Wednesday, May 11, 2022

Alan Moore's Jerusalem: Book 3: Vernall's Inquest: Round the Bend: Line 23

Line 23: "How the peer of hum were all-ways clost, unhearthily so in her cestimation, from the grendle to the crave?"

Non-Lucy-Lips Version: "How the pair of them were always close, unhealthily so in her estimation, from the cradle to the grave?"

"peer of hum"
There are 48 pages of this shit. I'm not going to understand it all (or maybe even half)! Peer could mean looking or gazing, perhaps between mother and son a bit too intensely. It could also mean as in a peer group but that's probably reaching so I'm going to stop considering it now. The "hum" could be that they were in a weird rhythm or constantly close and whispering, sounding like a single droning noise. In any case, this evokes both a visual and an auditory suggestion of the two of them tightly knit.

"all-ways clost"
In every way, perhaps in ways unimaginable and obscene, they were constantly close. But if this relationship were actually incestuous, one might consider that they were both lost in every way, morally, legally, ethically, spiritually . . . you name it! All ways, man!

"unhearthily so"
Incest would be an unhealthy activity to partake in (I'm assuming because it's gross to think about on a personal level (although kind of hot on a porn level)). It could also be "unhearthily" in that it breaks up the family, the "hearth" being the heart of the home.

"in her cestimation"
"In her cestimation. "In cestimation." "In cest." "Incest." This has been an episode of The Electric Company you never wanted to see.

"grendle to the crave"
Partially mutated spoonerism of "cradle to the grave" with a nice Grendel reference tossed in, being that in Beowulf, the monster was a bit of a momma's boy too. And of course the "crave" to suggest that Giorgio was just too hot for his mother to ignore. Also remember how the dragon in Beowulf was just a really lengthy penis reference? That doesn't have anything to do with this though.

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