may you live in interesting times pratchett
He mentions that before he left England for China in 1936, a friend told him of a Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times."[5]. "May you live in interesting times." --Ancient Curse When a carrier albatross arrives with an Urgent Request for a "Great Wizard," Rincewind finds himself summoned to the endangered Empire of Hong, Sung, Fang, Tang, and McSweeney, where a new Emperor is about to be chosen. It certainly seems to have been intended to sound oriental, in the faux-Chinese ' Confucius he say ' style, but that's as near to China as it actually gets. They say: may you live in interesting times. Indeed, Lord Hong takes Rincewind hostage and plans to murder him on the steps of the palace. There is a Chinese curse which says “May he live in interesting times.” There is a curse. Surely you have heard or even uttered the phrase, “May you live in interesting times.” Sometimes it is used as a departure salutation when life's circumstances are … 5.0 out of 5 stars May you live in interesting times . There is an old Chinese curse that goes, “May you live in interesting times.” Well, we are cursed indeed. But when a request for a "Great Wizzard" arrives in Ankh-Morpork via carrier albatross from the faraway Counterweight Continent, it's he who's sent as emissary. In an interview republished at Lspace, the Terry Pratchett wiki,[2] Pratchett explains the concepts behind the novel. Interesting Times is a fantasy novel by British writer Terry Pratchett, the seventeenth book in the Discworld series, set in the Aurient (a fictional analogue of the Orient).[1]. (寧為太平犬,不做亂世人)[3] The expression originates from Volume 3 of the 1627 short story collection by Feng Menglong, Stories to Awaken the World. The title refers to the common myth that there exists a Chinese curse "may you live in interesting times". Mar 13, 2019 - may you live in interesting times - Google Search albatross from the faraway Counterweight Continent, it's he who's sent as emissary. And all that stands in the way of terrible doom for everyone is: Rincewind the Wizzard, who can't even spell the word 'wizard' ..… Smazat. (Hear, hear.) "May you live in interesting times" is the worst thing one can wish on a citizen of Discworld -- especially on the distinctly unmagical sorcerer Rincewind, who has had far too much perilous excitement in his life. Two gods, Fate and the Lady, oppose each other in a game over the outcome of the struggle for the throne of the Agatean Empire on the Counterweight Continent. Surely you have heard or even uttered the phrase, “May you live in interesting times.” Sometimes it is used as a departure salutation when life's circumstances are outrageous, zany, abnormal, There is a curse. I wore a hat, because, even though Terry Pratchett loved pointing out that he was a hat person and I wasn't, not really, I thought it would have amused him. As the old Chinese curse has it: “May you live in interesting times,” and the twentieth century is probably the most “interesting” period mankind has ever known. Well, The Yale Book of Quotations, edited by Fred R. Shapiro, says: “No authentic Chinese saying to this effect has ever been found.” [2] The nearest related Chinese expression translates as "Better to be a dog in times of tranquility than a human in times of chaos." Dispatches from the Land of Cleggeron "There is a Curse. Evidently he read the whole letter, because by return mail he wrote to me and concluded as follows: "Many years ago I learned from one of our diplomats in China that one of the principal Chinese curses heaped upon an enemy is, 'May you live in an interesting age.'" What's that old saying about May You Live in Interesting Times being a curse? "May you live in interesting times" is the worst thing one can wish on a citizen of Discworld -- especially on the distinctly unmagical sorcerer Rincewind, who has had far too much perilous excitement in his life. May you live in exciting times. The following year, Robert F. Kennedy referred to the same saying in a speech, adding: “Like it or not, we live in interesting times. "May you live in interesting times" is the worst thing one can wish on a citizen of Discworld -- especially on the distinctly unmagical sorcerer Rincewind, who has had far too much perilous excitement in his life. [emphasis added][7]. The Netherlands has found itself at the centre of international attention, many around the world regarding their federal election as a … In reality, he or she wishes the person to live during times of uncertainty and disorder as opposed to peace and tranquility. While this may sound like a blessing or a warm wish, it is always used ironically to indicate a period of chaos or disorder. May You Live in Interesting Times, displays how personal and political history, migratory movements and cultural background modifies the perception of identity. "May you live in interesting times" is the worst thing one can wish on a citizen of Discworld -- especially on the distinctly unmagical sorcerer Rincewind, who has had far too much perilous excitement in his life. The book enjoys consistently high reviews on both Amazon[3] and Goodreads. Mighty Battles! [4], Evidence that the phrase was in use as early as 1936 is provided in a memoir written by Hughe Knatchbull-Hugessen, the British Ambassador to China in 1936 and 1937, and published in 1949. Dispatches from the Land of Cleggeron "There is a Curse. You may also hear or see the phrase as may you live in an interesting age. Although we’ve come across several Chinese proverbs that are similar in one way or another, we have to agree with Shapiro that none of them are quite right. There is a curse. Interesting Times (Discworld Novel 17) (ISBN: 9781407034966) 'Funny, delightfully inventive, and refuses to lie down in its genre' Observer The Discworld is very much like our own - if our own were to consist of a flat planet balanced on the back The Lady has won the game against Fate. "May you live in interesting times" is an English expression that is claimed to be a translation of a traditional Chinese curse. For Chinese-language swearing, see, "Origin of Phrase: May You Live In Interesting Times", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=May_you_live_in_interesting_times&oldid=1002160249, Articles containing Chinese-language text, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 23 January 2021, at 03:47. The Luggage had followed Rincewind to its native Agatea, but became distracted by meeting and mating with a female Luggage. 'May you live in interesting times' is the worst thing one can wish on a citizen of Discworld, especially on the distinctly unmagical Rincewind, who has had far too much perilous excitement in his life and can't even spell wizard. Well, this has been an interesting week. But Lord Hong leads four other lords who had been vying against him for the throne to rally their armies against the Horde, to the chagrin of Saveloy who had been trying to civilize the barbarians. (and his sons Terror and Panic, and daughter Clancy). Although the myths of an original culture may persist, it inevitably gets transformed and even abandoned across time. Rincewind eventually learns that the first Agatean Emperor supposedly conquered the land with the assistance of a "Great Wizard" and a "Red Army." While seemingly a blessing, the expression is normally used ironically; life is better in "uninteresting times" of peace and tranquility than in "interesting" ones, which are usually times … Some sources describe it as an Egyptian or, as someone in this node stated, Scottish expression. all—just dark holes into an infinity speckled with what may be stars or, there again, may be other things. The Best Laid Cuts of Mice and Men: The Met Police Goes Middle-Class.
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