Paraphrasing memorable words

 

Paraphrase: "a restatement of a text or passage giving the meaning in another form, as for clearness; rewording." Quoting a text in one´s own words, I would say. 

    The opening words of Salinger´s The Catcher in the Rye (1951) are: "If you really want to know about it, the first think you´ll probably want to know is where I was born and what my lousy childhood was like, and how my parents were occupied and all before they had me, and all that David Copperfield kind of crap, but I don´t feel like going into it..." The main character is Holden Caufield, writing that.

    Woody Allen has recently published his memoirs, "Apropos of Nothing" and he starts with: "Like Holden, I don´t feel like going into all that David Copperfield kind of crap, although in my case, a little about my parents you may find more interesting than reading about me." 

    This paraphrase of Woody Allen´s presuposes we know who Holden is, what the crap is, and why he mentions David Copperfield. Woody is not writing for those under 55, who probably have not read the famous novel. I read it when I was 16, several times. 

    I guess that, more than paraphrasing Salinger, Woody Allen is paying him a tribute, and acknowledging the impact the novel had on us youngsters of that time. (N.B. A sequel to this will follow shortly.)