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nothing unusual to him, or startling, or stirring...
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Glossary entry

English term or phrase:

outside the easy sway of either/or (definition)

English answer:

outside of a possible defintion

Added to glossary by Stephanie Ezrol
Sep 26, 2010 07:00
13 yrs ago
English term

outside the easy sway of either/or,

English Art/Literary Art, Arts & Crafts, Painting literature
the sentence like this:" This was who he was, outside the easy sway of either/or,..."

I wonder what is "outside the easy sway of either/or" mean?

Thank you!
Responses
3 +4 outside of a possible defintion
5 beyond undoubted effect(influence) of one or other
5 it is rather difficult to express in any terms
3 (he was) outside the sphere of any controlling influences
3 decisive
Change log

Oct 1, 2010 21:03: Stephanie Ezrol Created KOG entry

Discussion

Jim Tucker (X) Sep 26, 2010:
The context turns out to be a little different: Stephanie also found it on gbks:

Then she went back down the hall and of course it did not feel to her that she'd been washing a child but then it wasn't quite a man either but then, again, this was who he was, outside the easy sway of either/or...
Annett Kottek (X) Sep 26, 2010:
I read it as exactly **not** decisive This is a man who does **not** take decisions lightly because he does not believe in simple black-and-white (i.e. the either/or binary) reasoning. If this is indeed from DeLillo's pen, this would make sense as he's often described as a postmodern novelist. But really, more context would help here.
Jim Tucker (X) Sep 26, 2010:
Well now I looked it up: This comes from the pen of Don DeLillo.
Jennifer Barnett Sep 26, 2010:
But still, it's a pity if the style gets in the way of communication. Sorry, I guess just don't enjoy this kind of creative writing, find it irritating. Each to his own.
Jim Tucker (X) Sep 26, 2010:
I wouldn't say... that there's a problem with the writing. The sticking point may simply be that "either/or" is being used as a noun here -- perfectly natural in English but not in many grammars. It's clearly a powerful shorthand for "the realm of situations or decisions that can easily go one way or the other." "The easy sway of" is a self-assured phrase that suggests an accomplished writer (probably a songwriter).
Jennifer Barnett Sep 26, 2010:
the obscure writing style doesn't help Including your previous post, your guess is as good as mine. IMHO, rigorous editing and rewriting by the author is required to make this text onderstandable for any reader. Sorry that this remark may not help you much.
Catharine Cellier-Smart Sep 26, 2010:
More context would allow us to help you better.

Responses

+4
6 hrs
Selected

outside of a possible defintion

In this context where the author is writing about the the main character and a strange male who has entered her life, I believe that the "outside the sway" refers to the fact that she (the character speaking) thinks that she can not define him as a boy or a man. He is outside the sway of that type of defintion or determination.

The either/or refers back to the earlier phrase:

course it did not feel to her that she'd been washing a child but then it wasn't quite a man either but then, again, this was who he was

Sway is being used to mean influence, or power, or direction, but in an ususal way. She can not decide if he is a man or a boy.
Peer comment(s):
agree Jim Tucker (X) : Yes, as it turns out -- thanks for the passage.
7 mins
Thanks Jim. macky has been posing questions on this book for a few months. It took me some time to get a sense of the writing style.
agree Tina Vonhof (X) : I haven't read this book but this sounds entirely plausible to me.
1 hr
Thanks Tina !
agree Annett Kottek (X) : Indeed, neither child nor man. BTW, I understand 'sway' to be a reference to the oscillation between either/or (‘easy’ because it makes life less complicated) rather than ‘influence’. // True.
1 hr
Thanks. The author uses sway several times in the text. The intention could be for the reader to hear both meanings.
agree Phong Le
22 hrs
Thanks Phong Le !
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thank you for help!"
26 mins

beyond undoubted effect(influence) of one or other

.
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3 hrs

(he was) outside the sphere of any controlling influences

Gosh, this is an interesting question...

I've never seen nor heard this particular phrasing before, but I presume it means that that this person is outside the sphere of controlling influences that could be exerted upon him to sway him in another direction.

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4 hrs

decisive

Not much context to go on, but perhaps this is about the character having an image of being able to take decisions rather than fudge things?
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18 hrs

it is rather difficult to express in any terms

This expression refers to a sway of a swinging bell tongue of the church. In other words: "It is hard to find words and expressions wether you look at it this way, or other.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hunchback_of_Notre-Dame

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Note added at 22 hrs (2010-09-27 05:17:47 GMT)
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difficult to describe

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Note added at 1 day2 hrs (2010-09-27 09:16:52 GMT)
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bell tongue - human tongue; outside ( beyond the reach of any possibiity)of easy sway (like it's hard to move your tongue) difficult to apply any common expression, none would be suitable.
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