Nope, don't do this. Don't do it at all. I can't think of many things I want less on the Escapist than posters kowtowing to a handful of lazy people.hypothetical fact said:
Overly Verbose (AKA verbal dioreah)
- Thread starter falcontwin
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Most verbose? Overly verbose? Those are quite some accusations to be slinging around this here Escapist website. Please keep in mind that we have a combination of budding writers, university students and people (me, mostly) who just know that they have something to say about everything. As such, you will undoubtedly get posts which are a little too long for the casual poster.
However, my question arises here. Why should this mean that they are discouraged? My English class last year was given Jane Eyre to read and I was frankly disgusted by the number of people who turned around (The book's roughly 600 pages.) to say "I can't read this! It's too thick!" I go to a selective school, and more than half the class stated that they were dissuaded from enjoying it because of the length of the text we were given. What the hell?
To be fair, I'm a bibliophile, so I'm naturally biased. By last count I have no fewer than a hundred and fifty books around my room, and there's almost three, maybe four thousand total in the house. The size of these ranges from novellas of 100 pages to Lord Of The Rings and bigger. One day I plan to proudly state that I have read them all. Why? Because I find reading to be quite a pleasurable activity. The joy of having images painted in my mind by words is one that I can't quite explain but oh well, I'll take a shot.
Reading, in and of itself, is an art form. It's an acquired and practised taste, which has been employed for many years by many successful people. In fact, the theory of gravity was observed by Sir Isaac Newton while reading. This concept, which I will call the "Literate's Theory" is a simple equation of combined knowledge. When reading you are absorbing the knowledge of another human being, a writer, and combining their knowledge with yours. This will create a positive exchange of knowledge that serves not only the reader but mankind as a whole. This theory is the basis for all education, from every oratory tale to monks inscribing history's classics down by quill in a monastery. Literate's Theory is what gives the reader the education to grow and learn and is the driving force of communication and social interaction. Each and every action, from one end of the globe to the other, started with the word, and the word is reading at it's most basic form.
Take for example, the book. A humble, docile creature, yet is responsible for so much intake of knowledge within each of us. Books themselves are beautiful, aesthetically pleasing placements, which hold a very special place within my heart. The smell of a book too. An old, almost wood-smoke feel to a tome. Any room containing these treasures is inviting in the most subconscious of senses, and will not fail to be a relaxing and comfortable home. Versatile, powerful, and pleasing, the book truly is a treasure. Ultimately, it boils back down to reading. Without reading, mankind would be lost. The art is a joy, the institution is pivotal to society, and the act itself is nothing but pleasant. Reading is a joy. To be put simply, reading is not something that will ever cease to be. Yet my peers could not see this. It was.. awful to watch.
Aside from my despair at my peers' shortcoming, I find that the general population is getting more and more used to having all the information and enjoyment they want with no effort, and instantaneously. This is evidenced by the nature of the internet itself. Who would bother to write an epic post if they can say the same things in a few lines? Who would bother burying themselves in a library filled with books to search for information when everything (EVERYTHING!) is at the fingertips of a computer user? I still go through textbooks for assignment references, although I also use the internet. It's real in that respect.
Yes, this is related to the topic. Not just for the sake of satire. I get a kick out of reading a long, crafted post because I appreciate the time and effort put into it. For example reviews. There needs[/s] to be decent length in these. Otherwise, they seem cut off, shallow, unresearched and most of all, unsatisfying to both reader and composer. It's also hellishly discouraging to open up a thread and find a one-or-two line opening post, without much material. This is not the sort of thing which starts the conversations Escapist is supposedly prized by its users for.
As such, why all the hate on long threads? Someone is bothering to give you material to converse about and to argue over. They have thrown a lot of their time into that essay and a lot of thought as well. If you dislike such threads, then I can't say I envy you in any way. Perhaps it's time to work on your own posting so you can truly appreciate the art.
However, my question arises here. Why should this mean that they are discouraged? My English class last year was given Jane Eyre to read and I was frankly disgusted by the number of people who turned around (The book's roughly 600 pages.) to say "I can't read this! It's too thick!" I go to a selective school, and more than half the class stated that they were dissuaded from enjoying it because of the length of the text we were given. What the hell?
To be fair, I'm a bibliophile, so I'm naturally biased. By last count I have no fewer than a hundred and fifty books around my room, and there's almost three, maybe four thousand total in the house. The size of these ranges from novellas of 100 pages to Lord Of The Rings and bigger. One day I plan to proudly state that I have read them all. Why? Because I find reading to be quite a pleasurable activity. The joy of having images painted in my mind by words is one that I can't quite explain but oh well, I'll take a shot.
Reading, in and of itself, is an art form. It's an acquired and practised taste, which has been employed for many years by many successful people. In fact, the theory of gravity was observed by Sir Isaac Newton while reading. This concept, which I will call the "Literate's Theory" is a simple equation of combined knowledge. When reading you are absorbing the knowledge of another human being, a writer, and combining their knowledge with yours. This will create a positive exchange of knowledge that serves not only the reader but mankind as a whole. This theory is the basis for all education, from every oratory tale to monks inscribing history's classics down by quill in a monastery. Literate's Theory is what gives the reader the education to grow and learn and is the driving force of communication and social interaction. Each and every action, from one end of the globe to the other, started with the word, and the word is reading at it's most basic form.
Take for example, the book. A humble, docile creature, yet is responsible for so much intake of knowledge within each of us. Books themselves are beautiful, aesthetically pleasing placements, which hold a very special place within my heart. The smell of a book too. An old, almost wood-smoke feel to a tome. Any room containing these treasures is inviting in the most subconscious of senses, and will not fail to be a relaxing and comfortable home. Versatile, powerful, and pleasing, the book truly is a treasure. Ultimately, it boils back down to reading. Without reading, mankind would be lost. The art is a joy, the institution is pivotal to society, and the act itself is nothing but pleasant. Reading is a joy. To be put simply, reading is not something that will ever cease to be. Yet my peers could not see this. It was.. awful to watch.
Aside from my despair at my peers' shortcoming, I find that the general population is getting more and more used to having all the information and enjoyment they want with no effort, and instantaneously. This is evidenced by the nature of the internet itself. Who would bother to write an epic post if they can say the same things in a few lines? Who would bother burying themselves in a library filled with books to search for information when everything (EVERYTHING!) is at the fingertips of a computer user? I still go through textbooks for assignment references, although I also use the internet. It's real in that respect.
Yes, this is related to the topic. Not just for the sake of satire. I get a kick out of reading a long, crafted post because I appreciate the time and effort put into it. For example reviews. There needs[/s] to be decent length in these. Otherwise, they seem cut off, shallow, unresearched and most of all, unsatisfying to both reader and composer. It's also hellishly discouraging to open up a thread and find a one-or-two line opening post, without much material. This is not the sort of thing which starts the conversations Escapist is supposedly prized by its users for.
As such, why all the hate on long threads? Someone is bothering to give you material to converse about and to argue over. They have thrown a lot of their time into that essay and a lot of thought as well. If you dislike such threads, then I can't say I envy you in any way. Perhaps it's time to work on your own posting so you can truly appreciate the art.
If someone feels the need to write a long post to get their point across, that's their prerogative. If you can't bring yourself to read it, that's your prerogative. It's not up to you how much time they get to explain their views. And some topics are too complex to sum up in one or two lines. In fact, I would much rather you make a longer OP than a shorter one. It may be difficult to read, but it stops confusion and anger arising from people misreading your original intent. In fact, as long as you don't just start typing the same thing over and over, I say take as much space as you need to explain yourself. One to two lines isn't enough to get the point of most topics across, so why should we limit every topic to that?
To be quite frank, your observation of my example wasn't correct. The opening post calls for conciseness with information without clarification of simple detail, which is to say a narrative would also be better if it told a story instead of describing it.hypothetical fact said:
For example, a person could say, "I was at the mall, and tried to buy a handbag. The cashier was rude, so I left without buying anything." is a more concise, yet still telling narrative. However, another could say, "A day ago, I was at the indoor mall on Parks Ave and Lake St to purchase a leather handbag I had been keeping my eye on. Once it was on sale, I decided to buy it. When I got to the check-out, the cashier was on her cell phone talking very loudly to the person on the other line. After waiting for 15 minutes without service, I politely cleared my throat to gain her attention. After she addressed me in a racially insensitive manner, I placed the handbag on the counter and left in disgust. Though I wanted the purse, it was not worth the rudeness to pursue. Therefore, I left the store empty-handed."
Technically, the same narrative is told, the latter simply contains more detail. It is not concise, but it is still tells a story. "Worth reading" is entirely subjective, and therefore is a nonsensical criteria.
Though, you are right in suggesting that I was not clear [http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/NewClassic/Kittens/Kitten_3560_by_Daria67_Critters.jpg] enough in my post, and will therefore elaborate more in length.
To be put in brief, a short opening post is either incomplete or a bad example of a discussion topic. Either the opening post must accurately set up the ensuing discussion, or it must provide a sufficient example of the poster's opinion so that the following posts understand the nature and specifics of the topic. Without those, the topic itself cannot be strong enough to stand as it's own thesis, and therefore provides poor grounds for being a thread to begin with. Conciseness is encouraged, and often followed, although being concise is not the same as being short-winded.falcontwin said:
In order to make a strong topic, and a strong discussion, you must have strong grounds to form a topic. If you do not, then you are not following the guidelines, nor the etiquette, of the forum. Granted, some topics lend themselves to brevity more capably than others, but that will not always be the case.
In short, the only thing I can suggest is that if you do not like long posts, do not read them. Though do not expect people to change their habits to your whimsy. Brevity is as much gift as it is a curse. Sometimes, detail and specifics are necessary.
Frankly I enjoy seeing that people have written a lot. In certain cases the sheer amount of it, yes, can be a bit too wordy and is in dire need of Orwell's "Politics and the English Language" treatment. On the other hand, the length of the post suggests that the person cared enough about the subject at hand to be able to spend time writing down their full opinion. I like seeing this, it means its something the person thought about, its something that means something to that person. If you don't want to read it then by all means ignore it, but do not berate people for choosing to give a shit about what they're discussing enough so that they create an extended introduction or response to a topic. Forums are generally a place of discussion, get used it, some discussion requires extensive exploration of opinions backed up with extensive evidence. If you're going to ***** about it, stick list threads where thought isn't required, just your one word response.
I'm surprised it took that long for someone to point that out. Also, I've tended to notice that (most) of the verbal diarrhea tends to be accompanied by constipation of the brain...not that I've ever been guilty of that or anything...*looks around furtively, sneaks away.*NewClassic said:
@Labyrinth: I've been silent long enough, I fall in love with you a little more every time you haul off with the verbal judo...maybe it's my proximity to Pittsburgh, but having genuine discourse with a female around here is, well, nigh on impossible; it does my heart good to know you're out there having intelligent discussions.