The Bound Variable of Love

By J. L. Speranza
for the Grice Club, etc.


Grice uses

x

to denote a free variable

(and 'y', on occasion).

Other people don't. They use 'x' to represent one kiss, usually at the end of a letter. The more stupid the merrier,

JL

x x x

----

R. Paul informs me that the origin of this practice is familiar enough:

In 1763 G. WHITE, wrote a letter -- now in the Proceedings of the Oxford English Dictionary Annals, vol for (1901) I. vii. p. 132, which reads


I am with many a xxxxxxx
and many a Pater noster and Ave Maria,

Gil. White."

Why this letter dated 1763 was only published in 1901 escapes me -- but then.

Also, it's UNGRAMMATICAL, ennit. I mean

"many a Pater Noster"

is grammatical. You say

"Many a thief is a good person underneath".

You don't say

"Many a thieves are a good person underneath".

So how come Gilbert White writes

"with many a xxxxxxx"

That should surely have read:

"with many a x"

Unless he was French which he weren't.

The second quote provided by the OED brings us to more familiar waters:

"1894 W. S. CHURCHILL Let. 14 Mar. in R. S. Churchill Winston S. Churchill
I. Compan. I. (1967) vii. 456

Please excuse bad writing as
I am in an awful hurry.
(Many kisses.)
xxx

WSC



Nice, but what's the point of expliciting a Gricean conversational
implicature?

I mean:

if "X" means "kiss" and "XXX" means "3 kisses", why
sillily add

"many kisses"?

The question is who the letter is addressed. Some chamber maid, I assume.

(who wouldn't mind her xs and ys).

The third quote is by a very sad person who commited suicide:

1951 S. PLATH
Let. 7 July (1975) I. 72

Some gal by the name of Sylvia Plath
sure has something but who is she anyhow?..

x x

Sivvy.

Sad too Sivvy gal ended her life, like. And the irony of it all is that this letter was probably addressed to that wicked, wicked man, Ted Hughes, who was, as Hume would not say, the "Cause" of the death of Sivvy.


The next quote is from Wales:

1953 DYLAN THOMAS Under Milk Wood (1954) 41

Yours for ever.
Then twenty-one X's.


One expects better grammar from a poet. It should read

"twenty-one Xs".

No need of the apostrophe unless he is echoing the local greengrocer?

In 1982, C. FREMLIN Parasite Person vi. 40


A row of 'X's', hurried kisses, all
he had time to scribble.


Same with Fremlin as with Thomas. Published authors - unless published
greengrocer's - should know that the plural of "X" is "Xs", not "X's".

Etc.