Notes On The Esperanto Posts

What Montague Butler said in the introduction of his very fine Esperanto-English dictionary is true and valid,  "I attach special importance to examples from La Biblio, as Zamenhof's greatest translation and the world's best known literature."  I think that's especially true of the Eliro, the Exodus narrative of the enslavement of people and their liberation from slavery.    When Americans held in slavery asserted their right to liberation, they didn't cite the slave holders Jefferson and Madison, they didn't cite the slave-holding Hamilton, they cited the Exodus narrative and the Mosaic book.  For slaves and wage slaves the radicalism of their political economy puts the assertions of our Social Democrats and, certainly, Marxists and, infinitely more so, free market wage slavery ideologues behind.  The only thing I know of that extends that radicalism is The Gospel and the Apostolic books which are based on them.  There is nothing more radical and nothing more fitting for an American liberal political blogger posting language lessons to use for the purpose.   Several books have recently been published that note the importance of Moses to American egalitarian democracy, one notes that there are probably more citation of him in that regard than anyone else.  So I don't have the slightest hesitation to keep using it.  

I have enormous respect for the achievement of L. L. Zamenhof and his generosity in refusing to retain control of his masterpiece or, though very far from rich and always struggling to make a living, to take bribes to assert control over it in order to change it to the liking of those offering the bribes.  I can hardly think of someone who created something so significant who relinquished control of it during his lifetime. He really was a very admirable man.  Marjorie Boulton's Zamenhof: Creator of Esperanto. is probably the best biography of him. 

The one by the journalist Edmond Privat is more of a personal account of a man he knew and dearly loved.  Here's a  recording of a personal account he gave to a meeting of Esperantists in 1954.  It's extremely clear and well written but pretty advanced.   Privat's book,  Karlo was probably the most read elementary reader before Claude Piron's books took that position. It is a little old fashioned but has its charms and was quite well written.

I should mention that there is an Esperanto version of wikipedia which seems to have been a lot less ratfucked than the English one.   As well the Plena Ilustrita Vortaro, "PIV". the most complete dictionary of the language, is available online.  Though without the illustrations the print edition has.