the distance between words and wisdom

An aphorism is literally a distinction or definition, from the Greek αφοριζειν "to define". It is a very concise statement of a phenomenology expressing a 'general truth or wise observation', often in a clever way.

A gaffe is a verbal mistake, usually made by saying something that is 'true, but inappropriate'. In statistics, a "mistake" is the difference between a computed, estimated, or measured value and the true, specified, or theoretically correct value.

So a gaphorism is a repurposed aphorism. Gaphorisms recognise linguistic wisdom, but add to, or change their meaning or direction to give them new relevance. Consensus reality is based on embedded semantics; we love to reduce complex ideas and emotions to bullet points and jargon, ostensibly to aid in the transfer of meaning. Eventually, the meaning blurs and fades, but the words remain and the associated wisdom clings to them like the smell of dying roses.


Tuesday, 24 April 2007

One man's Pete is another man's Boyzone

Aphorism: One man's meat is another man's poison.
This is just a bit of fun and it's one of my dad's favorites. It's a reference to 2 infamous, but disparate musical icons of our time: Pete Doherty and that boy band. Great for throwing into a dinner discussion about modern music. :)
Oh, and I couldn't find a suitable replacement for 'man' that sounded right, any suggestions?

One fan's meat is another fan's poison. - Thanks Matt


5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Ja, i digs them bozones

Anonymous said...

boyzone = infamous.....?

Anonymous said...

Pete with the stinky feet.
Pete has to be the ugliest fucker in pop since that dude from the Pogues!

I like your ism, but is it art?
(Can you name the artist?)

Matt.

Anonymous said...

As a replacement for 'man' - how about 'fan'?

Seems rather fitting!

Matt.

gaphorist said...

Brilliant: "One fan's Pete is another fan's Boyzone." - Thanks Matt

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