What brings meaning to a sentence? Usage of good words, right? What else? If the writer is intelligent, then few witty words would compliment the sentence. If the writer is full of humour, then humourous words deliver the meaning in a different way, appealing both the light hearted and the serious minded in different ways. If the writer writes plain english like a novice like me, then few easy flowing words of everyday usage make the sentence meaningful.

Whatever one may write or try to deliver, it should appeal to himself first and the rest will be taken care of by the readers who bump into the writer. If it appeals then it spreads for the good part of it, making the writer popular in literary circles [those who read similar kind of stuff] and if the writer tries to distract the thinking process with broken sentences, then the consequences would be so severe that he will be remembered popularly but in an unappealing way.

Well, enough of writers and sentences. I’ve been reading this english newspaper for almost two decades now called ‘The Hindu’ and one particular article every week amuses me always, in the sense, making me laugh myself for what i’ve read, making me think as to why he has written the way he has written, allowing me to judge the guy who’s spoken the words in a witty-intelligent-amusing-humourous way and the ‘n’ number of ways you can think about a thing differently.

The article appears as ‘Know Your English’ in a weekly suppliment called ‘Open Page’ [in the same newspaper] where all the book reviews and books published, yet to come into publication and all that, appears in two fully dedicated pages. This ‘Know Your English’ takes the right hand top corner spot which i read with much interest every week, just to find out what’s-in-store-for-me-to-know-this-week thing. BTW i did not mentioned you correctly that at the end of the ‘Know Your English’ article, there appears a small sentence italicized and identified by the writer of the sentence which is the most interesting part of this whole ‘Open Page’ issue.

Well, being blessed with a temporary memory in the form of forgetting things as soon as i read, i enjoy the pleasure of happiness only at that instance when i read something humorous or witty in content. You see, i am not someone who goes on carrying things on his head [that’s why education in a college didn’t suit me well, remembering formulas, theorems, lab experiments and what not…], i just read and forget the next moment [including my own writings]. This is a blessing actually because i don’t have to compare myself with anyone even if my writing is least appealing, i am saved by myself i should say.

I enjoy humour a lot, humour filled with wit and wisdom is more interesting and only intelligent writers whose brains churn words like a never ending story, invigorating, keep the reader engrossed and make him feel, ‘yeah this is right’ ‘this was in my mind’ etc etc and it happens sometimes that words they themselves cannot express the feelings of the mind correctly when one tries to express the feeling one lived a moment ago. Its just enjoyed; the way a traveller enjoys the journey more than the destination, its the appeal of the words striking the right sentences which makes reading something, more amusing. I did had such wonderful journeys with authors like Roald Dahl, Yann Martel, R K Narayan, Ruskin Bond, Shashi Tharoor….

Words filled with humour, wit and simple words more than anything else makes my reading. Its easy to identify oneself with such things in action because its more than appealing. Its the best way to enjoy life, just to live the thing and keep flowing.

Something for you all from the bottom end of the top-right-corner of ‘Know Your English’ column from The Hindu newspaper, a few humorous/witty/simple quotes from guys of great deliverance. Read on:

“The other night I ate at a real nice family restaurant. Every table had an argument going.” – George Carling

“Calamities are of two kinds: misfortunes to ourselves and good fortune to others.” – Ambrose Bierce

“Always read something that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.” – P.J. O’Rourke

“He’s turned his life around. He used to be depressed and miserable. Now he is miserable and depressed.” – David Frost

“We don’t bother much about dress and manners in England, because as a nation, we don’t dress well, and we’ve no manners.” – G.B.Shaw

“I know that you believe that you understood what you think I said, but I am not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.” – Robert McCloskey

“The only function of economic forecasting is to make astrology look respectable.” – John Kenneth Galbraith

“If it’s sent by ship, then it’s cargo; if it’s sent by road, it’s shipment.” – David Allen