Hatrack River Writers Workshop: Looking for a word

This is topic Looking for a word in forum Open Discussions About Writing at Hatrack River Writers Workshop.

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Posted by TheoPhileo (Member # 1914) on :

quote:
Jameen almost put a finger to its sweaty neck to confirm it dead, but thought better of it. An xxxx nudge with toe of his boot was convincing enough.

Anybody know a word that means "not responded to?" Ignored is the closest I can come up with, but that obviously doesn't work with a dead humanoid body. Perhaps something akin to unrequited?

Posted by TheoPhileo (Member # 1914) on :

oooh How about unreciprocated?

(Don't mind me thinking aloud in the forum)

[This message has been edited by TheoPhileo (edited February 11, 2004).]

Posted by Lord Darkstorm (Member # 1610) on :

Unresponsive?

Posted by RillSoji (Member # 1920) on :

Perhaps reconstruction the sentence?

Nudging the unresponsive body with the toe of his boot was convincing enough...

He nudged the limp body with toe of his boot...

Posted by Christine (Member # 1646) on :

I agree...reconstruct the sentence. I can't think of the word, and the way it stands now is a little awkward even if you can come up with the right word.

Posted by Gwalchmai (Member # 1807) on :

How about cautious or casual, depending on the context?

Posted by Fire-Bringer (Member # 1856) on :

Tentative? Exploratory? I kinda like the sentence the way it is, assuming you find the right word.

-F

Posted by Survivor (Member # 213) on :

Reconstruct the sentence. The word you are looking for (limp and unresponsive both work quite well) is describing the behavior of the body, not the nudge.

If you rephrase this with a phrase, you'll see this quickly enough.

A nudge with the toe of his boot--which brought no response--was convincing enough.

In this sentence, there is no clear indication why the nudge brought no response. I could be that the creature was dead, but then again, it could equally be the fault of the nudge, perhaps he didn't nudge hard enough or maybe his boot was too soft.

You can see that Gwalchmai and Fire-Bringer didn't even get what you were looking for, they both suggest adjectives (and an adverb) that describe the nudge, not the response.

But this is all rather out of place. The reason that you nudge a dead body like that is not because you expect a response. If the creature is unconscious or fiegning death, there won't be one. The reason you nudge the body is because a dead body feels completely different from a live body, particularly the abdominal wall. In a live body, there will be detectable muscle tension. In a dead body...not so much. Of course, with the use of a muscle relaxant or certain forms of meditation, this degree of relaxation can be imitated. But the fact remains...limp is the word you want.

Just apply it to the body, not his nudge.

Posted by Kolona (Member # 1438) on :

Phooey. You beat me to the punch, Survivor.