Chapter 11: Cliches Bergen Evans argues, of course, against the use of cliches, that cliches are a form of lazy, non-thinking; we hear what we expect to hear and it makes us feel comfortable. He says that, for the most part, cliches are the province of politicians and advertisers for obvious reasons. He also says that at one time most cliches had "meaning beyond that of plain words" but that through overuse, they have become trite, meaningless expressions. Evans also uses Jonathan Swift as an example of perhaps our first "cliche" expert with the publication of his book "Complete Collection of Genteel Conversation Now Used in the Best Companies of England" and that the frightening thing about the book is that it could be a tape recording of talk today with such familiar expressions as "talk of the devil" and "a sight for sore eyes" and "marriages are made in heaven," among others. Evans says that cliches, if they are based on a "great deal of wit," may be justified, for example, Oscar Wilde's quip "punctuality is the thief of time" or Peter DeVries' remark regarding traffic on the parkways, "Blessed are the pacemakers, for they shall see God." Exercises A. Synonyms 1. incompetent = c. incapable. But perhaps "inadequate" would be a better choice. Incompetent implies that you can do the task but that you're not very good at it. Incapable implies you simply cannot do it. 2. versatile = d. many-sided, in the sense of capable of being able to do many things well. "He is a versatile musician, capable of playing with accomplishment not only woodwinds but strings as well." 3. sprightly = d. lively. "Spright" is a variant of "sprite" with the meaning of a small or elusive supernatural being, an elf or a pixy. 4. concise = a. terse, but remember the shade of connotation between "concise" and "terse." They are not interchangeable as synonyms. 5. gastronomic = c. related to eating. We have had the root word, gastr- meaning "belly, stomach;" -nomy is a suffix meaning "a system of laws governing or a body of knowledge about a specific field" (as in astronomy or taxonomy), and the adjective suffix -ic. 6. akin = d. related. It can mean related by blood, but it can also mean having a similar quality or character, analogous--which is the way it is used in the essay. 7. preceding = b. foregoing. Ultimately from a Latin compound word pre- (before) + -cedere, meaning "to go." 8. abruptness = a. suddenness. 9. auditors = listeners. Other forms: audiometer (what would this guy do?), audiophile, audiotape, audio-visual, audition, auditorium, auditory (nerve), audiogram (e.g. EKG, EEG), audible, audience. The financial meaning of "audit" comes from the notion that originally these were done by reading the accounts out loud. Additionally, what do you do if you were to "audit" a course? 10. sententious = c. full of self importance. Abounding in pompous moralizing; Given to pompous moralizing. "The sententious oratoryof politicians has alsways truck a false cord in the hearer: a lot of promisie but no delivery." B. Definitions 1. intent. Aim purpose. Having mind and will focused on a specific purpose. "It is my intent that we leave promptly at 6:30 tomorrow morning so that we will have plenty of time to get to the airport." 2. orgy. The word orgy has become connected in the minds of many of us with unrestrained sexual activity, but its origins are much less licentious. We can trace the word as far back as the Indo-European root werg-, meaning "to do" and the source of our word work. The Greek orgia also comes from the root werg-. The Greek word was used with reference to the worship of various deities, such as Orpheus and Dionysus. The Greek word did not denote sexual activity, although this was a part of some of the rites. But the rites of Dionysus, for example, included only music, dancing, drinking, and perhaps the eating of animal sacrifices. Having passed through Latin and Old French into English, the word orgy is first recorded in English with reference to the secret rites of the Greek and Roman religions in 1589. It is interesting to note that the word is first recorded in its modern sense in 18th-century English. Whether this speaks to a greater licentiousness in society or not must be left to the historian, but certainly the religious nature of the word has gone into eclipse. As is our wont, we have also made a metaphor, meaning not only unrestrained sexual activity but any unrestrained activity: "After the Lenten period when I gave up ice cream, on Good Friday I had a veritable orgy with Breyers Mocha Chocolate Fudge, consuming the entire half gallon." 3. blighting. Having a deleterious effect on; ruin. The blighting effect that Katrina had on the Gulf Coast; we can still see a sea of blue tarps and piled up debris. The blighting effects of global warming. 4. exquisite. Acutely perceptive or discriminating, not the "excellent in beauty" sense of the word. 5. torrent. Heavy, uncontrolled outpouring. Despite its firm connection wit "water," torrent comes from a source that meant "scorch, parch." This was Latin torrere, which also produced the English words toast and torrid and is related to thirst. Its present participle torrens was used metaphorically as an adjective of streams that "boil" or "bubble" because of their strong current, and it was in this sense that it passed as a noun into English. So we can talk about a torrent of rain, but we can also talk about a torrent of words. 6. countenance. The face of facial features. 7. rampant. Raising on hind legs, as the classic lion in heraldry. But this is a limited use, and I would certainly accept the "unrestrained" idea: weeds growing rampant in the untended garden;" "rampant crime in our cities." 8. collectively. Of, relating to, or made by a number of people as a group. "Not that it would do you any good, the class could collectively decide that we not have a final exam." 9. flourish. To do or fare well, prosper. The 3rd grader, who had had a hard time in school thus far, flourished with his new teacher; she was able to bring out the best in him. 10. alliterative. Characterized by repetition of the begriming sounds of words. Evans says that this is frequently the origin of some cliches, such as "cool as a cucumber;" nothing inherently "cool" about a "cucumber," but the initial hard "c" sounds make it an appealing expression. C. Etymologies 1. cliche. A trite or overused expression or idea (remember "hackneyed?"). Originally, the French word clicher literally meant "stereotype," that is, "a print from a plate made by making a type-metal cast from a mold of a printing surface." The word was supposedly imitative of the sound made when the mold, hot, was dropped into water to cool it: clissshay. Because these molds were used over and over again (after all, this is before offset printing and digital photography), the mold was used time and time again--hence, cliche. The word cliche comes into our language from the French, which was a past participle of clicher, meaning to "stereotype," which was imitative of the sound made when the matrix (in this case a lead cast) was dropped into water to cool it. 2. jaded. Worn out, wearied, dulled by surfeit, sated. We generally use the word in the sense of cynically or pretentious callous ("Jaded by years of dealing with callow graduate students, the English professor decided to retire.") The English word jade survives only in its derivative adjective jaded, meaning "tired, sated." It originally meant "worn-out horse," and was later transferred metaphorically to "disreputable woman." No one is really sure why this transformation of meaning took place--although I could probably guess. Jaded comes into our language from the Middle English iade, probably akin to the Swedish dialect word jalda, meaning "mare, possibly of Finno-Ugric origin. 3. abdicate. Actually the essay uses the noun form, "abdication." But in any case, it means "to relinquish formally." The word "abdicate" comes into our language from the Latin word abdicare, a form of the Latin root, abdicat, which means "to disclaim." That word is a compound word composed of the prefix ab-, meaning "away from," plus the root word dicare, meaning "to proclaim." 4. pathos. A quality, as of an experience or a work of art, that arouses feelings of pity, sympathy, tenderness. or sorrow; the feeling, as of sympathy or pity, so aroused. Pathos came into our language from the Greek word, meaning "suffering." 5. genteel. Refined in manner, well-bred, polite. You're going to have to look up "gentle" to get this one. Genteel came into our language from the Middle English gentil, meaning 'courteous, noble,' from the Old French word meaning the same, from the Latin gentilis, meaning "of the same clan," from the Latin gent, meaning clan. This is yet again one of our gen words of IO origin. 6. transmute. To change from one form, nature, substance, or state of being into another; transform. The essay actually uses the noun form "transmutation." Transmute came into our language from the Middle English word transmuten, with the same meaning as the modern word, from the Latin transmutare, which is a compound word consisting of the prefix trans- (across, beyond, through) plus the root word -mutare, meaning "to change." D. Analogies compulsion : persuasion as force : coax (Relationship: antonyms) stoicism : impassivity as torrent : rage (Relationship: synonyms) profundities: superficialities as urban : rural (Relationship: antonyms) impoverished : enriched as concise : verbose (Relationship: antonyms) inevitable : ineluctable as transmute : transfigure (Relationship: synonyms) self-gratulatory : self-deprecatory as jaded : fresh (Relationship: antonyms) E. Imposter 1. relinquish = d. adhere to 2. intrinsic = d. extraneous 3. pompous = a. circumstantial 4. whimsical = d. deliberate 5. vividly = b. proudly F. Matching 1. felicitous = h. particularly apt (the quotations which head each of the essays is felicitous, that is, it expresses what the essay contains.) 2. urban = m. metropolitan 3. trite = platitudinous (learn to pronounce this guy; he's terrific!) 4. trope = a. figure of speech (any figure of speech: metaphor, simi lie, and so on) 5. depict = o. portray 6. disdain = c. scorn (After discovering that Chet had cheated on the exam, his friends held him in disdain.) 7. contrarieties = j. opposites. 8. platitude = d. truism (and a host of other synonyms: hackneyed, cliche, aphorism, trite . . .) 9. risibility = n. tendency to laughter. This is one word I would love to add to my speaking vocabulary, but I just can't find a way to do it. The only context I can think of is, of course, the Cheshire Cat of Alice in Wonderland fame. Can you help me? 10. approbation = e. sanction, in the sense of "an expression of warm approval; praise." G. Potpourri 1. Etymologically, a "moot point" is one talked about in a "meeting." For "meeting" is the original sense of the noun moot, particularly as applied in early medieval England to a meeting functioning as a court of law. The word goes back to a prehistoric Germanic word motani, meaning "meeting," source also of the English word meet. Although it carries the significance of a debatable point, moot is now largely used to mean "irrelevant." The "moot court" of law school is a kind of mock court situation where student attorneys argue previously decided cases. 2. To "rest on one's laurels" means to get by on a previously won reputation. The literal botanical meaning of "laurel" is Laurus nobilis (bay tree), of nobility. And it is from these leaves that laurel wreaths were fashioned, hence signifying "winning, glory, honor." Roots and Meanings
* The connection between "normal" and "carpenter's square?" Thought you'd never ask. The Latin word norma originally denoted a sort of set square used by carpenters, masons, and the like for measuring right angles. It was extended metaphorically to mean "a rule, pattern, precept," but English originally took over its derivative normalis as a mathematical term, in the fairly literal sense of "perpendicular." The more familiar modern sense of "standard, usual" did not emerge until the 19th century, at about the same time as normality, normalcy, and norm itself began to appear on the scene.
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