Date: Thu, 20 Jul 95 06:48:17 EDT
From: ma-AT-dsd.camb.inmet.com (Malgosia Askanas)
Subject: Re: Peek-a-boo


The game of peek-a-boo has to do with disppearances and appearances of 
a person.  On the other hand, uncountable numbers of magic tricks have
to do with making things-in-general disappear or appear out of nowhere; 
often one thing disappears, and another appears in its place -- or 
maybe in a different place, but somehow _instead_ of the one that disappeared. 
In the latter case, the perception of "identity" is somehow extended
to include the possibility of a thing appearing "in place of" another.  
Then there are all these myths of gods springing, fully formed, armed
and ready for action, from a thigh or mouth or head of another god. 
Are these all related, do you think?

It seems to me that in the case of pop-ups, one also has to consider
the pleasures connected with _miniaturization_: with having a full
structurally faithful copy of something, but very small.  In both
sudden appearance and miniaturization, I think structural completeness 
is somehow essential to the pleasure.  


- malgosia 

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