Cryptography Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 14
Spreading
14.1 A New Job
We open with a shot of a fishing boat where a father and son work on
tempting the fish with seductive offers of worms and minnows.
Father:
It makes me happy to have my son come home from col-
lege and stay with us.
Son:
Ah, quit it.
Father:
No. Say something intelligent. I want to see what I got for
my money.
Son:
Quit it.
Father:
No. Come on.
Son:
The essential language of a text is confusion, distraction,
misappropriation, and disguise. Only by deconstructing
the textual signifiers, assessing and reassessing the semi-
otic signposts, and then reconstructing a coherent yet di-
vergent vision can we truly begin to apprehend and per-
haps even comprehend the limits of our literary media.
The son reels in his line and begins to switch the lures.
Father:
It makes me proud to hear such talk.
Son:
I'm just repeating it.
Father:
A degree in English literature is something to be proud of.
Son:
Well, if you say so.
Father:
Now, what are you going to do for a job?
Son:
Oh, there aren't many openings for literature majors. A
friend works at a publishing house in New York...
The son trails off, the father pauses, wiggles in his seat, adjusts his line
and begins.
