[Publib] need a non-jargon word for 'fiction'

[Robert Balliot]

Fiction is a blend of fact with fantasy.  The ratio of factual ingredients
to fantasy ingredients determines genre.  Complete fiction would
be unintelligible since it would have no structure.  On the other
side of the spectrum you have things like FoxNews which is merely
unintelligent.


R. Balliot
http://oceanstatelibrarian.com



On Fri, Apr 10, 2009 at 10:04 AM, Kathleen Stipek <kstipek at aclib.us> wrote:

> This is the time for an exasperated 'oh, HONESTLY,' a rolling of the
> eyes, and a noise somewhere between a sigh and a groan.  We are
> swallowing jargon like 'tweet' and 'folksonomy' and choking on
> 'fiction?'  We've already immured 'library science' under 'information
> studies' or some similar euphemism.  Fiction is relatively easily
> understood by most people, believe it or not. It's stories made up for
> the pleasure of the reader.  It may have other functions, but if it
> doesn't please the reader it is bilge.  And so is the apparently
> unending struggle to eliminate the words 'library,' 'librarian,' and
> 'library science' from the world's vocabulary.  This is mostly
> encouraged by the professorate who are embarrassed that they aren't in a
> 'real' science like anthropology and administrators who like high-flown
> verbiage.  It must stop before we lose our identities and our raisons
> d'etre.  And shortly after that, our jobs.
>
> Kathleen Stipek
>
> Alachua County Library District
>
> 401 East University Avenue
>
> Gainesville, Florida 32601
>
> 352-334-3931, fax 352-334-3939
>
>
>
> --Non, merci
>
>  Cyrano de Bergerac
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org
> [mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Miriam Bobkoff
> Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 7:37 PM
> To: publib at webjunction.org
> Subject: [Publib] need a non-jargon word for 'fiction'
>
>
> I sure wouldn't have thought so, but apparently 'fiction' is
> librarianly jargon. I have yet another person to whom I can't get
> across any version of 'is it _Curious George_ or a book about tigers;
> is it Desperate Housewives or is it the Discovery Channel?' If I say
> the word 'fiction' or the word 'novel', brains kick out of gear. I
> can say, 'this is a story. and that is a book about bugs' and elicit
> a nod. I can say, this is made up stuff and that is a true book about
> something.
>
> But the minute the question arises of whether it in the fiction or
> not, vaguery arises. I was never happy with the huge amorphous notion
> of non-fiction to cover all of human knowledge and experience EXCEPT
> prose made-up stuff. One side of the building novels and short
> stories, the other side of the buiding absolutely everything else, in
> numerical order. Too amorphous, and defining by what it is not.
>
> But that 'fiction' is also an amorphous notion totally baffles me,
> and I can't come up with a different label to use.
>
> Is there either a different noun you can offer me, or a concise
> explanation, that I can try using despite my incompetence as a teacher?
>
> PS This particular instance of my incompetence is not happening at
> the usual place. But I suppose I shan't say where...
>
> Miriam Bobkoff
> who'd rather be looking at gray whales
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Publib mailing list
> Publib at webjunction.org
> http://lists.webjunction.org/mailman/listinfo/publib
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Publib mailing list
> Publib at webjunction.org
> http://lists.webjunction.org/mailman/listinfo/publib
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.webjunction.org/wjlists/publib/attachments/20090410/ecd772b9/attachment.htm