An Introduction to Literary Nonsense

A Lesson by Polymath Chameleon

Introduction of making sense of nonsense.

What is literary nonsense?

the use of "sensical and nonsensical elements to defy language conventions or logical reasoning"

-dictionary

It can also be seen as a "tension between reality versus language"

-Wim Tigges

Actually, the type of nonsense I'll be focusing on contains the nonsense of sense and non-sense... contradicting, I know. But if done right, you'll basically be a literary envy.

From my observation, there are five ways to really categorize nonsense:

1. non sequitur

2. absurdity

3. symbolism

4. hyperbole

5. anti-humor

It may seem I'm just listing some some literary devices off (which I am), but I'll explain each one so that you know exactly what they are, what kind of subsets they each have, their function, and how it can be effectively used to best suit the situation in the world of nonsense.

Helpful skills to have when trying to create literary nonsense are the ability to un-filter your mind, the ability to be receptive of your environment and create conclusions through comparisons, and most importantly, wit and creativity.

Comments

Aneurin

Posted 11 Months Ago

I like all of this, although I think symbolism should be clarified to "esoteric or obtuse symbolism", stuff that clearly means something, but breaks up the line between the signifier and the signified. I particularly like "un-filtering your mind" as a description. it's like shifting to entirely associative, vague, subconscious meaning instead of logical, boolean, representational meaning. I want to figure out where I can read more about this from you. or figure out whether there's much of a community for nonsense on this site.

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Added on March 12, 2015
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Polymath Chameleon

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Why am I here? 1. the lack of good books to read 2. Toni Morrison: "If there's a book you want to read, but it hasn't been written yet, then you must write it" action. adventure. dry humor. thri..

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