Deconstruction fun with “There was once”

Margaret Atwood’s poetry and fiction are among the best.  My first encounter was The Robber Bride,  followed by The Handmaid’ Tale, Alias Grace, The Blind Assassin, and Oryx and Crake in that order, I think. Most of these were published in the ‘9o’s. They are not “light” reads. Atwood’s worldview sometimes conflicts with mine, but she is insightful and tells her captivating stories with masterful style. 

She’s often satirical as in the terse “You fit into me:”

You fit into me
like a hook into an eye
A fish hook
An open eye

I like her penchant for the unexpected, the unconventional, the twist. Her ear for speech is superb. And in this dialogue poem — “There was once” —  she’s at her best. She employs the humble fairy tale to satirize political correctness and more. It’s not public domain, but I’ve linked to the Mississippi Review’s online copy, right after the “Bad News” short. Read it in the characters’ voice, and I promise it will be worth the extra click.

(I’ve posted on her “Siren Song.”)

 

 

Eponyms — what’s in a name?

We know about synonyms, antonyms, and homonyms. “Eponyms” are words derived from a person’s name, real or fictional. Proprietary eponyms are words that derive from a product and that become common names for the whole of like products. (Aren’t all copies xeroxed?)

A favorite book on my shelf is Dictionary of Word Origins, my being a lover of etymology.  A few examples:

Sadism – Frenchman Marquis de Sade (1740-1814) What a way to be remembered for all time.

Nicotine — French diplomat Jean Nicot (1530- 1600) bought some tobacco seeds from a Flemish trader. Nicot’s efforts to popularize the plant in Europe have ensured he has entered the dictionary.

quixotic — Impractically idealistic or fanciful — The word comes from the eccentric hero Don Quixote, hero of Miguel Cervantes novel by the same name.

ritzy –This term is derived from Swiss hotelier Cesar Ritz (1850-1918) who opened luxury hotels all around the world.

venereal –This word is derived from Venus, the Roman Goddess of love. Hmmmmm. . .

Draconian — (Of laws – excessively harsh and severe) Athenian legislator Draco compiled the first written code of laws in ancient Athens. For almost all crimes, even petty ones, he assigned the death penalty.

Others — Chauvinist, boycott, Bowdlerize, bayonet, guppy, juggernaut, leotard, maverick, mesmerize, sandwich, tantalize
Interesting stories usually accompany the terms’ definition.

The website below lists medical phenomena named for a person along with a biography. According to the site, over 15,000 such eponyms exist.
http://www.whonamedit.com

Source for previous examples  — a good site  www.english-for-students.com/List-of-Eponyms.html

“Downscale?” — a very poor euphemism

Actually it’s probably not meant to be a euphemism at all. Reporters covering the election use the term, I heard it again today, to refer to Clinton’s voters. Downscale? The implications are more than economically negative.

The correct term is “poor. ” Poor, in an economic sense, means not making much money. Cut-offs differ. Still, there should not be any shame or embarrassment in where one falls on the monetary earnings scale. Poor.

But “downscale” adds the conotation of inferiority to the “upscale.” Social inferiority, lack of intellkigence, living in a small, “downscale” town as opposed to an important city. That’s the picture, and a good editor should know better.

And this has nothing to do with politically correct speech. This is plain old demeaning, supercilious, condesending, and rude speech. Those who speak publicly must be responsible in their choice of words that have crept into the language.

BTW, I will not be voting for Clinton, but this term and verbiage like it bother me.