Wednesday, November 26, 2008

A long set up searching for a bad punchline...

Synecdoche. It's not just a new Charlie Kaufman movie. Or a hard to spell word.It is, in fact:a term denoting a part of something is used to refer to the whole thing, or a term denoting a thing (a "whole") is used to refer to part of it, or a term denoting a specific class of thing is used to refer to a larger, more general class, or a term denoting a general class of thing is used to refer to a smaller, more specific class, or a term denoting a material is used to refer to an object composed of that material.The use of synecdoche is a common way to emphasize an important aspect of a fictional character; for example, a character might be consistently described by a single body part, such as the eyes, which come to represent the character. This is often used when the main character does not know or care about the names of the characters that he/she is referring to. (for more info on the term and some examples, click here)Your turn. Write a short piece of fiction using synecdoche as a major component.



The Eye watched traffic pass as he stood on the curb waiting for The Car. Always late, The Car was never dependable enough to be counted on, but sometimes, rides were needed so he would have to do. Time passed and The Eye acknowledged him. Typical of Time, he was on the move and couldn't be stopped. It was no good calling him once he'd passed because nothing could turn him back. It's not like he stood still or waited for anyone. Once was Time was out, that was it. only The Mind knew how to occupy him long enough to get anything done. As for The Eye, he just took it all in as it happened around him.

The Car finally arrived, fifteen minutes late.
-No problem, he said. I'll get us there.

The Eye didn't believe it. Suddenly The Car tore off and bolted down the street. He was speeding to make up for being late, so it wasn't much of a problem, they'd never been to this place before and The Eye was having a hard time reading the signs. It was time for small talk.

-What'd you do today?
-Drove around...and you?
-Watched a movie.
-All day?
-No. Then we went to eat.
-We? Who'd you go with?
-The Mouth.
-Should've known.

And on it went. Sometimes The Eye couldn't see the point in all this. It seems trivial. But The Car, once he got going, he kept on and on. The Car could veer from one topic to another, turning on a dime. Road trips were the worst with him. He'd just run and run until he had to make a pit stop. Then, at the drop of a hat, he was off again. Tonight, The Eye tried to make a go of being engaging, but he was distracted and had trouble focusing.

It wasn't always like this. Before he came to depend on The Car so much, he and Legs, his roommate from Corpus, used to walk all over town. It was nicer then, 'cos Legs was much slower. The Eye could take everything in as they strolled through the city. He felt more in charge of his life because Legs invariably went wherever The Eye led. This pace suited The Eye just fine. And one thing they could both agree on was they hated trying to keep up with their other roommate, Hands. He was quicker than both of them when he wasn't busy being idle. He was so obnoxious that they thought about cutting him off, but that would have been as stupid as when they cut off The Nose, just to spite what's-his-face. What's-his-face didn't care since he spent more time in a mirror than showing up outside.

The were close now and The Eye suddenly realized he might run into someone he didn't want to see.
-Dick's not gonna be there is he?
-Probably not.
-I hope not. The last time we were there, it was a regular Dick-fest.
-It was his birthday. I wouldn't worry about it. He doesn't come too often. He and Hands usually stay home and play.
-Play?
-XBox.
-Oh.

The Car turned into the lot and drove around looking for a space. He was anxious to meet The Girl. The Eye wasn't looking forward to all the bright lights and the cigarette smoke, but he did like standing by the dance floor and passing judgement. But he wasn't off the hook.
-I told The Girl to bring a friend.

The Eye could suddenly see that this was a set up. Far from being irritated, he was open to the idea.
-Good. The last thing I wanted was for The Girl to take off with you and leave me stranded. She cute?
-Of course. She's in entertainment.
-What's she do?
-She works for a music video channel...She's a V.J.
-Nice.

No comments: