Self-reflective language

[lemit]

In some business writing today, I wanted to use a word that described a company which might be amenable to various proposals. With my brain drying up in the spelling department, I googled "accommadating" and got a long list of definitions without the red "Did you mean:" thing. After I looked at that long enough to realize it was wrong, I thought to myself, how nice of Google to accept a different spelling of that word, to be so understanding, so accepting, so . . . .

So anyway, does anybody else like self-reflective language? Self-reflective language is language that illustrates itself. For example, this is the sentence that you are reading right now. Of course, this is the sentence you are reading right now too, but that can get annoying pretty quickly.

Are there any other fans of self-reflective language out there? And yes, a lot of it is annoying. But have fun anyway.

--lemit

[Turtle]

list a little alliteration.

[freeztar]

The Department of Redundancy Department will never stand for this in its own eyes!

[CraigD]

Originally Posted by lemit

Are there any other fans of self-reflective language out there?

Me me me!

You’d have to search pretty far for a math enthusiast worthy of the label who’s not at least acquainted with the concept of self-reference, and most likely has read whole chapters on it (eg: in GEB). From the trivial – eg “this sentence is six words long” – to the profound – eg various forms of the liar paradox, ie: “I am lying” – to the more convoluted – eg forms Russell’s paradox such as “who shaves the person who shave only people who do not shave themselves?” (the barber’s paradox) – with uncounted though-provoking examples such as “the largest number that can be described in exactly eleven words”.

How to formally handle self-reference is a historic and deep issue in math.

One note: although it’s obvious from context what you’re describing, lemit, as a mater of common usage, I think you’d better use “self-referential” rather than “self-reflective”. The former is usually used to describe sentences such as those above, while the latter is usually used a synonym for “introspective” to refer to the psychological and philosophical act of thinking about oneself.

[Turtle]

Write succinctly.

[freeztar]

Rational

1 a : having reason or understanding

rational - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

Reason

2 a (1) : the power of comprehending, inferring, or thinking especially in orderly rational ways

reason - Definition from the Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

[Donk]

Footnotes to the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy game by Infocom:

1) In case anyone is interested, this quotation is from a letter written by John Keats, and thus he becomes the first major 19th Century British poet to feature in a computer game.
2) Bob Dylan, 1969.
3) A meaningless coincidence.
4) The first single they recorded on their own Apple label, and one of their most successful songs ever.
5) Peacefully for a Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal that is. Now and then it snorts or rolls over, and the walls shake a bit.
6) That was just an example.
7) It's not a very good gun, is it?
8) It's not a very good legend, is it?
9) Unfortunately, you couldn't hear a word of it, because sound doesn't travel in a vacuum.
10) I guess it isn't all that dangerous a place after all.
11) Isn't it fun reading through all the footnotes?
12) This is the famous recursive footnote (Footnote 12).
13) It's not a very good autopilot, is it?
14) The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is also the name of a terrific work of interactive fiction by Douglas Adams and S. Eric Meretzky. But then again you must already know that, since you bought one.
15) It's not a very good banner, is it?
16) There is no Footnote 16.

[Turtle]

Exampels of mispellings:

[lemit]

Originally Posted by CraigD

One note: although it’s obvious from context what you’re describing, lemit, as a mater of common usage, I think you’d better use “self-referential” rather than “self-reflective”. The former is usually used to describe sentences such as those above, while the latter is usually used a synonym for “introspective” to refer to the psychological and philosophical act of thinking about oneself.

Thank you. I couldn't think of the term, and Google didn't help me with that one, but I knew if I put it off I'd put it off, and after that I'd probably put it off some more, so I decided to go ahead anyway and hope that if I was wrong somebody would correct me. Actually, I was pretty sure that somebody would correct me. Thank you for doing it simply, straight-forwardly, and without the slightest hint of condescension. Not everybody would have given me the opportunity to say that not everybody would have given me the opportunity to say that not everybody would . . . .

--lemit (who also likes Bob and Ray, and Wally Balloo)