Phil tried out the new swivelly chair for size–took a spin or two just to get the feel of it and put his hands on the desk proprietarily. “Hand me a book, love, will you?”
“Any book?”
“Any book.” Marta handed him a book.
“No, not that–a big book.”
“Well, you should have said size mattered. War and Peace–will that do?”
He took it and thumbed the pages.
“Strange,” she said, “how many titles are like that.”
“Like what?”
“Something and Something,” she replied. “Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Art and Lies.”
“Le Rouge et le Noir, Crime and Punishment, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance,” he continued.
“Why is that?” asked Marta–confident that he would supply an answer.
“Synergy,” he said.
She looked blankly at him.
“Synergy. You can take any two ideas and link them with a conjunction and bingo! The whole becomes greater than the sum of the parts.”
“Ah!”
“To begin with you can ask whether one has a causal link to the other. Can punishment exist without a concept of crime? Surely it would be reduced to gratuitous cruelty? Crime on the other hand, in the absence of punishment ceases to be crime–or does it? Then you can examine the poetic resonance of the phrase–its alliterative qualities and balance–its musicality.”
“I see what you’re getting at,” she said.
“And you can think about whether it embraces antithetical concepts too–is Zen really compatible with motorcycle maintenance?”
“Yes, I see now,” she said. “Art and Lies is an interesting one to conjure with. Of course, these are the books everyone has bought but nobody’s actually read.”
“I read Zen,” he protested indignantly. “Fascinating stuff! This isn’t thick enough.” He handed War and Peace back for re-shelving. “It’s the floor, I think, as well as the leg… Give me Crime and Punishment.” He jammed it under the wobbly desk. “You see? That’s perfect.”
“Good,” said Marta. “Let’s have some coffee.”
“And a biscuit,” he called after her.
Oonah V Joslin lives in North East England with her husband and a cat. She writes short fiction and poetry but is currently working on a first novel.
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35 Responses to “SYNERGY • by Oonah V Joslin”
Comments
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January 21st, 2008 at 12:48 am
Great comment on the state of literature. An interesting “antithetical comment” of its own! Well done!
January 21st, 2008 at 1:04 am
Excellent flash, Oonah, all the more powerful for the touches of domesticity and humour.
January 21st, 2008 at 2:08 am
Fabulous flash, Oonah. So many layers, nicely done!
January 21st, 2008 at 4:23 am
Very very funny! The ending took me completely by surprise. I’m still laughing!
January 21st, 2008 at 4:37 am
I never tire of reading your work!
I see myself and so many of my literary peers in Phil, hehe!
Fabulous as always, Oons!
x
January 21st, 2008 at 4:49 am
Terrific flash.
Well done Oonah.
January 21st, 2008 at 6:12 am
Oonah, what a terrific juxtaposition of concepts! Tilting chair and high art. The profane and the sacred. Love it–and you gave me something to ponder today.
January 21st, 2008 at 7:18 am
A perfect Monday morning piece. Can someone hand me a copy of The Profound and Profane.
January 21st, 2008 at 7:52 am
This one I really liked! Talk about putting things in perspective. Great job, great message.
January 21st, 2008 at 8:58 am
Is this a true story?
Nicely done!
January 21st, 2008 at 9:41 am
All too true!
Nicely done Oonah.
January 21st, 2008 at 12:46 pm
Cute story, nice ideas!
January 21st, 2008 at 1:02 pm
Nice one Oonah! As always.
January 21st, 2008 at 2:19 pm
Great flash!
Cheers
Mark
January 21st, 2008 at 3:01 pm
Thank you to everyone who read and commented so kindly. I’m glad to have made you ponder and laugh and I hope you will all rush out and buy Zen and the art of motorcycle maintenance and READ it! It’s a great book - honest
Oonah
January 21st, 2008 at 5:19 pm
Another clever tale, EDF! You’re setting precedents here, best be careful. Nicely done, Oonah.
January 21st, 2008 at 5:22 pm
The quality of our submissions has really ramped up as the site has gotten popular, but authors like Oonah, Sarah Hilary, and Avis Hickman-Gibb have always been strong. We’re lucky to get submissions from them!
January 21st, 2008 at 5:47 pm
Bloody BRILLIANT
January 21st, 2008 at 8:58 pm
Ha! Funny stuff, Oonah!
January 22nd, 2008 at 3:14 am
Lol! Oh, brilliant, Oonah! Well done! So tongue-in-cheek, this one!
January 22nd, 2008 at 3:20 am
Thank you Jordan for your comment. It’s Hickman-Gibb, not grub, by the way but I am sure she’ll appreciate the sentiment as much as I did.
January 22nd, 2008 at 3:22 am
Thank all of you for your appreciation. I do like a good laugh!
:) NAH
January 22nd, 2008 at 3:23 am
Why can I only put one smile? I want to put two to start my name
- some people never grow up!
January 22nd, 2008 at 6:07 am
Love it! This is one of my favorite flashes so far on EDF–and that’s saying a lot!
January 22nd, 2008 at 6:52 am
yoy. changed. I was tired
January 22nd, 2008 at 10:42 am
grub? GRUB?!!!
January 22nd, 2008 at 10:44 am
Don’t trust her Avis ! ! ! The evidence is right there in the comment. I said “Gibb” :S
January 22nd, 2008 at 10:44 am
Been waiting for this one
! !
January 28th, 2008 at 1:04 am
Thanks Oonah; I re-enjoy this each time I read it.
February 3rd, 2008 at 3:33 pm
Hullo. I’ve been trying to work out how to email you because I have been perusing some of your work and enjoying it muchly.
Would you care to have a look at http://www.thepygmygiant.blogspot.com and perhaps grace us with your presence?
Thanks for the smiles and ponderings elicited by your work. Mel
March 16th, 2008 at 12:18 am
Yet another great flash Oonah. The others have said it all.
March 16th, 2008 at 7:05 am
Kate that is so complimentary. Many thanks, Oonah.
March 16th, 2008 at 7:06 am
Thank you for coming back to read it again. I appreciate it. Oonah
March 16th, 2008 at 7:16 am
Mel, Thank you. I am very reticent about blog sites and stuff. I really don’t know enough about web security and things to feel happy about it but I did go and take a look and wwho knows, I may send something in…
May 17th, 2008 at 9:22 am
Thank you for your comment Jennifer