Is not clever wordplay disconnected from the external world? Is not indulging in one's cleverness narcissistic
No.
Or at least no more so than is inherent in all writing.
As for the good doctor Johnson, I would hesitate to use the inventor of the universal refutation as an authority when arguing against indulging in one's cleverness.
Faulkner is a similarly hypocritical source in a plea for clarity.
"Kill your darlings" isn't terrible advice, but taken alone it's as fatuous "write with verbs." Taken alone the basic idea is don't write anything you personally like, which is exactly the sort of life choice that quickly leads to a bottle.
Just to be clear: I didn't illustrate straightforwardness with that entire passage, but with one specific part:
One specific part preceded by a mountain of shit. I actually enjoy the straightfowardness of his "bad" writing doesn't actually work unless his "bad" writing is in fact straightforward, which is a shaky claim when the supporting evidence is a small fraction of a single very bad sentence.
Comments
Is not clever wordplay disconnected from the external world? Is not indulging in one's cleverness narcissistic
No.
Or at least no more so than is inherent in all writing.
As for the good doctor Johnson, I would hesitate to use the inventor of the universal refutation as an authority when arguing against indulging in one's cleverness.
Faulkner is a similarly hypocritical source in a plea for clarity.
"Kill your darlings" isn't terrible advice, but taken alone it's as fatuous "write with verbs." Taken alone the basic idea is don't write anything you personally like, which is exactly the sort of life choice that quickly leads to a bottle.
Just to be clear: I didn't illustrate straightforwardness with that entire passage, but with one specific part:
One specific part preceded by a mountain of shit. I actually enjoy the straightfowardness of his "bad" writing doesn't actually work unless his "bad" writing is in fact straightforward, which is a shaky claim when the supporting evidence is a small fraction of a single very bad sentence.
You have a point about the passage as a whole.
And also, yes, clever wordplay intended to amuse the reader is not narcissistic.