Like a bird...

More Austin today. I can't believe I missed this analogy up until now: Austin compares the styles or levels of gesture (epic, rhetorical and colloquial) to the flight of various birds (p. 460). He says,

The transition from gesture to gesture with the arms long displayed and seldom falling to rest, is analogous to the soaring and graceful flight of certain greater birds, whose extended wings do not close for a considerable time, though they vary their movements, and change their rapidity. The flight of the hawk, and the soaring of the eagle, whose motions are both powerful and swift, and magnificently sustained, and boldly terminated, present the image of high tragic and epic gesture; which takes place, when the actor is engaged in grand and terrific scenes, or when he recites the sublime poetry of lyric odes. The sailing and fine variety of motion, with the changing lustre of the great seafowl, is the gesture of recitation in magnificent and beautiful descriptions of nature. The orator seems to fly on the wings of the dove, "rapid, strong, and light." For a time he ascends in towering elevation, but does not long hover among the clouds, he rather descends to adorn the more interesting domestic scene. The colloquial gesture in all its variety will find illustration among the different domestic birds. Some using their wings gracefully, but rarely, some seldom using them at all, and some distinguished by frequent resting after short, and rapid flight, which seems to be resorted to only as the most direct and speedy way by which they can reach their object, and is seemingly divested of all idea of pleasure or grace in the action.

Eagle, hawk, gull, dove, budgie. I love it.

Lots of interesting news on the gesture front here. Last night I went over to my new friend Christian's house to watch some of Peter Sellars' Theodora, which is most interesting and I'm sure I'll be writing about it more, since he was kind enough to loan me the VHS tape for a while. And having gotten to the very last chapter of Austin I'll be ploughing once more into the examples. I'm thinking of tackling J.J. Engel's Ideen zu einer Mimik next, a project that is long overdue. I will probably read it in the English version by Henry Siddons, but will have to do it on site in a library so it might take a while. But that's no reason not to start!