Don’t not use double negatives


Although I wasn’t unfamiliar with the failings of post-structuralism, this particular book lacked some of the omissions I didn’t expect to not find. I had neglected to overlook the index, but this was a lack of oversight which failed to concern me – that is to say, if I hadn’t neglected to overlook the index, my lack of neglect wouldn’t have concerned me less.
‘This doesn’t fail to be a non-trivial problem,’ I muttered to myself. ‘There couldn’t be the absence of something I’m failing to miss, could there?’
It wasn’t something other than nonsense to imagine that I’d succeeded in failing to untangle the many far from non-linguistic problems that this text certainly didn’t lack. I just didn’t seem to be able identify the missing elements – or rather, the absence of them. Perhaps my failure to find said omissions was itself not insignificant.
‘Maybe I’m being too negative,’ I didn’t not whisper to no one other than myself.

14 comments:

  1. Hm. I *think* this is what that says:

    Although I was familiar with the failings of post-structuralism, this particular book included the items I expected to find. I had looked at the index, though it really wasn't important.

    "This is a problem," I muttered to myself. "Could something be missing and I don't realize that it's missing?"

    I had certainly managed to untangle the many linguistic problems that this text had. I just couldn't identify the missing elements - or rather, identify the holes where they should have been. Perhaps my failure to find those holes was significant in itself.

    'Maybe I'm being too negative,' I whispered to myself.

    That made a fun logic puzzle over coffee, thanks. :-)

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  2. *snap* Ow! My brain!

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  3. I just kind of gave up trying to understand halfway through.

    ++negatives, laugh;

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  4. You are one of the least benightedly unintelligent life forms it has been my profound lack of pleasure not to be able to avoid meeting.

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  5. But was it almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea?

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  6. There ain't no reason to use double negatives, not never!

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  7. I never realized how common this was until now. Yikes.

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  8. sooooo confusing!

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  9. this type of writing encourages thinking for the first 2 minutes, and then makes you wish you never have to think again

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  10. i give up trying to think through it. my brain hurts!

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  11. Kyon from /The Boredom of Haruhi Suzumiya/ shows us the way:
    "When you put it that way, I can't say that I don't get the feeling that it does or doesn't, yet I wouldn't be confident enough not to refrain from voicing agreement. How many negatives did I just string together? I don't feel like counting, so if someone's free, tally them up for me."

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  12. Anne Nonnie MossThursday, May 19, 2011

    I certainly didn't not misunderstand the prose of this nonsensical yet no less not not brilliant piece of writing. So please don't refuse this non-insult. My brain doesn't not hurt...
    Not worst non-disregards,
    Anne

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