Hidden Meanings

[melchi]

I have the perfect meme for this--

View attachment 31240

Sus,

This is a ran-ron x Hans colab.

 

[theInmara]

As a cluster of autistic authors with a degree in fine art, writing several long series of books, we use metaphor, similes, analogies, and juxtaposition of themes, situations, and events to deliberately create layers and layers of meaning. That meaning isn't hidden, it's there specifically to be found.

We're also fairly confident of the meanings we find in the books we read and the movies we watch, maybe overly so. We have been wrong and pleasantly surprised on occasion. For instance, despite being trans ourselves, we totally missed the trans allegories in the Matrix series the first few times we watched. Then, when the Wachowskis made it clear they wrote it all as a trans allegory, we rewatched and saw it for what it was very clearly. But now, also , we see themes of plurality in those movies, especially with Resurrection, which feel like they're confirmed by what Sense8 is about (and the fact the Wachowskis have said they do write like that, with "hidden" meaning).

Honestly, it's just the same problem with verbal communication between any two people. Sometimes there's cultural or subcultural context in a phrase as simple as "How are you?" and the listener may either not notice the subtext, or put it right in there when it wasn't meant to be. And miscommunications happen all the time that way.

Anyway, there are authors of all kinds. Some, like us, have gone through college and been indoctrinated by the idea of trying to control all the meaning that can be found in your work, and others have not. You're just going to get all kinds of books that way.

 

[CharlesEBrown]

Honestly, it's just the same problem with verbal communication between any two people. Sometimes there's cultural or subcultural context in a phrase as simple as "How are you?" and the listener may either not notice the subtext, or put it right in there when it wasn't meant to be. And miscommunications happen all the time that way.

Took a class in African and Caribbean literature in college, and there were some impressive examples of how this happens. The biggest, and one I did not really "get" until I read some other African and African-inspired literature outside of that class, was the Zulu use of the phrase "wow" - generally it was used the same way we would use "bull(feces)" in modern America rather than to show surprise or amazement.

 

[ConansWitchBaby]

All this talk about hidden meanings and skies makes me wish I gave a damn about the chinese years ago. So I could remember the authors name and bring him up easily.

Simply put:

Academics: the sky is grey in this because it shows the author's...blah blah bullshit

Lets invite the guy for a seminar!

Author: I was in England at the time and had nothing to put in there as I was drawing a complete blank. Its fucking England you dumbasses! The sun doesn't exist there and it fucking rhymed!

 

[CharlesEBrown]

All this talk about hidden meanings and skies makes me wish I gave a damn about the chinese years ago. So I could remember the authors name and bring him up easily.

Simply put:

Academics: the sky is grey in this because it shows the author's...blah blah bullshit

Lets invite the guy for a seminar!

Author: I was in England at the time and had nothing to put in there as I was drawing a complete blank. Its fucking England you dumbasses! The sun doesn't exist there and it fucking rhymed!

Kind of reminds me of the only scene I'm familiar with in the Rodney Dangerfield "Back to School" movie - he hires Kurt Vonnegut to write an essay on Kurt Vonnegut, and the teacher flunks him because he clearly does not understand the subject matter at all.

(then again, a former local talk show host dated Kurt's daughter for a few months ... until he got invited to dinner at her dad's place and spent the whole time gushing over how much he loved her dad's work. When the dinner was over, Vonnegut said "OK, fine, I will sign your book. But you can't read it until you get home." When the guy got home he eagerly opened the book to the signed page: "All my best, Kurt. P.S. Stay the Hell away from my daughter" - so maybe he flubbed the essay on purpose... :D)

 

[corruption]

But were they navy blue or sky blue?

Just reminded of an episode of Red Dwarf where Rimmer had his hologram copied and they argue. One bitter argument was over which shade of grey to have a wall repainted with.

Some authors don't include hidden meanings, but imply there are so people keep reading and studying it to find the meanings. They praise the books and imply if you can't understand the hidden meanings, that is because you can't appreciate the subtle way it was present, without actually saying what it is because they don't know either.
I wish I was joking here, but it works.