Fun with Language: Uncleftish Beholding

[roseembolism]

Courtesy of Elizabeth Bear's LJ.

Bless writers who have a strong knowledge of the language, and the history of language.  Like Poul Anderson, who wrote an essay on nuclear power...as if the language had no non-Germanic words.

The result, Uncleftish Beholding, is both familiar, and strangely alien at the same time.  And a good example for writers to analyze.

Comments

[britgeekgrrl.livejournal.com]

OW! My head!

Brilliant, but pass the aspirin.

[racerxmachina.livejournal.com]

It reads like Beowulf's PhD abstract.

[roseembolism.livejournal.com]

Which gives me a terrifying image of beowulf as a pulp scientist figure.

[palecur.livejournal.com]

'Worldken' is just the best term for 'science' ever.

[roseembolism.livejournal.com]

Agreed. This article is wonderful for inspiring me to think of alternate terms for things.