And that book begins with what I would argue is the best descriptive sequence in all of English literature:
"The studio was filled with the rich odour of roses, and when the light summer wind stirred amidst the trees of the garden, there came through the open door the heavy scent of the lilac, or the more delicate perfume of the pink-flowering thorn.
"From the corner of the divan of Persian saddle-bags on which he was lying, smoking, as was his custom, innumerable cigarettes, Lord Henry Wotton could just catch the gleam of the honey-sweet and honey-coloured blossoms of a laburnum, whose tremulous branches seemed hardly able to bear the burden of a beauty so flamelike as theirs; and now and then the fantastic shadows of birds in flight flitted across the long tussore-silk curtains that were stretched in front of the huge window, producing a kind of momentary Japanese effect, and making him think of those pallid, jade-faced painters of Tokyo who, through the medium of an art that is necessarily immobile, seek to convey the sense of swiftness and motion."
That's so cool it's his birthday! I was just looking at quotes from him 10 minutes ago, unaware of what day it was! :)
(Oh, and by the way, I've been listening to the Delgados and I like them a lot! And I found out Emma Pollock is one of their members! I have really been enjoying her solo work lately so to find out she was in this band was totally awesome! Thanks for the recommendation!)
"There was purification in punishment. Not 'Forgive us our sins,' but 'Smite us for our iniquities' should be the prayer of a man to a most just God."
ReplyDeletefrom Dorian Gray
And that book begins with what I would argue is the best descriptive sequence in all of English literature:
ReplyDelete"The studio was filled with the rich odour of roses, and when the light summer wind stirred amidst the trees of the garden, there came through the open door the heavy scent of the lilac, or the more delicate perfume of the pink-flowering thorn.
"From the corner of the divan of Persian saddle-bags on which he was lying, smoking, as was his custom, innumerable cigarettes, Lord Henry Wotton could just catch the gleam of the honey-sweet and honey-coloured blossoms of a laburnum, whose tremulous branches seemed hardly able to bear the burden of a beauty so flamelike as theirs; and now and then the fantastic shadows of birds in flight flitted across the long tussore-silk curtains that were stretched in front of the huge window, producing a kind of momentary Japanese effect, and making him think of those pallid, jade-faced painters of Tokyo who, through the medium of an art that is necessarily immobile, seek to convey the sense of swiftness and motion."
That's so cool it's his birthday! I was just looking at quotes from him 10 minutes ago, unaware of what day it was! :)
ReplyDelete(Oh, and by the way, I've been listening to the Delgados and I like them a lot! And I found out Emma Pollock is one of their members! I have really been enjoying her solo work lately so to find out she was in this band was totally awesome! Thanks for the recommendation!)
Thanks for letting me know that she does solo work now :-)
ReplyDelete