Some of us give up[…] with only a resigned sigh. Others fight a little, then lose hope. Still others — and I am one of those — never give up. We figh… - Yann Martel

In his entirely personal experience of them, English was jazz music, German was classical music, French was ecclesiastical music, and Spanish was from the streets. Which is to stay, stab his heart and it would bleed French, slice his brain open and its convolutions would be lined with English and German, and touch his hands and they would feel Spanish.

"So you want another story?"

Uhh... no. We would like to know what really happened."

Doesn't the telling of something always become a story?"

Uhh... perhaps in English. In Japanese a story would have an element of invention in it. We don't want any invention. We want the 'straight facts,' as you say in English."

Isn't telling about something — using words, English or Japanese — already something of an invention? Isn't just looking upon this world already something of an invention?"

I think art comes from some sense of discomfort with the world, some sense of not quite fitting with it.