[Hardy-l] Findon Sheep Fair

[Patrick Roper]

I am intrigued to know how one writes an 'S' backwards in an e-mail.  In
written script such a phenomenon is, I believe, a form of dyslexia and not a
reflection on an individual's knowledge of academic literacy standards.  I
have noticed, for example, that may surname Roper is often written as
'Roger' and I have observed, over Post Office counters and the like, that
the writer simply turns the middle p over to face left rather than right.

Why on earth am I saying all this?

Anyway, I agree with Rosemary that almost anything people care to write down
whether literate, accurate or whatever can be interesting.  And often the
errors of grammar or fact are just as interesting in their own way as the
rest.  Why has the author said these things?  In some of my researches into
natural history I have come across some wonderfully contorted chunks of
prose that contain important data among the wildest and most poorly
expressed speculations.  Unconventional grammar or spelling can also often
indicate an authenticity: the material may have gone directly from the brain
to the page without too much, or any, modification derived from the work of
earlier literate (but not always accurate) scholars.

Patrick Roper 

-----Original Message-----
From: Rosemarie Morgan [mailto:Rosemarie.morgan at yale.edu] 
Sent: 03 September 2008 04:25
To: hardy-l at coyote.csusm.edu
Subject: RE: [Hardy-l] Findon Sheep Fair

Keith

  I've just re-read this at greater leisure and you are absolutely right. I 
would certainly not apply the same standards of semi-literacy to any 
scholarly review I might write...

But you know, I am humbled by the many emails I get from Dorset folk who 
still write their J's or is it their "S's (also) backwards- (whatever it is 
that Hardy humorously records in FFMC)-- & they are oftentimes valuable 
letters.  One such I have just published in the *Hardy Review Vol Xii *(out 
in the Fall).  I edited it of course (it was only partly illiterate) but 
still value the original piece unrevised as I feel TH would also have 
done   I don't personally hold semi-literacy or even illiteracy against any 
one who has a story to tell (and I'm most interested to note that the 
Library of Congress Story-Core division does not either)

We can agree to disagree on this -- of course. But I would venture to say 
that many if not most of Hardy's folkloric tales originated in an 
illiterate culture that could neither read nor write

That also applies to bible stories handed down orally through the ages. 
This includes much of the New Testament of which, I understand Mark was the 
only skilled scribe (ie literate).

That's all I had in mind-actually.
Best

Rosemarie



that Hardy's family made mistakes and therefore we can't condemn this 
writer for misspelling and misplaced details (aka factual inaccuracy).
>.   .
>Best,
>Keith


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