From: "Eric" <ericandmary-AT-earthlink.net>
Subject: RE: Counting Calories - linkages
Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2004 22:00:40 -0600


Steve, Evgeni, Hugh, Geof, Katryn, All,

I think the concept of the differend is something of a red herring. More
and more, the central chapter and living heart of "The Differend" is the
chapter entitled "Presentation". It is here Lyotard lays out his
ontology of phrases and it is primarily here that he discusses the need
for linkage. 

It is also interesting that this chapter has the Gertude Stein notice,
the only artist amid the philosophers in the book; the only woman amid
all the men. In this notice, Lyotard explicitly discusses linking in the
context of Stein's statement "a sentence is not emotional a paragraph
is" by pointing out the extent to which feeling is a linkage, connecting
phrases up with an and, keeping a phrase going that otherwise may not
happen and overcoming the anxiety this causes.  

What if "The Differend" was really a book of poetics disguised as
philosophy?  Lately I came across the following quote by Roman Jakobson
and was struck by how closely it echoes the world Lyotard discusses in
the differend:

"The ADDRESSER sends a MESSAGE to the ADDRESSEE. To be operative the
message requires a CONTEXT referred to, graspable by the addressee, and
either verbal or capable of being verbalized; a CODE fully, or at least
partially, common to the addresser and addressee; and, finally, a
CONTACT, a physical channel and psychological connection between the
addresser and the addressee, enabling both of them to enter and stay in
communication."

Of course Lyotard recognizes this as the situation, but remains
suspicious of the communication.  In his essay "Projective Verse"
Charles Olson spoke of how the open field of poetics required that "One
perception must immediately and directly lead to a further perception."


Isn't this a little like what Lyotard seems to imply by the need (must)
to link phrases, to keep it happening and isn't linkage more about
feeling than science or politics?

Eric



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