Nifty Assignment-Text Mimicry

As an assignment in Programming I, John Miller wrote a program that would mimic a piece of writing. It would read in a text file containing the piece to be mimicked.

It would then compose a document in a similar “style.” John developed functions that would compose new stories or new poems.

Sample output from the program:

From “The Wasteland”

these ascended In a brown fog of Philomel, by Thebes below the waters of the rest? I am, and coloured stone, In vials of cards.
Here, said it begun to see.
I see At the table as The sea Picked his way, finding the wind’s home.
It has no comment.
What is always another one I together But there are in to year.
But at four.
And gropes his eyes.
Look!) Here is no empty bottles, sandwich papers, Silk handkerchiefs, cardboard boxes, cigarette ends Or in odours; stirred by Thebes below the silence.
Od’ und leer das Meer.
Madame Sosostris, famous

tree gives no comment. What shall rush out in a damp gust Bringing rain There is there, she is not to the sylvan scene The glitter of it won’t be the waters of mudcracked houses If you and beat their wings And her room enclosed. Footsteps shuffled on the wet bank. The brisk swell Rippled both shores Southwest wind under the white road winding above among the grass is not to thank, she is not find The Hanged Man. Fear death had five already, and back from either Your shadow of time to meet you; I was once only A gilded

Another:
eyes.
Look!
Here is that clutch, what you who turn the sun’s last year in the flames of the grass is something different from the agony in memories draped by water.
Only at Moorgate, and walk the room enclosed.
Footsteps shuffled on those hooded I do now?
What you know who to windward, Consider Phlebas, who walks always beside you don’t like it bloom this only, we have existed Which an age of water and this red on the horoscope myself: One must be for I said it you are departed.
Sweet Thames, run softly, for an hour.
Bin gar keine

Another:
mudcracked houses If there were water A Dayadhvam: I will show you are departed.
And each in the sun’s last fingers of indifference.
And if Albert was neither Living nor dead, and the key Turn upward from within Where the sailor home at least set my brother’s wreck And walked among the glass Held up by standards wrought with copper Burned green and the ships at four.
And voices singing out as he guesses, The river sweats Oil and chuckle spread Her drying combinations touched by water.
Only at you.
If there the stages of dust.
Frisch weht der Wind Der

From “Alice in Wonderland”

alice to the cook tulip-roots instead of this!’ sounds of the hatter, who had plenty of tea, and shoes.’ the wind, and then it should be trampled under the queen of late to go on. her once again as the baby joined):- `wow! wow! wow!’ while the hall. after a little wider. `come, let’s try the doors all came upon it. there were followed him into one eats cake, but her reach the dormouse fell upon their faces at the roots of adding, `you’re wrong about for to speak again. i wish they went on. `we beg your business, two!’ said a three-legged table, with a rush at last remark, with the cat only hear the question was no one of `there is bill,’ she began telling me smaller, i should think it fills the queen. `i didn’t!’ the glass table. `nothing whatever?’ persisted the hedgehog was going to play with the house opened, and now which way?’, holding her unfortunate little white rabbit, who felt that

the constant heavy sobbing a lobster–‘ alice thought alice.
`exactly so,’ said seven.
`yes,
please we put down the book,’ thought alice,
`because i’m here!
it’ll make it written down a large cauldron which seemed to work throwing everything is enough,’ said the three gardeners who instantly threw themselves flat upon

Another:

`they’re sure whether it away!’ there could go, and the hot tea spoon while she was surprised at your pocket?’ he can’t possibly hear it sad?’ and pencils had read as she was waving its body to on so she was such nonsense!’ said the pepper-box in the queen of my right height indeed!’ said the dormouse, after the knave, `i should be like, `–for they are you?’ he bit of this must needs come wrong, and she might appear to her flamingo, and the lory, as it must be otherwise than no mark; but generally, `you insult me next moment she ran across the hatter were trying to see the trees behind a poor hands, how is a low, and listen to whisper a new idea came the paper. `if we went back in the words have got their friends shared their friends shared their faces in front of neck, which was mystery,’ the sneeze of the entrance of anything near the queen!’ and a chorus of her knowledge of authority among the leaves that she thought to eat or hippopotamus, but when the case with blacking, i can’t explain it,’ she said alice. `come on, yawning and the king

Let America Be America Again by Langston Hughes

the free?
not me?
surely not stain.
from those who made america,
whose sweat and make america be the same old world while still a home where liberty is free,
equality for me,
nor freedom in this “homeland of mighty crush the mountains and lies,
we,
the dream that’s made america,

Another:

the old stupid plan of profit,
power,
gain,
of the negro bearing slavery’s scars.
i am the people,
must redeem the dreams we’ve sung and stone,
in this “homeland of the pay!
of the people,
humble,
hungry,
mean- hungry yet must be–the land where liberty is real,
and ruin of take