Page 89 - The Irony Board
P. 89
Into the World
Dancing about
A wallflower
Is not by
Other bees
Believed.
Animal antics analogize human behavior via anthropomorphic
verbs. At first, bees seemed to do a sort of rumba upon their return
to the hive; now, it appears they are transmitting data relevant to
sources of nectar by means of body language. The newer
interpretation makes sense, but deprives us of an amusing image.
This poem has two simultaneous meanings, switching on
“about,” “wallflower,” and “believed.” If a scout’s labanotation
describes merely a picture of a flower (his dance is about a literal
wallflower), then his audience will not be fooled; this reading of the
work refers to the scientific view of apian movements. But a
normally inactive bee (a “wallflower”) will also cause amazement
(not be believed) if it dances about; here the terpsichorean analogy is
at play, and fits the ballroom as well as the hive.
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