Question as a Retort? [closed]
I'm a huge Pulp Fiction fan, and the following is one of my favorite scenes, but it also irks me. (source: IMDB)
Jules: [Jules shoots the man on the couch] I'm sorry, did I break your concentration? I didn't mean to do that. Please, continue, you were saying something about best intentions. What's the matter? Oh, you were finished! Well, allow me to retort. What does Marsellus Wallace look like?
Can a question be a retort to something? I see retort defined as (dictionary.reference.com):
- to reply to, usually in a sharp or retaliatory way; reply in kind to.
- to return (an accusation, epithet, etc.) upon the person uttering it.
- to answer (an argument or the like) by another to the contrary.
All the above suggest some sort of a reply. But can a retort be a question, or even a counter-question ?
Solution 1:
Why can't a reply be a question? I am replying to your question with my own question, so isn't that an example of a reply that is a question? Cannot a question be given as a reply "in a sharp and retaliatory way"?
Solution 2:
The OED says that the intransitive use of retort, meaning “To reply by retaliation”, is rare. They have only one citation, and that’s with to:
- 1883 C. Reade Tit for Tat vi, ― He threatened violence. They prepared to retort to it.