Funnel Field

Colloquialisms

Surrealism isn’t all that weird after all.

Headless people occur not only in surreal paintings, but also in colloquial language, as do pig-headed ones and those who have a screw loose or bats in the belfry.

The ancient Egyptians, among others, represented their gods as animals. A modified version of this time-honoured custom has survived until the present time, and so there is always one or the other contemporary to be found whom we call an ass, chicken, a bitch, or the like, in order to designate their spiritual and physical condition, let alone such quirky manifestions as snotty brats, old farts, pains in the ass, and hot babes.

And then, when a half-formed wish becomes a half-warmed fish, and ground beef turns into bound grief and the military, though anchored in reality, forms bridgeheads and does battle in cauldrons until all that's left is crater fields, and lettuce shoots, it can all drive you up the wall.

"Holy mackerel," says someone, and the surrealist's heart jumps for joy: What a wonderful combination!

(Text: Wolfgang Lettl)

* Translator's Note: crater fields are called funnel fields in German