Date: Tue, 14 Jul 92 03:52:23 -0400
From: lojbab@grebyn.com (Logical Language Group)
Message-Id: <9207140752.AA22635@daily.grebyn.com>
To: VILVA@VIIKKI21.HELSINKI.FI
Subject: RE: Relatives and quantifiers
Cc: cowan@snark.thyrsus.com, nsn@mullian.ee.mu.oz.au
Content-Length: 1537
Lines: 27



It is extremely valuable for you to offer insights from the non-Indo
European perspective.  Have no fear of earning your subscription - I think
you've been doing quite marvelously with your detailed postings like this
one.  (I haven't even looked at Colin's problem, because Cowan is more on
top of mail processing than I am, but I can tell when someone is thinking
deeply about how the language works.)

I agree with you on the need for more non-translation/in-Lojban expression.
People are more comfortable with translation because they can't think of what 
to say, and translation gives good starting points.  Most attempts at
original Lojban writing have been poetry, which has its own, very severe
problems as a language developing tool at this stage.

That is one reason for hopin for the Lojban Canterbury Tales to take off.

I asked about the Kalevala in a previosu message.  It occurs to me that
many great literary themes are reflected in the medieval stories of our
cultures.  Without actually trabslating stories from the Kalevala, you 
could perhaps find a story that could be retold in 'modern garb' with 
characters one might find in Europe today, then develop a plot line that
brings out the depth of the ancient tale.  If this idea suggests anything
to you, please repost this paragraph to the list with an indication that
it was inspirational,and it might help Nick or others come up with ideas
(he after all has a lot of obscure-to-us Greek mythology that he can draw
on).  Hmm, i'll cc. this message to him anyway.