A Shurin Glossary

Mighty Bookmen,

Here is a glossary I compiled (for people like me with limited vocabulary) for Aaron Shurin's King of Shadows. It's in alphabetical order. Cheers, Ross

109   abattoir   a slaughterhouse

152   cathexis   the concentration or accumulation of libidinal energy on a particular object

135   contraindications   a contrary indication; esp. a symptom, circumstance, etc., which tends to make a particular course of (remedial) action inadvisable

135   dais   a raised table at which distinguished persons sit

135   la diritta via   the straight road

127   divagations   straying from one place or subject to another

132, 155   e lucevan le stella   "and the stars were shining," from the third act of Puccini's "Tosca"

79   ganglia   cystic swellings of unknown cause arising from the sheaths of tendons.

119   incarnadine   flesh-colored

134   ineluctably   unavoidably

148   inviolable   to be kept sacred or free from attack; not to be infringed or dishonored

119   munificent   splendidly generous

43   puer Aeternus   eternal child, used in mythology to designate a child-god who is forever young; psychologically it refers to an older man whose emotional life has remained at an adolescent level

73   samovar   a Russian tea urn, with an internal heating device to keep the water at boiling point

62   sentience   consciousness, susceptibility to sensation

115   sybarite   a person who is self-indulgent or devoted to sensuous luxury or pleasure; a sensualist

74   threnody   a song of lamentation, esp. for the dead; a dirge

133   topos   a traditional theme in a literary composition

136   vestigial   remaining or surviving as a trace or remnant