear of ridicule or being misdiagnosed as psychotic.
BETTER MEMORIES
Synesthesia is not a psychiatric disorder. Synesthetes are fully functional
and
psychologically stable, are usually highly intelligent and have excellent
memories. The synesthetic associations help them to remember telephone
numbers,
appointments, names and the like. However, they may have minor difficulties
with
mathematics. Some also struggle with spacial navigation such as
distinguishing
left from right or following directions.
There is no treatment for this condition. Even if there were, most
synesthetes would not want to be treated as they see their condition as a
gift
and an aid which optimises their functioning. In fact, many describe
non-synesthetes as seeing the world in black and white.
WHAT CAUSES IT?
The exact cause is not yet known. Synesthesia is a very difficult condition
to
study because research is anecdotal and has relied on self-report. What we
know
is that it is unlearned and involuntary. We also know that it has a genetic
cause - many synesthetes have parents or siblings with the condition.
Some believe that all people are born synesthetes and have many
neural
connections between different areas of the brain. In non-synesthetes, many
of
the cross-wiring dissapear and the areas of the brain become more separated.
In
people with synesthesia, these connections remain for the rest of their
lives.
Recently, researchers have begun to study this phenomenon by using
magnetic resonance brain imaging (MRI). It has been reported that images of
the
brains of colour-language synesthetes or those who report coloured hearing,
show
increased activation of the colour-processing areas of the cortex in
response to
the triggering stimulus.
A form of synesthesia can be acquired later in life. Acquired
synesthesia is seen in temporal lobe epilepsy, head trauma, and mass lesions
affecting the medial temporal lobe. It may also be induced temporarily by
sensory deprivation, antiserotonergic hallucinogens such as LSD and peyote,
or
direct electrical stimulation of subcortical limbic structures.
WHO HAS THIS CONDITION?
No-one knows how prevalent this condition is. Estimates vary from between
one in
2 000 and one in 25 000 people. It is more common in women than in men and
left-handed people are more affected.
Famous examples of synethetes include novelist Valdimir Nabokov,
composer Franz Liszt and artists David Hockney and Wassily Kandinsky.
- (Ilse Pauw, health24 writer)
Post a question to Cybershrink.
[7]
Links:
------
[1] http://www.health24.com/
[2] http://www.health24.com/mind/Other/1284-1303,18442.asp
[3] http://www.media24digital.com/
[4] http://www.health24.com/default.asp
[5] http://www.health24.com/mind/1284.asp
[6] http://www.health24.com/mind/Other/1284-1303.asp
[7] http://www.hon.ch/HONcode/Conduct.html?HONConduct564544
----- End forwarded message -----
----- End forwarded message -----
----- End forwarded message -----
----- End forwarded message -----
----------------------------------------
----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2005 16:34:04 -0300
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Subject: Re: Fwd: monopode and Pnin
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum Dear Victor Fet and List,
What a wonderful correction! I was surprised when I read about the Ethiopian
"monopodes" since in the Brazilian native folklore there is also a monopodal
elf named "Saci Pererê".
----- Original Message -----
From: "Donald B. Johnson" <chtodel@gss.ucsb.edu>
To: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Sent: Friday, August 12, 2005 2:45 PM
Subject: Fwd: monopode and Pnin
EDNOTE. A GEM! AND CHECK OUT THE IMAGES.
----- Forwarded message from fet@marshall.edu -----
Date: Fri, 12 Aug 2005 09:10:58 -0400
From: "Fet, Victor" <fet@marshall.edu>
Reply-To: "Fet, Victor" <fet@marshall.edu>
Subject: monopode and Pnin
To: Vladimir Nabokov Forum
Dear List:
I submit that "monopod(e)" is not (or rarely is used as) a zoological term
for a
sea creature with one foot (e.g. a snail, which has a foot but, not being
supposed to have more than one, rarely if ever is called a "monopode").
However, "monopod(e)" as given in many dictionaries and encyclopedias is a
fictional "one-footed person with foot large enough to be a sunshade"; "One
of
a fabulous tribe or race of Ethiopians having but one leg and foot", "a race
of
men fabled to have only one foot, with which they shaded themselves from the
heat of the sun, as described in Pliny's Natural History, VII, ii ". Also
called a sciopod.
http://www.imagesonline.bl.uk:
"Man of a monstrous tribe as described by Gaius Julius Solinus (fl. 250 AD)
.
They had one leg, but with a foot so large that it protected them from the
sun
by serving as a parasol.
A Beatus world map dated 1203 is attached
An illustration dated 1493 is also attached.
***************************
A good article is at
http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/monster_list.html
"Monopod (alias sciopod): The original version of the monopod legend appears
in
Pliny's Natural Histories, his series of Latin books dealing with the
wonders
of the biological and geological world. There, he describes how travellers
have
told him of the monopods, which have a broad-toed foot, with the toes curled
upward in a shape reminiscent of a little boat. Their extraordinary method
of
resting was lying flat on their backs with the single leg straight up in the
air like a parasol, protecting them from harsh sun or rain. They travelled
by
hopping from place to place, and they apparently lived in the antipodes
(i.e.,
the southern hemisphere). ... The legend did not spread very widely, but
the
monopod was resurrected in literature by C. S. Lewis' Christian fantasy
series,
The Chronicles of Narnia. Naming the creatures Dufflepods, he places them on
the
Island of the Voices, as reported in the Voyage of the Dawn Treader.
Aside from C. S. Lewis' book in English, most of the sources are in Latin,
and
they are not widely available in English translation. "
***************************
Additional reading: :)
Blickhan, R. and Full, R. J. (1993). Similarity in multilegged locomotion:
bouncing like a monopode. Journal of Comparative Physiology A 173, 509-517.
Victor Fet
Department of Biological Sciences
Marshall University
Huntington, WV 25755-2510 USA
ph. (304) 696-3116, fax (304) 696-3243
http://www.science.marshall.edu/fet/euscorpius/Fet.htm
-----Original Message-----
From: Vladimir Nabokov Forum [mailto:NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU] On Behalf
Of
Donald B. Johnson
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2005 7:48 PM
To: NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU
Subject: Re: Fwd: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
----- Forwarded message from jansy@aetern.us -----
Date: Thu, 11 Aug 2005 17:36:45 -0300
From: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Reply-To: Jansy Berndt de Souza Mello <jansy@aetern.us>
Subject: Re: Fwd: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
---------------- Message requiring your approval (168 lines)
------------------
There are other suggestions of a different kind of sensuous convergence in
VN.
If we select the sentence Carolyn Kunin has mailed to the list with her
prefatory observations included:
"All this discussion recalls a passage in Pnin in which a physician's ear
applied to a young Pnin's ailing chest ambulates about in the manner of a
sea-creature of some sort. A wonderful image combining attributes of sound
and
motion:
'Then Timofey's torso was bared, and to it Belochkin pressed the icy nudity
of
his ear and the sandpapery side of his head. Like the flat sole of some
monopode, the ear ambulated all over Timofey's back and chest, gluing itself
to
this or that patch of skin and stomping on to the next' ."
We find an aural peace while imagining an icy ear-shaped sea-creature, a
monopode, ambulating and gluing itself on Timofey´s torso, soon enhanced by
another suggestion, the fish ( a sole ) flattened at the bottom of a
sandpapery
sea. But then the fish becomes the base of a foot ( the foot
sole) and the silence turns into a "stomping".
As C.Kunin noted, while still reminiscing about an image "combining
attributes
of sound and motion", there are in the sentence she finally located in Pnin
all
sorts of sensuous elements blending and unfolding...
----- Original Message -----
From: "Donald B. Johnson" <chtodel@gss.ucsb.edu>
To: <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU>
Sent: Thursday, August 11, 2005 4:07 PM
Subject: Fwd: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
EDNOTE. VN's synaesthesia is described in Chapter II of SPEAK, MEMORY.
-----------------------------------
----- Forwarded message from spklein52@hotmail.com -----
Date: Wed, 10 Aug 2005 22:40:09 -0400
From: "Sandy P. Klein" <spklein52@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: SPKlein52@HotMail.com
Subject: synesthesia & Nabokov ...
http://www.health24.com/mind/Other/1284-1303,18442.asp[2] Red music and
chocolate-flavoured textures Health24.com, South Africa - 13 hours ago ...
Famous examples of synethetes include novelist Valdimir NABOKOV, composer
Franz
Liszt and artists David Hockney and Wassily Kandinsky.
...
[3] You are in: Health24[4] : Mind[5] : Other[6]
Red music and chocolate-flavoured textures
Imagine a world where you feel sounds, taste music or see letters
and
numbers in colour. This may sound strange to most of us, but for synesthetes
these perceptions are part of everyday life.
The word synesthesia (from the Greek words syn = together and
aesthesis
= perception) means "joined sensation". It is a condition in which different
senses mingle into one. One sense modality reliably causes an additional
perception in a different sense or senses.
DIFFERENT TYPES
It takes different forms. Nineteen different combinations have been
identified.
But the combinations are almost limitless because a synesthete may have more
than one form of the condition.
The most common form appears to be seeing colours in numbers and/or
letters. This is called colour-language synesthesia. But other less common
experiences are also possible. A synesthete may report that she feels piano
music tickling her cheeks or that a person's voice tastes like chutney.
In most cases, the sensation is triggered by external stimuli but in
some cases it could be purely internal, such as associating the concept of a
day or year with a sensory experience.
The sensory association is usually projected outside of the body,
such
as seeing the letter in colour, rather than in the mind's eye.
INDIVIDUAL EXPERIENCE
Synesthesia is a highly subjective, individualised experience.
Colour-language synesthetes, for example, don't agree on which colour goes
with
which number or letter. However, a remarkable number agree that the letter
"o"
is white.
Intra-sensory associations remain constant throughout the person's
life.
For example, someone who sees a number in green will always see this number
in
the same colour. In a study in 1993, synesthetes were 92% consistent in
linking
certain colours with certain sounds after a year. Non-synesthetes on the
other
hand were only 32% accurate after only one week.
The condition is involuntary and sensory associations cannot be
suppressed. However, some people are able to ignore the associations.
This condition starts in childhood - in fact, synesthetes usually
say
that they have had this condition since they can remember.
Synesthetes typically think that everyone else perceives the world in the
same
way and only find out much later that their experience is unique. Because
synesthesia is so unknown and misunderstood, many people keep quiet about
their
condition for fear of ridicule or being misdiagnosed as psychotic.
BETTER MEMORIES
Synesthesia is not a psychiatric disorder. Synesthetes are fully functional
and
psychologically stable, are usually highly intelligent and have excellent
memories. The synesthetic associations help them to remember telephone
numbers,
appointments, names and the like. However, they may have minor difficulties
with
mathematics. Some also struggle with spacial navigation such as
distinguishing
left from right or following directions.
There is no treatment for this condition. Even if there were, most
synesthetes would not want to be treated as they see their condition as a
gift
and an aid which optimises their functioning. In fact, many describe
non-synesthetes as seeing the world in black and white.
WHAT CAUSES IT?
The exact cause is not yet known. Synesthesia is a very difficult condition
to
study because research is anecdotal and has relied on self-report. What we
know
is that it is unlearned and involuntary. We also know that it has a genetic
cause - many synesthetes have parents or siblings with the condition.
Some believe that all people are born synesthetes and have many
neural
connections between different areas of the brain. In non-synesthetes, many
of
the cross-wiring dissapear and the areas of the brain become more separated.
In
people with synesthesia, these connections remain for the rest of their
lives.
Recently, researchers have begun to study this phenomenon by using
magnetic resonance brain imaging (MRI). It has been reported that images of
the
brains of colour-language synesthetes or those who report coloured hearing,
show
increased activation of the colour-processing areas of the cortex in
response to
the triggering stimulus.
A form of synesthesia can be acquired later in life. Acquired
synesthesia is seen in temporal lobe epilepsy, head trauma, and mass lesions
affecting the medial temporal lobe. It may also be induced temporarily by
sensory deprivation, antiserotonergic hallucinogens such as LSD and peyote,
or
direct electrical stimulation of subcortical limbic structures.
WHO HAS THIS CONDITION?
No-one knows how prevalent this condition is. Estimates vary from between
one in
2 000 and one in 25 000 people. It is more common in women than in men and
left-handed people are more affected.
Famous examples of synethetes include novelist Valdimir Nabokov,
composer Franz Liszt and artists David Hockney and Wassily Kandinsky.
- (Ilse Pauw, health24 writer)
Post a question to Cybershrink.
[7]
Links:
------
[1] http://www.health24.com/
[2] http://www.health24.com/mind/Other/1284-1303,18442.asp
[3] http://www.media24digital.com/
[4] http://www.health24.com/default.asp
[5] http://www.health24.com/mind/1284.asp
[6] http://www.health24.com/mind/Other/1284-1303.asp
[7] http://www.hon.ch/HONcode/Conduct.html?HONConduct564544
----- End forwarded message -----
----- End forwarded message -----
----- End forwarded message -----
----- End forwarded message -----
