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Old 08-19-2002, 07:26 PM   #35
Rimbaud
The Perilous Poet
 
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Eucatastrophe: piercing joy that brings tears.

From an initial perusal of this worthy thread I conclude that I, on a purely personal level, have a far higher threshold for eucatastrophe than others. This is no to denigrate the pleasure of others or to deny them the nomenclature; however I do feel that it is inherently rare.

In fact I would go so far to say that it is very uncommon for such an event (I use the word with thought and knowledge of that which has been said before) to happen more often than once in a novel. Tolkien thus cements his standing by arguably achieving that, although for me not in the Lord of the Rings.

Turin slaying Beleg comes to mind. Maybe another is contained within the Narn I Hin Hurin but I don't wish to dilute the 'rapier-like' thrust of my argument too much...

~ Rimbaud, in loving memory of mixed metaphors.
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