Introduction to reconstruction: As I Lay Dying

thaumasnot January 02, 2022 at 17:12 3850 views 12 comments

Hello,

I’ll post here a point-by-point reading of a reconstruction of As I Lay Dying. I will explain the special syntax, how the reconstruction should be read, and the mindset expected of the reader. You can follow us along or comment. My main interlocutor will be T Clark. The point is to introduce to “conceptual reconstructionism” through an example (you can check my profile for more info). At the end of each post, I will ask if everything is clear and if I can proceed. In the process, through your feedback and criticism, this should allow me to clean things up and make the reconstruction better (like any pedagogical tool, we can always make it clearer and more readable).

Warning: the going will be slow.

Comments (12)

thaumasnot January 02, 2022 at 17:37 #637943 0 likes

The reconstruction starts like this:

As I Lay Dying opens with Darl as the point-of-view character. Early on, it is established that Darl can DEF himself from even himself.

? Jewel and I come up from the field, following the path in single file. Although I am fifteen feet ahead of him, anyone watching us from the cotton-house can see Jewel’s frayed and broken straw hat a full head above my own. ?

The reconstruction follows the book. It will pick up elements from the text as it goes along and refer to them using referential terms.

How do I choose which elements ? I read the whole book before, and I picked up a book-wide narrative that is based on certain elements throughout the book. This is the narrative I want to share, because I find it remarkable. Whether that’s true for another reader depends on the reader. My goal is not to PROVE that I’m right (which would be as pointless as trying to prove that one’s taste is objectively better than another’s). It’s to share objective content that can be discussed and can enhance your reading of the content. We’ll see how that pans out.

The referential terms are denoted as . references the quote, and particularly the quote in boldface: anyone watching us from the cotton-house can see. There’s nothing more to it. It’s a mnemonic. Since it’s the first time we encounter this concept of “distancing” (Darl speaks as if he can be in the head of someone else), there’s a DEF attached to , for better readability. There’s nothing to delve into, no deep meaning to decipher, we’re just preparing the groundwork for the developing narrative. In fact, the whole reconstruction will just be to pick up things along and correlate them, and that will be enough to create something.

Later, this concept of will be referenced. Many references will be made, creating a network of concepts. Every time a reference is made, the definition must be remembered along with its context. The context is the phrase that contains the definition. Here, the context is minimal. It’s the start of the book, basically.

T Clark, is everything clear to you ?

thaumasnot January 02, 2022 at 17:51 #637950 0 likes

Another point: why do we use a special notation to denote referential terms ? Because otherwise, if later in the reconstruction I need to reference the concept, I would have to write something like “the distancing like the one we introduced earlier in the reconstruction, when Darl and Jewel were walking down the path to the cotton house”. The special markup allows me to be more concise.

Deleted User January 02, 2022 at 17:59 #637954 0 likes

This user has been deleted and all their posts removed.

thaumasnot January 02, 2022 at 18:05 #637956 0 likes

Reply to tim wood No, we just reference the broad concept this passage suggests. As we only care about a certain narrative, it’s not the exact meaning of the concept that matters (otherwise it would be extremely tedious, I agree), but how it will be used. Please bear with me.

jgill January 03, 2022 at 05:28 #638140 0 likes

Conceptual reconstructionism in science? Mathematics?

thaumasnot January 03, 2022 at 09:31 #638178 0 likes

Quoting jgill

Conceptual reconstructionism in science? Mathematics?

Yes it's possible. But I haven't tried it (I've only applied some of the principles to books about the philosophy of science/mathematics) and I don't think I would. But who knows?

thaumasnot January 04, 2022 at 00:15 #638390 0 likes

T Clark doesn’t want to participate, so I’ll leave the thread, unless someone wants me to continue the reconstruction.

T Clark January 04, 2022 at 03:12 #638444 0 likes

Quoting thaumasnot

T Clark doesn’t want to participate, so I’ll leave the thread, unless someone wants me to continue the reconstruction.

You are being petulant when you don't get the responses you want.

T Clark January 04, 2022 at 03:18 #638449 0 likes

Quoting thaumasnot

T Clark, is everything clear to you ?

Not at all. As I told you previously, the links to the definitions on your website don't work for me. I'm using Chrome. Even if they did, I'm not sure it would make any difference.

thaumasnot January 04, 2022 at 08:59 #638512 0 likes

Quoting T Clark

Not at all. As I told you previously, the links to the definitions on your website don't work for me. I'm using Chrome. Even if they did, I'm not sure it would make any difference.

The question “is everything clear to you” is for the post in this forum, not the website. In addition, I'm not sure how a technical problem on a website ties in with the question.

T Clark January 04, 2022 at 17:01 #638688 0 likes

Quoting thaumasnot

The question “is everything clear to you” is for the post in this forum, not the website. In addition, I'm not sure how a technical problem on a website ties in with the question.

I've put quite a bit of effort into this discussion. It's been useful and interesting. It gave me a chance to dive deeper into the issues we've discussed. After that effort, I still don't understand the purpose or methods of your system. I'm a pretty smart guy, so I think that means your system needs work. Getting pissed and questioning my motives is not a good way to get me to participate.

I'm not interested in taking this any further at this time.

thaumasnot January 04, 2022 at 17:06 #638694 0 likes

Quoting T Clark

After that effort, I still don't understand the purpose or methods of your system.

That's a bit ironic in the context of this thread, but your decision is totally fair. It was cool to discuss with you. I wish you the best.