Heh. I'm glad you mention the "distracting" line. When I was researching my story, The Scourge Does Titipu (http://rebcake.livejournal.com/3031.html), I found this little gem in wikipedia:
The term for this rhetorical technique is meiosis, a drastic understatement of the situation.
Who knew they'd have a scientific (sounding) term for my favorite kind of humor? It cracked me right up.
In any case, I am thrilled that you were delighted and entertained by this. I could never figure out why Buffy didn't seem overly affected by Spike's charms after spending a few hours in his lap during "Something Blue" (since we all know he's a love god). It finally occurred to me that she was most likely struggling not to give in to her attraction, 'cos, you know: evil. That struggle is the basis for virtually all great romantic comedy. It's Pride and Prejudice, with vampires! I'm so happy you emphasized that aspect in your comments. Thanks!
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ninetydegrees
no subject
2008-11-07 19:36 (UTC)The term for this rhetorical technique is meiosis, a drastic understatement of the situation.
Who knew they'd have a scientific (sounding) term for my favorite kind of humor? It cracked me right up.
In any case, I am thrilled that you were delighted and entertained by this. I could never figure out why Buffy didn't seem overly affected by Spike's charms after spending a few hours in his lap during "Something Blue" (since we all know he's a love god). It finally occurred to me that she was most likely struggling not to give in to her attraction, 'cos, you know: evil. That struggle is the basis for virtually all great romantic comedy. It's Pride and Prejudice, with vampires! I'm so happy you emphasized that aspect in your comments. Thanks!