[Dragaera] ryhme or reason?

Ken Koester kkoester at email.ers.usda.gov
Tue Oct 28 05:59:14 PDT 2008


Michael Wojcik wrote:

>Ken Koester wrote:
>  
>
>>Even Homer begins /in media res/. . . .
>>    
>>
>
>"in medias res", usually, in case someone unfamiliar with the term
>wants to look it up. (Latin's not one of my languages, so I don't know
>if Ken was simply construing the phrase differently.)
>  
>
Memory error.  Though the whole thing is a spin on, "Even Homer nods. . 
. "  (-:

>It's typical of epics to begin in medias res.
>

Just so.  It's a very old narrative device, which just means that people 
figured out eons ago that mixing up the storyline a little adds interest.

>Still, it seems appropriate
>for the Vladiad, both because of the epic qualities (episodes, heroic
>acts, grand scale, the relationship of hero and society, etc) of the
>series and because it's about an assassin, and assassination is all
>about the interruption of a life in the midst of its narrative.
>
>  
>
Actually, it's a sort of anti-epic within an epic, which is a pretty 
neat tour de force from our author!

Snarkhunter





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