Concise languages are better than verbose. Perl fans admire the language for nothing but its ability to express algorithms in a very concise manner. Lately a lot of Java developers started to look at Python, in the same search of brevity...
Let's ask ourselves: is brevity always good?
It's long known in markup theory of poetry (see: Roman Jacobson, "Poetry of Grammar and the Grammar of Poetry") that the large verbose meters promote noble elevated way of thinking. Hexameter. Classical works on immense beauty and striking depth were written in this meter.
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!"
Now limerick. Short, concise, energetic form, but what content does it promote?
"There was an old man from Peru,
Who dreamed he was eating his shoe.
He woke in a fright
In the middle of the night
And found it was perfectly true."
Feel the difference?
This is about what is being written in Java and what in your Perl/Python...
[ May 26, 2002: Message edited by: Michael Ernest ]
Let's ask ourselves: is brevity always good?
It's long known in markup theory of poetry (see: Roman Jacobson, "Poetry of Grammar and the Grammar of Poetry") that the large verbose meters promote noble elevated way of thinking. Hexameter. Classical works on immense beauty and striking depth were written in this meter.
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning!"
Now limerick. Short, concise, energetic form, but what content does it promote?
"There was an old man from Peru,
Who dreamed he was eating his shoe.
He woke in a fright
In the middle of the night
And found it was perfectly true."
Feel the difference?
This is about what is being written in Java and what in your Perl/Python...
[ May 26, 2002: Message edited by: Michael Ernest ]