I'm weighing this new imponderable. Definitions are one thing, and are OK, but...... A lot of things have always fascinated me. The relative unknowns in Nature, for example, which I may or may not understand, depending on their degree of difficulty, such as the Human Heart, consisting of hundreds of billions of muscle cells being "told" to contract and relax in strictly controlled cadence producing "waves", like tall grass blowing in a field, so perfectly in rhythm that they propel the blood contained in the chamber out through the valve. That concept fascinates me. Chemical reaction rate when I mix up some combustible powder varies with the pressure it develops. In a loose pile, ignited, it burns vigorously but quietly, taking seconds to finish. If I place the powder in a confined enclosure, it burns much more quickly, perhaps in a minute fraction of a second, producing enormous pressure and bursting the container. The reasons why that happens fascinate me. The first time my first girlfriend put on the 2-piece swim suit I had given her for her 16th. birthday, she placed one leg in view around the bedroom doorframe as I was seated at their kitchen table with her mother, that sight fascinated me! The first time she presented me with the requested view of herself in the entirety, we were alone, of course, and that fascinated me imponderably much! I can think of many other kinds of "fascination", and they are not all good, some being bad. Some danged frightening. So, good, bad, enjoyable, or frightening, how do YOU define it? Examples will be relished! (I have a secret!) Frank
The two senses of fascination each take a different preposition. A person has a fascination with something they are very interested in (her fascination with the royal family), whereas something interesting holds a fascination for a person (words have always held a fascination for me). The Oxford English Corpus shows that the distinction is often blurred today, but it should be maintained in careful writing. Perhaps I never understood fully prepositions and how they work. I suppose I was never interested in how things worked or why but accepted my father's admonition that 'thats the way things are'. I could say the difference in your way of thinking and mine is akin to smallness of my brain and the largeness or yours but that doesn't seem right merely saying my thinker is the size of a marble and yours the size of a basketball. That's much too improbable as we know all brains are similiar in size. Maybe it is how they function, some more greased up so information slides from one terminal to the next with a fuller understanding. Is that training or lack thereof? Is that facinating to some, rather dull to others? Is that what smarts is all about, where one has a pea sized ability, the other something larger? I think I have come to realize, over past decades, Frank, that nearly every one has more smarts (fascinations) than I do and that they have abilities to explain their interests where-as I do not (over my paygrade). I will say you most often keep me pondering the imponderables when I'd rather say, 'that's the way things are'. .
@Bill Boggs - I liked your pondering explanation so much I think you are way more gifted than you think ! Seriously I liked your analogy of the brain and as you say, we're pretty much the same size wise So its the inner workings isn't it - a bit put aside for emotions - a bit put aside for ability and so it goes on We're all capable of better things to come out of that brain, just some of us refuse to use it You're a 'thinker' so am I and nothing wrong with that
Ha ha, I think you're right again - I'm not one for 'selfies' give me a gorgeous view of nature any day @Bill Boggs
Nice word but its usage can be rather dubious to say the least. I’m “fascinated” by the fact that it’s synonymic partners start with simple interest and span through passion, obsession and compulsion which makes me wonder what someone is talking about when they say something is fascinating. I suppose that instead of it being imponderable, one should surely ask someone on what level is their fascination should they use that word. To be sure, Spock of Star Trek fame used the term “fascinating” or “interesting” on numerous occasions without an inkling of how great his interest truly was. Such is the life of one reported to be without emotion. Personally, there is nothing that does not spark a bit of fascination because I do have an obsession for knowledge, all knowledge, any knowledge. Still, all that said, there is nothing more fascinating than the look of awe on a child’s or a baby’s face whilst they are first experiencing something new like a butterfly in flight or a squirrel sitting on it’s branch.
Fascination sounds trivial really - not extreme is it But, fascination can lead to much more like exploration, wanting to know the how and why
I guess the word "fascinated" wouldn't be a appropriate word, but much more of curiosity WHY anyone would rob a bank or anyplace that has either video or regular security cameras in it. They have to know they have either been video taped or pictures taken of them, but still. Actually, many times, I'm full of the "why?" to certain things in society.
That song is the first thing I thought of when I read the title to this thread. When I think of fascination, I think of when my cat, Fluffy, used to sit inside by my window and watch a bird building it's nest outside under the carport; body totally still, nerves atingle. The only thing moving was the slight twitch of her tail as she anticipated pouncing on her prey. She never knew that she could never attain the object of her desire because of the separation between them. Or maybe she just enjoyed watching the birds as I do. Anyway, she was fascinated by the birds and I was fascinated by her fascination with the birds.
@Shirley Martin I am watching the Quail walking around outside my kitchen window right now, it is dusk, but still quite light. They have beaten the harshness of the Desert somehow, surviving here for some thousands of years. Indian hieroglyphics on rocks here have good renditions of quail etched in them. These are Gambrel Quail, having the little "tickler" dangling from the tops of their heads.
@Frank Sanoica the very fact that you you question fascination ...fascinates me Fascination...... is amazement with questions.