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Tmesis. It was astonishing to discover that although everyone in the world actively engages in this phenomenon, no one in the microcosm of our class knew the word to describe it existed. One would think that since tmesis is largely responsible for every piece of literature ever written, people would be more familiar with it in the context of its impact on daily life. Without tmesis and intertextuality, one could never have any sort of stimulating conversation because it is nearly impossible to discuss only a singular facet of something without straying off into different topics. Also, as Dr. Casey brought up, it is remarkably difficult to sit and have your mind totally blank for longer than a couple of seconds. One is not safe even while sleeping, for dreams reflect the connections and associations within the subconscious.
We discussed in class writerly texts and readerly texts; how their designs encourage readers to stray or not to stray. However, what we did not fully touch upon is the tmesis occurring within the author's head when he or she is constructing a piece. Presently, while I write this post, I am not fully engaged in the text. My fingers are doing the typing from muscle memory while my mind whirls and dips in and out of postmodern structural theory. When I can think of nothing more to write, I need merely to go back and reread the thoughts I just typed and will thus make different associations than I had while initially typing.
I posit the notion that tmesis is responsible for creativity and inspiration. Whether reading or writing a text, the gap between the words really is the most important part. The words are the stepping stones from one thought to the next. Yes, they provide a strong base from which to get from one part of the novel to the other, but the strong possibility exists of falling while between these stones and discovering a whole new world beneath the surface.