"Actuality is a running impoverishment of possibility. Though he had looked forward to seeing her again at the cocktail party and had made sure that she was invited, when it occurred, though she came, he could not get to her."
--from BECH: A BOOK by John UpdikeWestern literature is being impoverished by financial support for writers and by creative writing programmes, according to a series of blistering comments from Swedish Academy member Horace Engdahl, speaking shortly before the winner of the Nobel prize for literature is awarded.
In Some Parts of Egypt, Bad Times Remained Bad
By KAREEM FAHIM
In the impoverished Egyptian town of Fayoum, conditions never improved
during Mohamed Morsi’s presidency, and the future now seems unpromising.
New Android Phones, from the Potent to the Pennywise
By Harry McCracken
Verizon's Bionic is powerful but battery-hungry; Virgin's Triumph provides the basics at the right price
actuality
aktjʊˈalɪti,-tʃʊ-/
penny-wise
or pen·ny·wise (pĕn'ē-wīz')
adj.
Careful in dealing with small sums of money or small matters.
(pĕn'ē-lĭs, pĕn'ə-)
adj.
- Entirely without money.
- Very poor. See synonyms at poor.
pennilessness pen'ni·less·ness n.
英國小說中的倫敦名街（6）
Grub Street 是倫敦的鬻文為生的窮書生之街【 （昔のLondonの）貧乏文士街; 三文文士たち（の生活）. 】
現 在的辭典多收它。In current usage the term is used in western literary and journalistic circles to characterize any hack writing, done quickly, for a fee, generally with minimal research.
這種說法從十八世紀開始；著名的辭典家/文豪S. Johnson 這樣定義：
According to Samuel Johnson's Dictionary, the term was "originally the name of a street near Moorfields in London, much inhabited by writers of small histories, dictionaries, and temporary poems, whence any mean production is called grubstreet".
在英國文學傳統一路上都有詩文諷刺此種窮酸文人。參考An Oxford Companion to the Romantic Age: British Culture 1776-1832 （edited by Iain McCalman, Jon Mee, Gillian Russell, Clara Tuite, Kate Fullagar, Patsy）
從A. Pope 在1729/42寫長詩 The Dunciad開始，之後，Grub Street漸漸成為比喻用法，與這條街的地理位置等無關。
在藝術上我們可以用David Bindman, Hogarth (London 1981) 說明。傳主W. Hogarth （British artist noted for his satirical narrative paintings and engravings, including A Rake's Progress (1735) and Marriage à la Mode (1745).
http://www.answers.com/topic/
我約40年讀過George Gissing 的四季隨筆（英文本），很早知道他著小說 New Grub Street 。今天才利用此機會讀它幾頁，一飽眼福。
David Bindman, Frédéric Ogée and Peter Wagner, eds. Hogarth: Representing Nature's Machines (Manchester, 2001)
Word of the Day:
Grub Street (grub street)
noun: The world of impoverished journalists and literary hacks.
Etymology
After Grub Street in London where such writers lived.
Notes
In 17th century London, Grub Street near Moorfields was the place to find impoverished writers. Even though this street was renamed Milton Street in 1830, the world of hack writers is still known as Grub Street.
The inhabitants of this now metaphorical place churn out words without any regard for their literary merit. They were often called penny-a-liners. A Grub Street writer is also called a hack writer, which is another London allusion: Hackney in East London, was the place where horses suitable for routine riding or driving were raised. The word hack, in related senses, is a short form of hackney.
As any writer would tell you, publishing is a long and slow journey, but according to Google Maps it's only five minutes from Grub Street to Fleet Street.
Usage
"To succeed in journalism, the late Nicholas Tomalin once wrote, you need three qualities: 'a ratlike cunning, a plausible manner, and a little literary ability'. ... There are still some aspects of the Grub Street trade that can be learnt with a little application." — Stephen Jones; Times Educational Supplement; Nightmare on Grub Street; Sep 14, 2007.
impoverish
Syllabification: (im·pov·er·ish)
Pronunciation: /imˈpäv(ə)riSH/
verb
[with object]Derivatives
impoverishment
noun
noun
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