Editing 2591: Qua

{{comic
| number    = 2591
| date      = March 9, 2022
| title     = Qua
| image     = qua.png
| titletext = Qua qua qua is the sine qua non of sine qua non qua sine qua non.
}}

==Explanation==
[[wikt:qua|Qua]] is a relatively rare, formal word, from Latin, roughly meaning "in the capacity of". For instance "In essence, military regimes are autocracies in which the military <u>qua</u> organization performs many of the functions performed by the ruling party in single-party regimes".

Saying something is "X qua X" (e.g. "entertainment qua entertainment") means when X is being viewed in its most typical capacity (eg, entertainment as something that entertains, rather than as a business, a form of propaganda, or whatever).

<!-- I dunno, probably just one or the other -->
For example, "A copy, <u>qua</u> copy, can never be the equal of the exemplar, and it may be much its inferior." [https://www.yourdictionary.com/qua] 

[[Cueball]] claims that people only use ''qua'' to "sound pretentious" without properly understanding its meaning. Thus, people do not use "qua ''qua'' qua", or "qua for the sake of qua". However, [[Megan]] one-ups this with a series of seven ''qua''s: she compliments Cueball's successful use of "qua qua qua ''qua'' qua qua qua", or "the phrase 'qua qua qua' for its correct meaning".

The joke is that, for the reader, the conversation has likely dissolved into gibberish because of unfamiliar terminology and {{w|semantic satiation}}. This is similar to other complex sentences such as {{w|Buffalo buffalo|"Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo"}}, "was was was before is", {{w|That that is is that that is not is not is that it it is|"That that is is that that is not is not is that it it is"}}, and {{w|Had had had|"James while John had had had had had had had had had had had a better effect on the teacher"}}. Following this trend, you can create a grammatically correct sentence that includes 'qua' a consecutive number of times equal to (2<sup>n</sup>-1), where n is a natural number.

The title text goes further with this, using a Latin phrase {{w|sine qua non}} (meaning literally "without which not"), commonly rendered as "that which is absolutely necessary" or "essential". Thus, the title text says that "the word 'qua' in its real meaning is essential to the phrase 'sine qua non' used correctly".

However, the "qua" in "sine qua non" is a demonstrative pronoun ("which"), unlike the other "qua" which is an adverb, so the similarity is only coincidental.

==Transcript==
:[Cueball and Megan are speaking to each other.]
:Cueball: People mostly use "qua" to sound pretentious. You rarely hear qua ''qua'' qua.
:Megan: Nice use of qua qua qua ''qua'' qua qua qua.

{{comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Comics featuring Megan]]
[[Category:Language]]