Friday, 23 December 2016

Brooknerese

adduce, adventitious, appurtenances, armature, at all events, avatar, beneficient, by dint of, canonical, chevaleresque, claustration, complaisant, defile, dĂ©sinvolture, divagation, inadvertance, ineluctably, infraction, lycanthropic, martinet, mise en abĂ®me, moue, on one's dignity, otiose, oubliette, provisional, rebarbative, subfusc, suzerainty, temerity, unavailing

4 comments:

  1. I'd also like to suggest "hieratic" for the Brookner vocabulary, a word which I've encountered only in AB's books! I'm delighted to find this blog, as I meet so few Brookner enthusiasts face to face. I'm using the current lockdown to re-read all her books, in chronological order - it's very interesting to see how she develops over the years.

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    1. I agree! I can remember coming across that word. I think it means priestly, with a suggestion of hierarchies. I think James uses it too. I'm rereading The Golden Bowl during lockdown. Not sure if it's a good choice - it's a constant dance of distance and closeness. As for meeting other Brookner readers, it occurs to me I've also never met one. But they are out there.

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  2. Alex comments:

    "May I put forward for inclusion "divine afflatus" from ch.5 of Latecomers? I had no idea of its meaning but, now that I know, it seems a particularly apposite phrase in the context of Christine's pregnancy. The next time I get an invitation to dinner I shall have to compliment the cook on his/her divine afflatus!"

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    1. Subtly distinguished, one learns, from divine inspiration. One learns so much from Brookner.

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