Chants, cheers, mantras, onomatomania
On the pleasures of repetition and rhythmic organization, in postings on this blog:
9/30/09: “Phrase repetition disorder”:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2009/09/30/phrase-repetition-disorder/]
Every so often, Zippy and Zerbina get into a groove of repeating phrases. This time it’s Zerbina, stuck on the remarkable phrase “post-prandial sneeze disorder”
2/20/10: “Zippylicious geographical names”:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2010/08/01/zippylicious-names/]
Zippy is in love with words — beautiful words, somewhat ridiculous words, peculiar words, they’re all delicious to Zippy (a manifestation of word attraction). Names especially so. Here he is savoring two geographical names from Montana: Grundy Gulch and Zortman … (savoring them by repeating each — S W S and S S, respectively — three times)
3/3/10: “Mantra of the moment”:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2010/03/03/mantra-of-the-moment/]
Zippy and his acquaintances are given to picking up and chanting “found mantras”, expressions that they find satisfying to repeat — in episodes of what Bill Griffith calls onomatomania or phrase repetition disorder, here): remote control bathtub jet ski (simplified: WS WS | SW SW)
3/31/13: “Sticky expressions”:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2013/03/31/sticky-expressions/]
a Zippy with the “found mantra” Vampire Manga Dog condo [simplified: SW SW | S SW] — an expression that lends itself to obsessive repetition. Such sticky expressions are a recurrent theme in Zippy
5/7/17: “Words, words, words”: two Zippy cartoons, one on “battology: the excessive repetition of a word or phrase”, a (WS WS) word that Zippy then repeats three times; the other on Zippy repeating recidivism (W SW SW?)
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2017/05/07/words-words-words/]
10/3/17: “Repetitive phrase disorder”, a Zippy on “the tetrametrical mantra turtle-headed sea snakes” (SW SW S S)
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2017/10/03/repetitive-phrase-disorder/]
10/6/18: “Twisting in the wind”, a Zippy on “the mantra-like repetition of pneumatic wiggly thing (iambic trimeter)” (WS WS WS)
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2018/10/06/twisting-in-the-wind/]
10/19/19: “Another Griffithian mantra”, on “the hypnotic pleasures of mantric repetition, a favorite theme of Bill Griffith’s”, with cosmic catnip alpine scratcher (SW SW SW SW)
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2019/10/19/another-griffithian-mantra/]
11/27/19: “At the onomatomia dinette”: Zippy on Do-Nut Dinette
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2019/11/27/at-the-onomatomania-dinette/]
10/2/20: “goonsquad goonsquad good squad”:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2020/10/02/goon-squad-goon-squad-goon-squad/]
10/14/20: “More onomatomia”: Zippy on dodecahedron:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2020/10/14/more-onomatomania/]
7/18/21: “Between the glutes”: crowd chants, the cha-cha-cha rhythm, Zippylicious repetition
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2021/07/18/between-the-glutes/]
8/21/21: “Annals of research queries”: questions about the metrics of cheers and chants:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2021/08/21/annals-of-research-queries/]
— (a) accent in speech (within the word and within the phrase) vs. (b) metrical patterns in poetry; and on
— (b) metrical patterns in poetry vs. (c) metrical patterns in music, organizing notes into patterns (in sung music, fitting text and tune)
— (d) rhythmic patterns in dance (especially in social dances, which repeat basic figures over and over)
— (e) rhythmic patterns in drumming
— (f) prosodic patterns in recitations (including the reciting of mantras)
— (g) prosodic patterns in crowd chants
11/1021: “Four cartoons on familiar themes”: Zippy on Hydro-quench body glow:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2021/11/10/120966/]
3/17/22: “Disallusioned affection and onomatomania”:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2022/03/17/disillusioned-affection-and-onomatomania/]
The repetition of mantric material, in the practice of meditation (as an aid to achieving an altered, calmer, state of consciousness), but especially as a playful practice briefly obtruding into ordinary life, has come up repeatedly on this blog, thanks to Zippy the Pinhead’s fascination with the playful practice, under various names, including two general terms for mantric repetition (especially if obsessive — onomatomania (which has become my preferred term) and battology — and two terms for obsessive repetition, especially if it seems to be involuntary, when it’s thought of as an affliction — phrase repetition disorder and repetitive phrase disorder.
3/28/22: “pit beef snow ball girl”: Zippy strip:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2022/03/28/pit-beef-snow-ball-girl/]
5/16/22: “Bingo!”: Zippy on exploding magic bingo bombs:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2022/05/16/bingo/]
6/4/22: “Chant with me, baby”: playful chant from friends and in a Zippy strip:
[https://arnoldzwicky.org/2022/06/04/chant-with-me-baby/]