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View Full Version : Anthony's Analysis of the song Hey! Amigo


Zack -Alizee Lover-
03-04-2007, 10:26 PM
Asking permission!
thanks garco.

This is a personal analysis for the website “Alizée’s nest”. Please do not take this and put it on your sites.

This analysis is only a personal point of view, we will not in any case support arguments that this version is better than another one. However, we hope that you will find here what you wish to find.

Introduction: In this text, Alizée tells the story of the prostitute of Barcelona, her fall, her hopes, her mystery… without talking about them specifically. This story is not referring to a particular person but instead to the group of the “flowers on the boardwalk” represented by a person that Alizée is citing. The objective of this text is to destroy prejudices against the world’s oldest profession without glorifying it. It offers above all the hope of a new life to anyone interested.

"Déambule,
Déhanche-toi plus
Elle déambule,
Dans tes avenues, tes rues," : Alizée calls upon the listener the nature of the text. She tells him/her that the person in question is not far from him, that she is maybe at his house, doing her job [prostitution]. Large cities (avenues) or little villages (roads) she can be anywhere. Put aside the stereotype of the almost nude and full-of-makeup prostitute, the one Alizée is talking about is discreet but effective.

" "Mets les hommes" ...
A ses pieds si tendres," : playing down the importance of the person, the adjective « tender » speaks of its importance to the prostitute, it humanises her, it releases her from the level of “laughingstock” attributed by society and religion during these last centuries. We could even add that a “feminist” Alizée makes the role of the prostitute that dominates the man even more superior, himself deserted by his sexual impulses.

"Barcelone, fais lui bien comprendre :
Qu'elle se trompe
Quel qu'en soit l'émoi
Elle se trompe," : Barcelona, a prostitution hot spot (but that is the case with all big cities in the world right now), is personified and finds itself charged with a mission, to help, find their new niche, away from the claws of the messed up procurer [person who manages prostitutes]. In fact, the personification of “Barcelona” is all of us, to help us rid ourselves of the prejudice, to help us help the other person to succeed just like one would wish for her help in a difficult time of our life. It’s almost the word of a preacher.

"Car elle est comme toi, un chat
Qui ondule
Qui fait le dos rond
Elle manipule, celui qui dit non" : Alizée, who personnified the highest city in the couplet, talks to it, and compares it to a cat. This one (a principally nocturnal animal, independent, discreet, charming…) is a completely appropriate animal to choose to compare with a city. And the prostitute resembles this city that lives by night, that puts on its coat of light that shimmers like a thousand flames. Let’s remember that this city is charged with a mission, to aid the prostitutes that are “forced” to succeed. Alizée therefore finds common ground between the personification of the city of Barcelona (in fact ourselves, the listening audience) and the prostitute, in order to break down the barriers, the differences that separate us.

"Hey ! Amigo !
Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau
Et sur son dos, un tatouage.
Hey ! Amigo !
Mi amigo, elle veut du beau
Et d'un amour, sans maquillage." : The refrain breaks the rhythms describing the personnification of the city (and at the same time the listener). She talks directly to us “Hey! Amigo” (Hey, friend). The message is clear: “She wants the best, she wants your skin” > she doesn’t want just any clientele, so if you feel like you deserve this prostitute, be clean, classy, and gentlemanly.
“And on his skin a tattoo” > At the time, criminals (robbers, prostitutes…) were seared by hot irons. So, this permanent mark left moral and physical scars noticeable by society that can then ridicule that person. The tattoo reminds us of that permanent physical and moral mark that the Barcelona prostitute will never be able to erase.
“She wants some beauty, and a love without makeup”: Always this notion of “gentlemanly client” and at the same time the great feeling of finding “THE” client that will take her out of the circle of prostitution, that will offer her a real love (without makeup).

"Déambule,
Déhanche-toi plus
Elle déambule,
Dans tes avenues, tes rues." : see first couplet

" "Mets les voiles" ...
A son doux visage
Barcelona, prends-la en otage" : Alizée urges her to go away (put on sails) before the huge city devours her forever in this job of prostitution. In addition, “put on the sails” follows “to her soft face” that one can understand in a continuity of separation (the shawl of grieving, of forgetting) or paradoxically to makeup (ex: a colored base-sail) that relates the fact that she is getting more beautiful. This is one of the rare passages where the duality of Alizée’s personality is put in front, because this double-edged sentence places the singer on the middle fence, between flavor and the enemy.

"Elle se donne
Quel qu'en soit le poids
Oui, elle se donne," : despite the psychological weight of her job, she does not complain about her work. She pulls out all the stops to satisfy the needs of the neighborhood John Q. Public. She gives everything because she is a whole personality who does not precisely formulate her ways. She gives everything but wants everything in return too, and the placement of the listener helps us to follow her train of thought. We owe her respect.

"Car elle est comme toi, un chat
Qui minaude ...
Qui feint, et salue l'homme
Elle se sauve d'un bond
Comme elle s'envole !" : we see again the comparison to the cat. This time, Alizée uses the verbs « to demure », « to seem like », « to wave at », and “to save oneself” to amplify the comparison. These verbs all signify something in the life of the prostitute. “Who simpers around…” refers to the recruitment of the client. The cat walks around the man when she looks for affection, the prostitute walks around the man when she looks for a client! “Who seems like”: the simulated cat defends herself (the hairs that stand on end), the prostitute simulates an orgasm! “Who waves”: the cat is paying close attention to the man while caressing his legs. The prostitute is paying attention (in fact this relates to the verb to seem like; her paying attention is also simulated) to the man while talking to him on the street.

Hey ! Amigo !
Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau
Et sur son dos, un tatouage.
Hasta luego,
Mi amigo, elle veut du beau
Et d'un amour sans maquillage. : refer to the first refrain. Only difference between this and the first refrain, « hasta luego » replaces the second « Hey ! Amigo!”, literally “see you soon”. It represents becoming faithful, the prostitute waves to her client to make him feel important, and to see him come back too when she feels the need. In another more optimistic view, we can consider the “hasta luego” as a “thank you” to the city of Barcelona, the prostitute is saved by the mission that the city had undertaken, more specifically taking her out of the job.

garçoncanadien
03-04-2007, 10:28 PM
Merci de ne pas la prendre pour vos sites.

zack you need to ask permission first. it reads please do not take this and put it on your site.

how about you go register there :)

atra201
03-05-2007, 02:25 PM
what just went in here?

garçoncanadien
03-05-2007, 05:43 PM
there are several French analyses of Alizee's songs on the alizeealliance website. they are entertaining reading.

Zack -Alizee Lover-
03-08-2007, 09:38 AM
Ok, finally anthony sent me a pm, allowing me to posting it here.
Source : http://www.nidalizee.com


Ceci est une analyse personnelle pour le site Le Nid d'Alizée. Merci de ne pas la prendre pour vos sites.

Cette analyse n'est qu'un point de vue personnel, en aucun cas nous nous engageons à prôner cette version au détriment d'une autre. Cependant nous espérons que vous y retrouverez ce que vous souhaitez y retrouver.

Introduction : Dans ce texte, Alizée raconte la prostituée de Barcelone, sa déchéance, ses espoirs, son mystère... sans pour autant la mentionner. Il ne s'agit pas d'une personne en particulier mais de l'ensemble de ces "fleurs de trottoir" représenté par une personne qu'Alizée cite. Le texte a pour but de faire tomber les préjugés sur le plus vieux métier du monde sans pour autant le sacraliser. Il offre surtout à l'intéressée l' espoir d'une vie nouvelle.

"Déambule,
Déhanche-toi plus
Elle déambule,
Dans tes avenues, tes rues," : Alizée interpelle l'auditeur sur la nature du texte. Elle lui dit que la personne concernée n'est pas loin de lui, elle est peut-être en bas de chez lui, entrain de faire son métier. Grandes villes (avenues) ou petites villes (rues) elle peut être partout. Laisser les clichés de côté de la prostituée presque nue et ultra maquillée, celle dont Alizée parle est discrète mais efficace.

" "Mets les hommes" ...
A ses pieds si tendres," : Dédramatisation de la personne, l'adjectif "tendre" donne de l'importance à la prostituée, il l'humanise, la sort de son rang de "bête de foire" attribué par la société et la religion au cours de ses derniers siècles. L'on pourrait presque ajouter qu'une Alizée "féministe" supériorise le rôle de la prostituée qui domine l'homme, trahi lui même par ses pulsions sexuels.

"Barcelone, fais lui bien comprendre :
Qu'elle se trompe
Quel qu'en soit l'émoi
Elle se trompe," : Barcelone, haut lieu de la prostitution (mais c'est le cas dans toutes les grandes villes du monde à présent), est personnifiée et se voit munit d'une mission, celle d'aider , trouver leur nouveau chemin, hors des griffes d'un proxénète véreux. En fait, la personnification de "Barcelone" c'est nous tous, à nous d'abattre les préjugés, à nous d'aider l'autre à s'en sortir comme l'on aurait souhaiter son aide à un moment difficile de notre vie. Il s'agit là presque de parole d'évangile.

"Car elle est comme toi, un chat
Qui ondule
Qui fait le dos rond
Elle manipule, celui qui dit non" : Alizée, qui personnifiait la ville plus haut dans le couplet, lui parle, elle la compare à un chat. Ce dernier (animal principalement nocturne, indépendant, discret, charmeur...) est tout à fait l'animal approprié quant à une comparaison à la ville. Et la prostituée ressemble à cette ville qui vie la nuit, qui met son manteau de lumière pour scintiller de mille feux. Rappelons nous que la ville est munit d'une mission, celle d'aider les prostituée dites "forcées" à s'en sortir. Alizée trouve donc des points communs entre la personnification de la ville de Barcelone (en fait nous même, l'auditoire) et la prostituée, afin de faire tomber les barrières, les différences qui nous séparent.

"Hey ! Amigo !
Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau
Et sur son dos, un tatouage.
Hey ! Amigo !
Mi amigo, elle veut du beau
Et d'un amour, sans maquillage." : Le refrain casse le rythme constructif des personnifications de la ville (et par la même occasion de l'auditoire). Elle s'adresse directement à nous "Hey ! Amigo" (Hey l'Ami !). Le message est clair : "Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau" > elle ne recherche pas n'importe quelle clientèle, donc si tu te sens digne de cette prostituée, soit clean, classe, gentleman.
"Et sur sa peau un tatouage" > A l'époque, les criminels (voleurs, prostituées... ) était marqués au fer rouge. Ainsi cette marque indélébile laissait des cicatrices physiques et morales reconnaissable par la société pour dénigrer la personne. Le tatouage rappel cette marque physique et morale indélébile que la prostituée de Barcelone ne pourra jamais effacer.
"Elle veut du beau, Et d'un amour sans maquillage" : Toujours cette notion du "client gentleman" et à la fois elle à l'utopie de trouver "LE" client qui la sortira du cercle de la prostitution, celui qui lui offrira un réel amour (sans maquillage).

"Déambule,
Déhanche-toi plus
Elle déambule,
Dans tes avenues, tes rues." : cf. premier couplet

" "Mets les voiles" ...
A son doux visage
Barcelona, prends-la en otage" : Alizée l'invite vivement à s'en aller (mets les voiles) avant que la grande ville ne l'avale à tout jamais dans ce milieu de la prostitution. D'un autre part, , "Mets les voiles" fait suite à "A son doux visage", que l'on peut comprendre soit dans une continuité de la séparation (le voile du deuil, de l'oubli) ou paradoxalement au maquillage (ex :voile de fond de teint... ) qui relaterait le fait qu'elle replonge de plus belle. C'est un des rares passage ou la dualité du personnage Alizée est mis en avant, parce ce phrasé a double tranchant qui placerait la chanteuse sur le rang, soit du sauveur soit de l'ennemie.

"Elle se donne
Quel qu'en soit le poids
Oui, elle se donne," : Malgré le poids psychologique de son métier, elle ne rechigne pas au travail. Use de tout les atouts dont elle dispose pour satisfaire les bons vouloirs de M. untel du quartier. Elle donne tout car est une personnalité entière qui ne calcule pas. Elle donne tout mais veux tout en retour aussi, d'où l'interpellation de l'auditoire quand à notre manière de nous conduire avec elle. On lui doit du respect.

"Car elle est comme toi, un chat
Qui minaude ...
Qui feint, et salue l'homme
Elle se sauve d'un bond
Comme elle s'envole !" : on retrouve à nouveau la comparaison du chat. Cet fois ci, Alizée use des verbes "minauder", "feindre", "saluer" et "se sauver" pour amplifier la comparaison. Ces verbes signifient tous quelque chose dans le rôle de la prostituée. "Qui minaude..." fait référence au "recrutement" du client. Le chat tourne autour de l'homme lorsqu'il cherche de l'affection, la prostituée tourne autour de l'homme lorsqu'elle cherche un client ! "Qui feint" : Le chat simule se défendre (les poils qui se hérissent), la prostituée simule l'orgasme ! "Qui salue" : Le chat porte une marque d'attention à l'homme en lui tournant autour des jambes. La prostituée porte une marque d'attention (en fait cela se rapporte au verbe feindre, sa marque d'attention est aussi simulée) à l'homme en lui parlant dans la rue.

Hey ! Amigo !
Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau
Et sur son dos, un tatouage.
Hasta luego,
Mi amigo, elle veut du beau
Et d'un amour sans maquillage. : CF. premier refrain. Seule différence avec le premier refrain, "Hasta luego" remplace le second "Hey ! Amigo !", littéralement "A bientôt". Il représente la fidélisation, la prostituée salue son client pour lui accorder de l'importance, et ainsi le voir revenir aussi souvent qu'il en éprouvera le besoin. Dans une autre optique à fin optimiste, on peut considérer le "Hasta luego" comme un "Merci" à la ville de Barcelone, la prostituée est sauvée par la mission dont était imprégnée la ville, a savoir, la sortir du milieu.



COULD SOMEONE TRANSLATE IT PLEASE

CFHollister
03-08-2007, 07:45 PM
Great Zack; I can't read it.

Zack -Alizee Lover-
03-08-2007, 08:05 PM
Great Zack; I can't read it.

You should read the end.;)

garçoncanadien
03-08-2007, 09:13 PM
This is a personal analysis for the website “Alizée’s nest”. Please do not take this and put it on your sites.

This analysis is only a personal point of view, we will not in any case support arguments that this version is better than another one. However, we hope that you will find here what you wish to find.

Introduction: In this text, Alizée tells the story of the prostitute of Barcelona, her fall, her hopes, her mystery… without talking about them specifically. This story is not referring to a particular person but instead to the group of the “flowers on the boardwalk” represented by a person that Alizée is citing. The objective of this text is to destroy prejudices against the world’s oldest profession without glorifying it. It offers above all the hope of a new life to anyone interested.

"Déambule,
Déhanche-toi plus
Elle déambule,
Dans tes avenues, tes rues," : Alizée calls upon the listener the nature of the text. She tells him/her that the person in question is not far from him, that she is maybe at his house, doing her job [prostitution]. Large cities (avenues) or little villages (roads) she can be anywhere. Put aside the stereotype of the almost nude and full-of-makeup prostitute, the one Alizée is talking about is discreet but effective.

" "Mets les hommes" ...
A ses pieds si tendres," : playing down the importance of the person, the adjective « tender » speaks of its importance to the prostitute, it humanises her, it releases her from the level of “laughingstock” attributed by society and religion during these last centuries. We could even add that a “feminist” Alizée makes the role of the prostitute that dominates the man even more superior, himself deserted by his sexual impulses.

"Barcelone, fais lui bien comprendre :
Qu'elle se trompe
Quel qu'en soit l'émoi
Elle se trompe," : Barcelona, a prostitution hot spot (but that is the case with all big cities in the world right now), is personified and finds itself charged with a mission, to help, find their new niche, away from the claws of the messed up procurer [person who manages prostitutes]. In fact, the personification of “Barcelona” is all of us, to help us rid ourselves of the prejudice, to help us help the other person to succeed just like one would wish for her help in a difficult time of our life. It’s almost the word of a preacher.

"Car elle est comme toi, un chat
Qui ondule
Qui fait le dos rond
Elle manipule, celui qui dit non" : Alizée, who personnified the highest city in the couplet, talks to it, and compares it to a cat. This one (a principally nocturnal animal, independent, discreet, charming…) is a completely appropriate animal to choose to compare with a city. And the prostitute resembles this city that lives by night, that puts on its coat of light that shimmers like a thousand flames. Let’s remember that this city is charged with a mission, to aid the prostitutes that are “forced” to succeed. Alizée therefore finds common ground between the personification of the city of Barcelona (in fact ourselves, the listening audience) and the prostitute, in order to break down the barriers, the differences that separate us.

"Hey ! Amigo !
Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau
Et sur son dos, un tatouage.
Hey ! Amigo !
Mi amigo, elle veut du beau
Et d'un amour, sans maquillage." : The refrain breaks the rhythms describing the personnification of the city (and at the same time the listener). She talks directly to us “Hey! Amigo” (Hey, friend). The message is clear: “She wants the best, she wants your skin” > she doesn’t want just any clientele, so if you feel like you deserve this prostitute, be clean, classy, and gentlemanly.
“And on his skin a tattoo” > At the time, criminals (robbers, prostitutes…) were seared by hot irons. So, this permanent mark left moral and physical scars noticeable by society that can then ridicule that person. The tattoo reminds us of that permanent physical and moral mark that the Barcelona prostitute will never be able to erase.
“She wants some beauty, and a love without makeup”: Always this notion of “gentlemanly client” and at the same time the great feeling of finding “THE” client that will take her out of the circle of prostitution, that will offer her a real love (without makeup).

"Déambule,
Déhanche-toi plus
Elle déambule,
Dans tes avenues, tes rues." : see first couplet

" "Mets les voiles" ...
A son doux visage
Barcelona, prends-la en otage" : Alizée urges her to go away (put on sails) before the huge city devours her forever in this job of prostitution. In addition, “put on the sails” follows “to her soft face” that one can understand in a continuity of separation (the shawl of grieving, of forgetting) or paradoxically to makeup (ex: a colored base-sail) that relates the fact that she is getting more beautiful. This is one of the rare passages where the duality of Alizée’s personality is put in front, because this double-edged sentence places the singer on the middle fence, between flavor and the enemy.

"Elle se donne
Quel qu'en soit le poids
Oui, elle se donne," : despite the psychological weight of her job, she does not complain about her work. She pulls out all the stops to satisfy the needs of the neighborhood John Q. Public. She gives everything because she is a whole personality who does not precisely formulate her ways. She gives everything but wants everything in return too, and the placement of the listener helps us to follow her train of thought. We owe her respect.

"Car elle est comme toi, un chat
Qui minaude ...
Qui feint, et salue l'homme
Elle se sauve d'un bond
Comme elle s'envole !" : we see again the comparison to the cat. This time, Alizée uses the verbs « to demure », « to seem like », « to wave at », and “to save oneself” to amplify the comparison. These verbs all signify something in the life of the prostitute. “Who simpers around…” refers to the recruitment of the client. The cat walks around the man when she looks for affection, the prostitute walks around the man when she looks for a client! “Who seems like”: the simulated cat defends herself (the hairs that stand on end), the prostitute simulates an orgasm! “Who waves”: the cat is paying close attention to the man while caressing his legs. The prostitute is paying attention (in fact this relates to the verb to seem like; her paying attention is also simulated) to the man while talking to him on the street.

Hey ! Amigo !
Elle veut du haut, elle veut ta peau
Et sur son dos, un tatouage.
Hasta luego,
Mi amigo, elle veut du beau
Et d'un amour sans maquillage. : refer to the first refrain. Only difference between this and the first refrain, « hasta luego » replaces the second « Hey ! Amigo!”, literally “see you soon”. It represents becoming faithful, the prostitute waves to her client to make him feel important, and to see him come back too when she feels the need. In another more optimistic view, we can consider the “hasta luego” as a “thank you” to the city of Barcelona, the prostitute is saved by the mission that the city had undertaken, more specifically taking her out of the job.

Zack -Alizee Lover-
03-08-2007, 10:30 PM
Holy Moly Thank you a lot! garco!

CFHollister
03-08-2007, 10:42 PM
Very Interesting.

garçoncanadien
03-08-2007, 10:48 PM
that fellow Anthony is reeeeeeaaaally talented in this kind of thing, you should read his others if anybody gets a chance.

Zack -Alizee Lover-
03-08-2007, 10:53 PM
that fellow Anthony is reeeeeeaaaally talented in this kind of thing, you should read his others if anybody gets a chance.

i will when i improve my french and can handle it alone ;)

atra201
03-10-2007, 03:28 PM
Garco, did you translate French into French?

MiamMiam
03-10-2007, 04:00 PM
What are you talking about Atra? Lol it's in English, just the lyrics are still in French ;)

atra201
03-10-2007, 05:42 PM
What are you talking about Atra? Lol it's in English, just the lyrics are still in French ;)

well iguess we have the lyrics translated somewhere else.

Roman
04-01-2007, 10:11 PM
Well, here's a link to one translation of the actual lyrics:
http://www.mf-international.com/viewtopic.php?t=48

Roman
04-01-2007, 10:43 PM
God! I liked the song a lot before, just understanding it musically. (I knew the Spanish part) This song just gets elevated to a whole other level, having an understanding of the meaning of the lyrics. How can anyone see Alizée/Mylène's music as frivolous with lyrics like this. This is a great song! Even more so I think the way she sings it and with Laurent's up-beat music. They try to talk about things that can be very emotionally charged and have a darkness, but try to keep it light so that we don't get taken too far down that road. I think I'll have to add this to my list of favorite songs from Alizée which just keeps getting longer.

garçoncanadien
04-02-2007, 06:26 PM
to all those who have not read this analysis before pleeeeaaase read it when you get a moment :) Anthony is extremely talented at this kind of thing and his understandings help a lot in understanding the song. Like said I will translate all his 10 analyses for you and write stickies so that all can see his hard work :)

Edcognito
04-16-2007, 02:38 AM
to all those who have not read this analysis before pleeeeaaase read it when you get a moment :) Anthony is extremely talented at this kind of thing and his understandings help a lot in understanding the song. Like said I will translate all his 10 analyses for you and write stickies so that all can see his hard work :)

Knocked my socks off! I would NEVER have pulled all the alegory together, not speaking French even slightly. Thanks again to GarconCanadien for the translations - think its been said before, but this takes the song to a whole new level!

Ed:)

CFHollister
04-16-2007, 04:28 AM
to all those who have not read this analysis before pleeeeaaase read it when you get a moment :) Anthony is extremely talented at this kind of thing and his understandings help a lot in understanding the song. Like said I will translate all his 10 analyses for you and write stickies so that all can see his hard work :)

I agree that these analyses by Anthony are all very insightful and I enjoy them very much. However I remain cautious as to accepting them as the final word on the subject. I like to think of them as one possible interpretation, a very well thought out interpretation, but just one possible intepretation nonetheless.

I wonder if Mylène writes such ambiguous lyrics in order to cover up her true meaning and thus only the truly insightful are rewarded with uncovering it; or if her purpose is to allow individual listeners the freedom to find their own meanings within the text regardless of what it may have originally meant for herself. Personnaly, I lean towards the latter. I'm sure she has a clear idea of what her texts mean to herself; but as a lyrical artist, I feel she would want people to construct their own personnal meanings and significance in her work.

I guess why I'm writing this is to say: Anthony may well be right and may have uncovered the hidden meanings behind Mylène/Alizée's songs; but don't let that stop you from finding your own significance in the texts. I'm speculating a bit with this next part here, but I think Mylène would have prefered it that way.

garçoncanadien
04-16-2007, 06:39 AM
sure sure i didn't say thou shalt read this analysis and believe it :D

besides i need help understanding her songs too i don't know what they mean half of the time ;)

fsquared
10-08-2007, 02:20 AM
You know, I started wondering just recently whether this was inspired to some extent by Mérimée's Carmen. I mean, I wondered, why a Barcelona prostitute? Apparently, in some imaginings of this story, Carmen is a prostitute. The original story places Carmen in Córdoba, though (wrong end of Spain).

One reason that this could be somehow relevant is that Nabokov's Lolita (the book) spends a lot of time mirroring and alluding to Mérimée's Carmen.

CFHollister
10-08-2007, 03:03 AM
You know, I started wondering just recently whether this was inspired to some extent by Mérimée's Carmen. I mean, I wondered, why a Barcelona prostitute? Apparently, in some imaginings of this story, Carmen is a prostitute. The original story places Carmen in Córdoba, though (wrong end of Spain).

One reason that this could be somehow relevant is that Nabokov's Lolita (the book) spends a lot of time mirroring and alluding to Mérimée's Carmen.

Very interesting. I'm not nearly well vered enough in literature to spot or analyze anythign along these lines.