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What Is This? The Matrix is a lattice of ideas connecting diverse people, cultures, times and places. It is drawn from the commonplace book your correspondent has kept for many years. Maintaining a journal of memorable quotes helps with that pesky 'I know I've seen that somewhere' problem. It also serves as an ongoing test of whether any particular reading is worthwhile. If after a few dozen pages there was nothing to copy and keep, chances are one would be better off elsewhere. The journal offers an incentive to struggle through some difficult stuff, and it is a great aid in deciding what to read next. Since the snippets presented here are for noncommercial, educational use, the Quotes Matrix enjoys the protection of the Fair Use Doctrine under the copyright laws. Which Quotes? Whatever looked interesting. The Matrix includes profound philosophy and random quips; fiction telling the truth and history that fibs, deep abiding interests and temporary fascinations; great books; lesser but nonetheless charming books; stupid books; ridiculously stupid books; tenure-driven books; familiar authors and obscure ones; poetry and doggerel, extracts from newspapers, magazines, TV and movies, comedy and tragedy, math and science and astronomy and astrology--all the sublime and the sordid from the world of thought. Your correspondent does not necessarily like all the remarks and riddles and ravings collected here. Some are included because I so vigorously disagree. But all should be in one way or another, thought-provoking--for those who enjoy being provoked. It need not vex those who don't. How Is It Organized? Ah--there is the problem. After a few hundred pages a collection of quotes becomes a great seething heap of forgotten profundities. Organization becomes imperative, if only for cohent presentation. But how to find order in the chaos? The remnants of one's readings cannot be expected to result in a cogent narrative with a beginning, middle and end, nor a set of themes radiating from a central point, nor even a chronological list. The ideas have sprung spontaneously out of all centuries, tongues, races, religions, national origins, and orientations. They ignore the schoolmarm's blandishments; scoff at discipline; resist any imposition of governance. Surprisingly though, unexpected and persistent patterns do emerge. Interconnections. Hierarchies. Enough to begin to justify one's tentative faith in a kind of underlying rationality; a latent logic or reason capable of crystalizing into unexpected symmetries--the way God with the most delicate artistry conjures snowflakes. Finding these structures brought to mind the World Wide Web, which collects a stupefying diversity of knowledge interlaced with more or less logical connections. Hence the Quotes Matrix. Where To Start? The alphabet of topics on the left links to Webpages full of quotes. These are the common threads that seem to weave through all the fabric. Don't rely on them too heavily, though. Some quotes are just vagabonds temporarily camping out on this or that Webpage. The point is in the links--their comparison, contrast, juxtaposition, or opposition. If you are looking for a particular author or subject, you might be better off doing a keyword search. But as I have not yet written the search engine CGI, you can't. Anyway the point is to browse, to follow a thought as it twists and turns through two or ten or a hundred variations, to see other ideas that color or complement or flat out contradict it. Why Do This? Why do anything? There are some questions even a lifetime's reading cannot answer. So enjoy yourself. Diogenes
Teufelsdrockh J.U.D., H.P.C.A. |