Neutral eighteenth-century prose
 

Hejinian adroitly notes the existence of an eighteenth-century prose style: "a style bound to a theorizing of an investigative methodology [...] a largely secular project, that of gathering information about reality's particulars without favoring any of them. The style attempts to present without prejudice all that there might be to present"
 
see the sample from The Journals of Gilbert White (an eighteenth-century pastor and naturalist)
 
or Lewis and Clark:
 
"In seven sentences [they] take note of the weather; the terrain; its vegetation; the wind; the usage of technical equipment; sightings of animals; their habits, habitat, and food; sightings of birds and reptiles; evidence of seasonal change; more on the terrain; geological formation; its mineral content and color; and finally their exact location at the end of the day" (see 78)
 
"juxtaposed particulars, presented paratactically" (see other notes on parataxis)

> from Lyn Hejinian's Allegorical Moments: Call to the Everyday (2023)

> tagged with #writing, #language, #poetry_craft_techniques

> created Jan 23, 2025 at 1:57:41 PM


> part of unfinished everything


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unfinished everything is an original work / ongoing project (1997-present) by jeremy p. bushnell

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