UN-ERRING IMPROVEMENT: SO-CALLED MISQUOTING
What turns banal, supposed statements of fact into bold hypotheses of chance? What steals away platitude, and, slipping in its place the hard-to-ponder, delivers us the possibility of wisdom from on-high, and on the cheap? What, by the seemingly systematic application of distraction and inattention, as opposed to the Old Adversary, Effort, makes probable a paradisiacal parody of progress? The almost un-erring improvement of so-called misquoting–that’s what.
Forgive me this modest example:
For a piece on the Fiery Furnaces in New York’s The Village Voice, Matt Friedberger said, in admiration of walking and denigration of riding, something like this: “I think the bicycle—the rhythm of bike riding as opposed to stepping—is antithetical to the spirit of English prose, or of verse, rhythm.”
The sentence has the merit of being inelegantly expressed. But surely the credit for that goes to inexperience in improvisation. (In other words, the dull company one finds oneself in.) Otherwise, though true, the sentence is boring and of no interest to anyone. (Yes, the sky is sometimes blue!)
But–thank Whomever–The Village Voice improved the statement into the following: “I think the bicycle—the rhythm of bike riding as opposed to stepping—is antithetical to the spirit of English, prose, or of course, rhythm.” Some speculation concerning the overall Spirit of Rhythm? My mind races (on foot, presumably) in (happy, distracted) pursuit of what that might mean!
So you see, Improvement. Welcome so-called misquoting in your private life, and look for it, ask for it–come to expect it–as a reader.
By the way: The titles to the Fiery Furnaces albums have often been misquoted. This has allowed them to to go about as if in disguise. Though usually only for a day or two.
The “Bark” in Gallowsbirds’ Bark was often turned into a “Park”. Blueberry Boat got to try on being an expensive and traditionally stylish yacht of a record called Burberry Boat. Bitter Tea got to spend time in a shady forest as Bitter Tree. EP was often thought to be an ep. (Though who could mistake Rehearsing My Choir? But, we were told, there was supposedly a lot of mistaking of Rehearsing My Choir.) Widow City has already often been allowed to look out at the world as Window City.
And, now, on Friday, the New York Times renamed this latest Fiery Furnaces’ album Widow’s Peak. That was very astute of them. Both Matthew Friedberger and Eleanor Friedberger have widow’s peaks.
