Precious Nonsense

Precious Nonsense is a fascinating exploration of the unique ways in which language, pattern, and meaning intersect in some of literature's most revered works. Examining Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, Ben Jonson’s epitaphs on his children, and Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, the book argues that what makes these texts so compelling is not just their depth of insight, but their underlying structure of “nonsense”—patterns and phrases that seem logical yet defy straightforward interpretation. The author suggests that the appeal of these works comes from their ability to make sense while, upon closer examination, appearing to be built on contradictions, ambiguities, and linguistic tricks that often go unnoticed by the reader.

Rather than traditional literary interpretation, this book takes a unique approach, focusing on the pleasure we derive from literature’s formal and linguistic playfulness rather than from its supposed deeper meanings. By analyzing nursery rhymes, proverbs, and other seemingly simple forms of expression, the author builds a case for how the joy of literature often lies in the paradoxes and linguistic coincidences that our minds process intuitively. Precious Nonsense challenges conventional academic approaches to literary criticism, advocating for an appreciation of texts not just for their ideas, but for the way they work on a cognitive level. An essential read for scholars, students, and anyone who delights in the quirks of language, this book offers a fresh perspective on why we love the literary works we do.

This title is part of UC Press's Voices Revived program, which commemorates University of California Press’s mission to seek out and cultivate the brightest minds and give them voice, reach, and impact. Drawing on a backlist dating to 1893, Voices Revived makes high-quality, peer-reviewed scholarship accessible once again using print-on-demand technology. This title was originally published in 1998.