Ben’s answer to “I was wondering -- based on the many instances of etymological, semiotical, philosophical, and theo…” > Likes and Comments

Thank you so much for responding to the question. I'll admit that I haven't read all your published work (only "Notable American Women" and half of "The Age of Wire and String", so far; though I own "The Flame Alphabet" and "The Anchor Book of New American Short Stories", but haven't gotten very far into them yet), and I've experienced your use of language as poetic and narrative while also solipsistically and universally *intense*, and that alone is amazing, to say the absolute least. Though, in addition, I really like the idea of the bravery (if that's fair to say) of the "blind groping", that I certainly wouldn't call "mistakes", but more akin to reasonable absurdism. I understand it may be so far in the past for you now, but what I like so much about "Notable American Women" (and its clear influences/"practice" [not to be disrespectful] in "The Age of Wire and String") is the focus on language and linguistics as the embodied soul-ish self-ish-ness. I really love the way that you wrote about a cult-ish reality while flourishing throughout the carnal existence. It felt universal and specific, and I think that's what I meant with my question. A wonder at whether you reached out towards that kind of writing with a hope, or whether you had some kind of plethora of ideas and realizations that you had to pare down into a tangible piece of art. Though I'm realizing it's probably always a reach for all artists, while more of a hope for (us) consumers (of art) that there is a deeper and broader understanding that has been diluted and cropped into production and publication.