To shift the structure of a sentence alters the meaning of that sentence, as definitely and inflexibly as the position of a camera alters the meaning of the object photographed.
Joan DidionRead
A pool is water, made available and useful, and is, as such, infinitely soothing to the western eye.
Interpretation
A pool symbolizes tranquility and utility in nature, appealing to those in the western culture.
In this quote, Joan Didion reflects on how a swimming pool not only serves a practical purpose—providing water for recreation and relaxation—but also represents an ideal of calmness and beauty that resonates with the western aesthetic. The pool is more than just a functional body of water; it embodies a serene oasis that enhances the landscape and offers a soothing visual experience, particularly for those accustomed to its presence.
In practice
During a real estate event, one could cite this quote to highlight the appeal of properties with pools.
To shift the structure of a sentence alters the meaning of that sentence, as definitely and inflexibly as the position of a camera alters the meaning of the object photographed.
The truth is, it's easier for me to write than talk... to express the state I'm in at any time.
Memories are what you no longer want to remember.
It was clear, for example, in 1988 that the political process had already become perilously remote from the electorate it was meant to represent.
I mean maybe I was holding all the aces, but what was the game?
Do not whine... Do not complain. Work harder. Spend more time alone.
We have a responsibility to protect the rights of generations, of all species, that cannot speak for themselves today. The global challenge of climate change requires that we ask no less of our leaders, or ourselves.
Nature never said to me: Do not be poor; still less did she say: Be rich; her cry to me was always: Be independent.
It were happy if we studied nature more in natural things; and acted according to nature, whose rules are few, plain, and most reasonable.
Nature is pitiless; she never withdraws her flowers, her music, her fragrance, and her sunlight from before human cruelty or suffering.
Only when I am by seawater can I truly breathe, to say nothing of my ability to think.
Birding, after all, is just a game. Going beyond that is what is important.
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