"'Independent spirit... I like that.'"
-Time Patrol, p. 2.
Everard to Carl Farness when interviewing him about his proposed mission to the Goths:
"'A responsible attitude. I like that.'"
-Time Patrol, p. 354.
Does "I like that" sound patronizing? Maybe not in the US? I think that it is more of an Americanism than an Anglicism.
It is a measure of Everard's progress within the Patrol that he goes from being interviewed to interviewing. He is becoming like an elder statesman and even a legend to lower ranks and to more recent recruits. His peers, the Middle Command, find that they must treat him with respect and should even accord him some "special consideration." Where is this said? (Presenting the quotation as a quiz question saves me the trouble of typing in the reference here and now.)
I might get back to rereading "The Sorrow of Odin the Goth" consecutively some time this evening.
2 comments:
It can be taken literally, or used as an ironic inversion "well, I like that!", meaning I don't.
Kaor, Paul!
I never thought that "I like that" was offensive or patronizing in any way. Unless you want to add droll, ironic, or sardonic inflections to that phrase.
Ad astra! Sean
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