Comments on: Hidden, accidental and otherwise entertaining acrostics.

Hidden, accidental and otherwise entertaining acrostics.

goodnewsfortheinsane — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 15:36:12 -0800

Most elusive, these acrostics: fictional, insurrectionary, literary, tragic, even religious.

By: snap, crackle and pop

snap, crackle and pop — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 15:50:59 -0800

Nicely crafted post; those are some obscure and fascinating poems. I like it.

By: The Bellman

The Bellman — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 15:52:35 -0800

Don't forget perhaps the most amazing double acrostic of all time, Lewis Carroll's dedication in The Hunting of the Snark. He wrote the poem for one of his "child friends", Gertrude Chataway. The dedicatory poem describes the seaside where he met her and composed the Snark. It not only spells her name in the first letter of each line, but also produces is phonetically through the first words of each stanza. The poem is as follows: INSCRIBED TO A DEAR CHILD: IN MEMORY OF GOLDEN SUMMER HOURS AND WHISPERS OF A SUMMER SEA Girt with a boyish garb for boyish task, Eager she wields her spade: yet loves as well Rest on a friendly knee, intent to ask The tale he loves to tell. Rude spirits of the seething outer strife, Unmeet to read her pure and simple spright, Deem, if you list, such hours a waste of life, Empty of all delight! Chat on, sweet Maid, and rescue from annoy Hearts that by wiser talk are unbeguiled. Ah, happy he who owns that tenderest joy, The heart-love of a child! Away, fond thoughts, and vex my soul no more! Work claims my wakeful nights, my busy days- Albeit bright memories of that sunlit shore Yet haunt my dreaming gaze!

By: roll truck roll

roll truck roll — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 15:52:49 -0800

Heh.

By: The Bellman

The Bellman — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 15:53:17 -0800

(And yes, that's where my name comes from.)

By: goodnewsfortheinsane

goodnewsfortheinsane — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 15:59:57 -0800

Oh wow, wonderful addition The Bellman, thanks. I know that when I decide to build a post around a random idea that pops in my head I'm treading on thin ice if I really don't know too much about the subject; but how I could have missed such a stellar one is beyond my reasoning.

By: matthewr

matthewr — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:04:33 -0800

The Betjeman one is a heartwarming example of a proper, old-fashioned feud (Hillier later admitted writing the letter to embarrass Wilson).

By: ob

ob — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:07:24 -0800

I love things like this. Great post gnfti, and thanks for the Lewis Carroll The Bellman.

By: Sand Reckoner

Sand Reckoner — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:11:27 -0800

[These highly intimate schemes inspire smiles, guffaws, or other delights.]

By: Cranberry

Cranberry — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:25:18 -0800

Nice one Sand Reckoner. Thanks gnfti. Love acrostics!

By: It's Raining Florence Henderson

It's Raining Florence Henderson — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:43:13 -0800

This day was nearly done and spent Having come and gonely went In directions dark and Snarky. Where Islands in the nettle patch Stung the frumious bandersnatch with much malarky. Good news for the insane, at least- On deedly words we greedily feast Oblivious to the falling night, and toast the Muse and Damn the failing of the light.

By: meech

meech — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:44:38 -0800

Now they remind me of my time at school I recall being set the task of drawing an animal Carefully sketching a whale Eraser working overtime on the illustration Pursed lips in concentration Obsessing over each letter - but my eight year old's vocabulary was too Slender and They, like they still do now, always tuned out shit: Wonderful Huge Awesome Large Exciting

By: meech

meech — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:45:19 -0800

Hey IRFH!

By: bunglin jones

bunglin jones — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 16:51:28 -0800

Carroll also wrote another for Alice Liddell (The "original" Alice from "...Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking-Glass"): Epilogue to Through the Looking-Glass A boat, beneath a sunny sky, Lingering onward dreamily In an evening of July - Children three that nestle near, Eager eye and willing ear, Pleased a simple tale to hear - Long has paled that sunny sky: Echoes fade and memories die: Autumn frosts have slain July. She still haunts me, phantomwise, Alice moving under skies Never seen by waking eyes. Children yet, the tale to hear, Eager eye and willing ear, Lovingly shall nestle near. In Wonderland they lie, Dreaming as the days go by, Dreaming as the summers die: Ever drifting down the stream - Lingering in the golden gleam - Life, what is it but a dream? I've heard this sung quite beautifully by some acapella choir, but I can't for the life of me find the disc or remember the name of the choir (The Fourteen? The Twelve?... something like that) or the composer. And thank you for a great post.

By: CitrusFreak12

CitrusFreak12 — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 17:06:14 -0800

Great post! I was going to try and do one of those comments buuut I can see that many have beat me to it.

By: winks007

winks007 — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 17:09:49 -0800

Sometimes I make these with my kids usually they are better than me perhaps, younger versions of me every bit as clever reasonably good looking too.

By: languagehat

languagehat — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 17:26:51 -0800

Sons of Columbia, awake, arise! The acrostic poem that got Rolfe Humphries banned from Poetry magazine. (Self-link, but the poem and explanation are too long to make what I consider a decent comment.)

By: languagehat

languagehat — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 17:27:33 -0800

Oh, almost forgot: great post! /too lazy to make cute acrostic

By: goodnewsfortheinsane

goodnewsfortheinsane — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 17:28:51 -0800

Sweet, senor sprachchapeau, thanks.

By: amyms

amyms — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 18:23:16 -0800

This is a great post! I never realized acrostics had such a history... I only wish the acrostics in my Dell puzzle magazines were as creative and funny.

By: rob511

rob511 — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 18:52:16 -0800

Great stuff, gnfti, but every true Europantophone knows that 'hat's username is properly rendered as tonguetopper.

By: zamboni

zamboni — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 20:48:42 -0800

Nice post. My favourite use of literary/religious acrostic is by Cynewulf, who was one sneaky Anglo-Saxon.

By: growabrain

growabrain — Mon, 15 Jan 2007 20:51:06 -0800

A Danish art group targeted Iranian Pres. Ahmadinejad last month by placing an ad in a Tehran newspaper with a hidden message: Swine

By: PontifexPrimus

PontifexPrimus — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 02:17:08 -0800

I especially like it if authors use them to put little digs or hidden messages in their texts that you only notice if you look closely for unusual wordings or stilted phrases; for instance, Cordwainer Smith put "kennedy shot" and "oswald shot too" in The Quest of Three Worlds. Oh, and the eternal classic Gödel, Escher, Bach is also a very interesting read on acrostics.

By: kev23f

kev23f — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 05:16:39 -0800

here's one on a gravestone.

By: languagehat

languagehat — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 05:32:27 -0800

Dude, check out the "tragic" link in the post. Always helps to RTFA.

By: kev23f

kev23f — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 05:22:11 -0800

dude, my bad, mucho apologies to those who ended up visiting the site twice.