“Mythographer was suggested by the man who made my website, actually. I do write a lot about myth and I do feel it's a bit pompous to state it that way, but it does distinguish me from other writers. When it was first on the web, people began to use it in an ironical and satirical way. Now, however, people tend to use it straight.” PeopleMenWayFeelsWritingFirstsDoeMadeStatesUseBitsHe ManMythWebsiteSatiricalPompous Author:Marina Warner
“It seemed to me to be a parable of the exchange of goods, rather Marxist in some ways, in the new world of global forces. What the forgers do is write the brand name to try and change it, and it works! Loads of people buy fake Prada handbags, or Chanel sunglasses; they've been changed. They have been truly, really changed.” PeopleWorldWayWritingTryingHas BeensNamesForceChangedBrandsFakeGoodsNew WorldLoadMarxistParablesSunglassesHandbagsPradaBrand Names Author:Marina Warner
“Our traditional stories are based on an aristocratic model without a middle class, whereas The Arabian Nights reflect people living in cities, traders, merchants, travelers, with a wide range of personalities.” PeopleStoriesNightCitiesClassMiddlePersonalityModelsWideTraditionalRangeMiddle ClassTravelerMerchantsTradersArabianAristocraticLiving In The CityArabian Nights Author:Marina Warner
“The Grimm brothers always said that their informants were women, which is possibly not true, women of the people. There is the constant evocation of women's voices, in the collecting and arrangement of these stories, and yet the message of so many of them is incredibly misogynist. I was very puzzled by that, and that book explores that contradiction.” PeopleSaidBookStoriesVoiceBrotherMessagesConstantContradictionArrangementsCollectingPuzzledGrimmInformantsBrothers GrimmTrue Woman Author:Marina Warner
“There is humanist enterprise of the book, and amongst that there are many, many stories. And that is why at the end, when he says that the stories are so illuminating that they must be engraved and encased in gold and put in the palace library, the people who compile the book are telling us that this is a collection of human wisdom.” PeopleHumansBookEndsStoriesGoldLibraryCollectionsEnterpriseHumanistPalacesIlluminatingEngravedHuman Wisdom Author:Marina Warner
“The other thing about the Nights is that it is quite racist. One parentheses is that I think this is one of the negative things that appeal to people, that The Arabian Nights could be used as a disguise for racism. It suited the West. You could smuggle racism into children's literature, you see. The African magician in the story of Aladdin, he's labeled explicitly as the "African Magician." He's not a character but a stereotype, and a lot of this got into nursery literature in this Oriental disguise.” PeopleThinkingChildrenCharacterStoriesUsedNightLiteratureRacismNegativeWestAppealsRacistDisguiseStereotypeMagicianNurseryChildren's LiteratureArabianParenthesesArabian Nights Author:Marina Warner
“I am not a great believer in dialectical struggle. I am much more of a fusion person. I see it as a dialogue, or trialogue, or polylogue: many, many, many voices, going back a long way. The cultural picture is much more mutually enriching at many different levels, manufacturers...absolutely, design and calligraphy. It's an amazing amount of cross-interests between people.” PeopleWayPersonsLongDifferentVoiceInterestLevelsStruggleDesignAmountCrossesBelieverDialogueLong WayFusionDifferent LevelsEnrichingCalligraphy Author:Marina Warner
“If you want to learn about a culture, you look at what buildings the people lived in but you also want to know about their cosmos.” PeopleIfsKnowsWantLooksCultureBuildingCosmos Author:Marina Warner
