Category: Glossary

Afflatus (noun)

Definition: a strong creative impulse; divine inspiration

Encountered from A Literary Visitor Strolls in From the Airport by Charles Mcgrath.

“Ah,” he said. “The afflatus of the city’s bowels — now we’re getting into the real body of the city.”

I understand this word because he was getting inspired by the city’s buildings.

Example: The afflatus of your idol’s work inspires you to work hard.

Source: Vocabulary.com

Psycho-geography- the effect of a geographical location on the emotions and behaviour of individuals

The term psychogeography was invented by the Marxist theorist Guy Debord in 1955 in order to explore this. Inspired by the French nineteenth century poet and writer Charles Baudelaire’s concept of the flâneur – an urban wanderer – Debord suggested playful and inventive ways of navigating the urban environment in order to examine its architecture and spaces.

This word was encountered in “A literary Visitor Strolls in from the Airport”

The sentence in which this word was found says, ” what recommend it was that it would take him through parts of the city that most people while driving in a car: and experience that Mr.Self, a student of psycho- geography, believes has imposed a ” windscreen-based virtuality” on travel, cutting us off from experiencing our own topography.

Psychogeography deals with the different effects a geographical location can have in your emotions. In the sentence the word was used in , Mr. Self is said to believe in the idea of psychogeography and he says that driving around in a car limits a person from experiencing psychogeography because they are not able to experience  their own topography.Mr.Self basically explains in the following sentence that  walking is the only form of real exploration that’s left.

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Melancholy(adjective)- suggestive or expressive of sadness or depression of mind or spiritsang in a melancholy voice

This word was  encountered in ” A Literary Visitor Strolls in Airport” by Charles McGrath.

the sentence in which the word was used says ” The next morning Mr. Self, who is unusually tall and very thin and has a long, melancholy face he once described as looking ” like a bag full of genitals,” packed his knapsack, rolled a cigarette and, puffing from a Hunter Thompson-style cigarette holder, set off on foot for Manhattan.

The author uses the word Melancholy to describe the gloomy expression on Mr.selfs face.  Melancholy deals with stress and depression, so to describe someone face expression using this word gives the audience and image of someone with a desolate look.

Word: Melancholy (noun)

Definition: : the science of society, social institutions, and social relationships. 

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sociology

Encounter: “Here, poverty and privilege are neighbors; income gaps are a source of resentment and guilt’ (Paragraph 7), “A professor of sociology at queens college”.

Comprehension: I now understand that the specific teacher teaches his class About society, and society relationships, and social institutions.

Word: Inadvertent (Adjective)

Definition: not focusing the mind on a matter.

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inadvertently

Encounter: “A literary visitor strolls in from the airport” (paragraph 1). “…Is about a London cabdriver who inadvertently founds a religion when ranting a diatribe he buries in the garden…”

Comprehension: This sentence helps me understand the depth of this word because its focusing on how the cabdriver founded this religion while not very much focusing on it.

 

Word: Disparate (adjective)

Definition: markedly distinct in quality or character

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/disparate

encounter: “here, poverty and privilege are neighbors, income gaps are a source of resentment and guilt” (paragraph 4). “A defining characteristic New York city its is economic diversity, The juxtaposition of people of disparate circumstances in limited spaces.

Comprehension: This sentence is basically discussing the distinct quality of the view of the authors view of New York city.

Word: Affluent (Adjective)

Definition: Having an abundance of goods or riches

Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affluent

Encounter: “Here, poverty, and privilege neighbor; income gaps are a source of resentment and guilt” (page 2, paragraph 7). “The affluent have their own protection.”

Comprehension: I understand the meaning of this word because this sentence is basically emphasizing the protection of those whom are considered wealthy or privileged.