Information About ™Euphemism |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT EUPHEMISM | |
| euphemisms | |
| figures of speech | |
| rhetoric | |
| slang | |
| SHOPPER'S DELIGHT | |
|
When a phrase is used as a euphemism, it often becomes a metaphor whose literal meaning is dropped. Euphemisms are often used to hide unpleasant or disturbing ideas, even when the literal term for them is not necessarily offensive. This type of euphemism is used in Public Relations and Politics , where it is sometimes disparagingly called doublespeak. There are also superstitious euphemisms, based (consciously or subconsciously) on the idea that words have the power to bring bad fortune (for example, not speaking the word "cancer"; see Etymology and Common Examples below) and religious euphemisms, based on the idea that some words are sacred, or that some words are spiritually imperiling (''taboo''; see Etymology and Religious Euphemisms below). ETYMOLOGY The word euphemism comes from the Greek word ''euphemos'', meaning "auspicious/good/fortunate speech" which in turn is derived from the Greek root-words ''eu'' (ευ), "good/well" + ''pheme'' (φήμη) "speech/speaking". The ''eupheme'' was originally a word or phrase used in place of a religious word or phrase that should not be spoken aloud (see Taboo ). The primary example of taboo words requiring the use of a euphemism are the unspeakable names for a deity, such as Persephone , Hecate , Nemesis or Yahweh . By speaking only words favorable to the gods or spirits, the speaker attempted to procure good fortune by remaining in good favor with them.
In some Languages Of The Pacific , using the name of a deceased chief is taboo. Amongst Australian Aboriginal people, it was forbidden to ever use the name or image of the deceased, so that today the Australian Broadcasting Commission publishes an apology to indigenous people for using names or images of people who have recently died. Since people are often named after everyday things, this leads to the swift development of euphemisms. These languages have a very high rate of vocabulary change. (Dyen, Isidore, A. T. James & J. W. L. Cole. 1967. Language divergence and estimated word retention rate. Language 43/1: 150-171.) THE "EUPHEMISM TREADMILL" Euphemisms often evolve over time into Taboo Word s themselves through a process described by W.V.O. Quine , and more recently dubbed 'the ''euphemism treadmill''' by Steven Pinker . (''cf.'' Gresham's Law in Economics ). Words originally intended as euphemisms may lose their euphemistic value, acquiring the negative connotations of their referents. In some cases, they may be used mockingly and become Dysphemistic . For example the term " Concentration Camp " to describe camps used to house civilian prisoners was used by the British during the Second Boer War , primarily because it sounded bland and inoffensive. However, after the Third Reich used the expression to describe their Death Camp s, the term gained enormous negative connotation. Since then, new terms have been invented as euphemisms for them, such as Internment Camps , resettlement camps, etc. Also, in some versions of English, ''toilet room'', itself a euphemism, was replaced with ''bathroom'' and ''water closet'', which were replaced (respectively) with ''rest room'' and ''W.C.'' Connotations easily change over time. ''Idiot'' was once a neutral term, and ''moron'' a similar one. Negative senses of a word tend to crowd out neutral ones, so the word ''retarded'' was pressed into service to replace them. Now that too is considered rude, used commonly as an insult of a person, thing, or idea. As a result, new terms like ''mentally challenged'' or ''special'' have replaced ''retarded''. In a few decades, calling someone ''special'' may well be a grave insult, and indeed among many young school students, it is already a common term of abuse, if not yet a particularly grave one. A similar progression occurred with although in that case the meaning has also broadened; a dyslexic or colorblind person would not be termed ''crippled''. In the early 1960s, (an Autistic Spectrum disorder) often have an above-average IQ and occasionally exhibit Savant abilities, but may be Mind Blind and tend to have a much lower EQ than non-autistics, resulting in significantly affected communication and socialization abilities. Likewise wrestler Kyle Maynard , a congenital amputee with only vestigial arms and legs, is demonstrably not "disabled" by his condition. It can apply to naming of racial or ethnic groups as well, when proposed euphemisms become successively "corrupted". For example: Colored → Negro → Black → African-American A complementary " Dysphemism Treadmill " exists, but is more rarely observed. One modern example is the word " Sucks ". "That sucks" began as American slang for "that is very unpleasant", and is shorthand for "that sucks cock", referring to Fellatio . It developed over the late- 20th Century from being an extremely vulgar phrase to near-acceptability. A similar phenomenon happened with "jerk", which began as "jerk-off" (itself a reference to masturbation), in reference to someone who was boorish or stupid, and was a forbidden term in public media, but is now acceptable (for example, the Steve Martin film '' The Jerk ''). Additionally, ''scumbag'', which was originally a reference to a used Condom , now is a fairly mild epithet. CLASSIFICATION OF EUPHEMISMS Many euphemisms fall into one or more of these categories:
There is some disagreement over whether certain terms are or are not euphemisms. For example, sometimes the phrase ''visually impaired'' is labeled as a Politically Correct euphemism for '' Blind ''. However, visual impairment can be a broader term, including, for example, people who have partial sight in one eye, a group that would be excluded by the word ''blind''. There are three '', '' Cacophemism '', and '' Power Word ''. The first can be either offensive or merely humorously deprecating with the second one generally used more often in the sense of something deliberately offensive. The last is used mainly in arguments to make a point seem more correct. THE EVOLUTION OF EUPHEMISMS Euphemisms may be formed in a number of ways. '' Periphrasis '' or '' Circumlocution '' is one of the most common -- to "speak around" a given word, implying it without saying it. Over time, circumlocutions become recognized as established euphemisms for particular words or ideas. To alter the pronunciation or spelling of a Taboo word (such as a Swear Word ) to form a euphemism is known as '' Taboo Deformation ''. There are an astonishing number of taboo deformations in English, of which many refer to the infamous Four-letter Word s. In American English , words which are unacceptable on television, such as '' Fuck '', may be represented by deformations such as ''freak'' — even in children's cartoons. Some examples of Cockney Rhyming Slang may serve the same purpose — to call a person a ''berk'' sounds less offensive than to call him a '' Cunt '', though ''berk'' is short for ''Berkeley Hunt'' which rhymes with ''cunt''. Bureaucracies such as the Military and large Corporation s frequently spawn euphemisms of a more deliberate (and to some, more sinister) nature. Organizations coin '' Doublespeak '' expressions to describe objectionable actions in terms that seem neutral or inoffensive. For example, a term used for radiation leaked from an improperly operated Nuclear Power Plant is ''sunshine units''. Similarly, employees of the fast-food chain McDonald's refer to putting any food into a Microwave as "putting it in the Queue ". Military organizations frequently do kill people, sometimes deliberately and sometimes by mistake; in doublespeak, the first may be called ''neutralizing the target'' and the second '' Collateral Damage ''. Violent destruction of non-state enemies may be referred to as '' Pacification ''. A common term when a Soldier is accidentally killed (''buys the farm'') by their own side is '' Friendly Fire ''. ("Buy the farm" has its own interesting history .) e.g. [http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kill_box&diff=49590004&oldid=39997478] '' Execution '' is an established euphemism referring to the act of putting a person to death, with or without judicial process. It originally referred to the execution, i.e. the carrying out, of a Death Warrant , which is an authorization to a sheriff, prison warden, or other official to Put A Named Person To Death . In legal usage, ''execution'' can still refer to the carrying out of other types of orders; for example, in U.S. legal usage, a Writ Of Execution is a direction to enforce a Civil Money Judgment by seizing property. Likewise, Lethal Injection itself is an euphemism for putting the convict to death by poisoning. Likewise, industrial unpleasantness such as Pollution may be toned down to ''outgassing'' or ''runoff'' — descriptions of physical processes rather than their damaging consequences. Some of this may simply be the application of precise technical terminology in the place of popular usage, but beyond precision, the advantage of technical terminology may be its lack of emotional undertones, the disadvantage being the lack of Real-life Context . EUPHEMISMS FOR THE PROFANE Profane words and expressions are generally taken from three areas: Religion , Excretion , and Sex . While Profanities themselves have been around for some time, their limited use in public and by the Media has only in the past decade become socially acceptable, and there are still many expressions which cannot be used in polite conversation. The common marker of acceptability would appear to be use on Prime-time Television or in the presence of children. Thus, ''damn'' (and most other religious profanity) is acceptable, and as a consequence, euphemisms for religious profanity have taken on a very stodgy feeling. Excretory profanity such as '' Piss '' and '' Shit '' may be acceptable in adult conversation, while euphemisms like ''Number One'' and ''Number Two'' are preferred for use with children. Most sexual terms and expressions either remain unacceptable for general use or have undergone radical rehabilitation ('' Penis '' and '' Vagina '', for instance). Religious euphemisms Euphemisms for God and Jesus are used by Christians to avoid taking the name of God in a vain oath, which would violate one of the Ten Commandments . Jews say ''Adonai'' (Lord) when reading scriptures that refer to God "by name," as the name of God is Ineffable and thus must not be spoken. When using the term in English , religious Jews will write "G-d," leaving out the Vowel , a practice also used in the written Hebrew . Because of this, the "name" of God in ancient Hebrew writings is Transliterated as JHVH, YHVH, or YHWH, , known as the Tetragrammaton , without vowels so that there is no agreement as to how the name would be pronounced if spoken, leading to such guesses as Yawveh and Jehovah . Euphemisms for Hell , Damnation , and the Devil , on the other hand, are often used to avoid invoking the power of the adversary. Québec ois French slang is particularly noted for use of religious euphemisms, many of which have an obscene loading. Excretory euphemisms While '' Urinate '' and '' Defecate '' are not euphemisms, they are used almost exclusively in a clinical sense. The basic Anglo-Saxon words for these functions, ''piss'' and ''shit'', are considered vulgarities, despite the use of ''piss'' in the King James Bible (in Isaiah 36:12 and elsewhere). The word '' Manure '', referring to animal feces used as Fertilizer for plants, literally means "worked with the hands", alluding to the mixing of manure with earth. Several Zoo s market the byproduct of Elephants and other large Herbivores as ''Zoo Doo'', and there is a brand of Chicken manure available in garden stores under the name ''Cock-a-Doodle Doo''. Similarly, the string of letters ''BS'' often replaces the word '' Bullshit '' in polite society. There are any number of lengthier Periphrases for excretion used to excuse oneself from company, such as to ''powder one's nose'' or to '' See A Man About A Horse '' (or ''dog''). Slang expressions which are neither particularly euphemistic nor Dysphemistic , such as ''take a leak'', form a separate category. Sexual euphemisms The Latin term ''pudendum'' and the Greek term ''αιδοίον'' (''aidoion'') for the genitals literally mean "shameful thing". ''Groin'' and ''crotch'' refer to a larger region of the body, but are euphemistic when used to refer to the genitals. Euphemisms are more common in reference to sexual practices or orientations, particularly non-heterosexual ones, as shown in this quote from the UK version of '' Queer As Folk '', which includes both euphemisms and dysphemisms regarding male homosexuality: :Because I'm queer, I'm gay, I'm homosexual, I'm a poof, I'm a poofter, I'm a ponce, I'm a bum boy, batty boy, backside artist, bugger, I'm bent, I am that arse bandit, I lift those shirts, I'm a faggot-arsed, fudgepackin', shitstabbin' uphill gardener. I dine at the downstairs restaurant, I dance at the other end of the ballroom, I'm Moses and the parting of the red cheeks. I fuck and am fucked, I suck and am sucked, I rim them and wank them, and every single man has had the fucking time of his life, and I'm not a pervert. Virtually all other Sexual Terms are still considered profane and unacceptable for use even in a euphemistic sense. EUPHEMISMS FOR DEATH The English language contains numerous euphemisms related to dying, Death , Burial , and the people and places which deal with death. The practice of using euphemisms for death is likely to have originated with the "magical" belief that to speak the word 'death' was to invite death; where to "draw Death's attention" is the ultimate bad-fortune -- a common theory holds that death is a taboo subject in most English-speaking cultures for precisely this reason. It may be said that one is not dying, but ''fading quickly'' because ''the end is near''. People who have died are referred to as having ''passed away'' or ''passed'' or ''departed''. ''Deceased'' is a euphemism for 'dead', and sometimes the ''deceased'' is said to have ''gone to a better place'', but this is used primarily among the religious with a concept of Heaven . There are many euphemisms for the dead body, some polite and some profane, as well as Dysphemism s such as ''worm food'', or ''dead meat''. The corpse was once referred to as ''the shroud (or house or tenement) of clay'', and modern funerary workers use terms such as ''the loved one'' (title of a Novel about Hollywood undertakers by Evelyn Waugh ) or ''the dearly departed''. (They themselves have given up the euphemism ''funeral director'' for ''grief therapist'', and hold ''arrangement conferences'' with relatives.) Among themselves, mortuary technicians often refer to the corpse as the ''client''. Contemporary euphemisms and dysphemisms for death tend to be quite colorful, and someone who has died is said to have ''passed away'', ''passed on'', ''checked out'', ''bit the big one'', ''kicked the bucket'', ''bought the farm'', ''cashed in their chips'', ''croaked'', ''given up the ghost'' (originally a more respectful term), ''gone south'', ''shuffled off this mortal coil'' (from William Shakespeare 's '' Hamlet ''), or ''assumed room temperature''. When buried, they may be said to be ''pushing up daisies'' or ''taking a dirt nap'' or ''six feet under''. There are hundreds of such expressions in use. (Old Burma-Shave jingle: "If daisies are your favorite flower, keep pushin' up those miles per hour!") Euthanasia also attracts euphemisms. One may ''put him out of his misery'', ''put him to sleep'', or ''have him put down'', the latter phrases being used primarily with non-humans. There are a few euphemisms for killing which are neither respectful nor playful, but rather clinical and detached. Some examples of this type are ''terminate'', ''wet work'', to ''take care of'' one or to ''take them for a ride'', to ''do them in'', to ''off'', ''frag'', ''smoke'', ''whack'' or ''waste'' someone. To ''cut loose'' (from U.S. Sgt. Massey's account of activities during the American occupation of Iraq) or ''open up'' on someone, means 'to shoot at with every weapon available'. The '', where Bezenchuk, the undertaker, astonishes Vorobyaninov with his classification of people by the euphemisms used to speak of their deaths. DOUBLESPEAK What distinguishes Doublespeak from other euphemisms is its deliberate usage by governmental, military, or corporate institutions. Doublespeak is in turn distinguished from Jargon in that doublespeak attempts to confuse and conceal the truth, while jargon often provides greater precision to those that understand it (while inadvertently confusing those who do not). An example of the distinction is the use by the military of the word ''casualties'' instead of ''deaths'' — what may appear to be an attempt to hide the fact that people have been killed is actually a precise way of saying "personnel who have been rendered incapable of fighting, whether by being killed, being badly wounded, psychologically damaged, incapacitated by disease, rendered ineffective by having essential equipment destroyed, or disabled in any other way." "Casualties" is used instead of "deaths," not for propagandistic or squeamish reasons, but because most casualties are not dead, but nevertheless useless for waging war. Proper examples of doublespeak included ''taking friendly fire'' as a euphemism for being attacked by your own troops. COMMON EXAMPLES Other common euphemisms include:
These lists might suggest that most euphemisms are well-known expressions. Often euphemisms can be somewhat situational; what might be used as a euphemism in a conversation between two friends might make no sense to a third person. In this case, the euphemism is being used as a type of Innuendo . As an example, in the Television series '' The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air '', the Banks family (who are black) discuss Aunt Janice's fiance, who happens to be white, using ''tall'' as a euphemism for ''white''. Will, who apparently doesn't catch on, remarks that he is the only one who seems to notice the new boyfriend is white. The inflation of occupational titles is similar to the euphemism treadmill. For instance, the Engineering professions have traditionally resisted the tendency by other technical trades to appropriate the prestige of the title ''engineer''. Most people calling themselves '' Software Engineers '' or ''network engineers'' are not, in fact, accredited in engineering. Extreme cases, such as ''sanitation engineer'' for ''janitor'' are cited humorously more often than they are used seriously. In the Television Cartoon series " The Flintstones ", Fred takes a job as the live-in Superintendent of a large apartment building and is given a title using the word ''engineer'' to make his job sound more important than it actually is. As he and his wife are moving in, a policeman is about to write him a Parking Ticket for being illegally parked in front of the building. He informs the officer that he is (as the building's owner referred to him) the "''Resident Stationary Engineer''" for the building. The cop turns to him and says, "I don't care if you ''are'' the janitor, move this car now!" Less extreme cases, such as ''custodian'' for '' Janitor '', are considered more terms of respect than euphemisms. The word euphemism itself can be used as a euphemism. In the animated short ''It's Grinch Night'' (See Dr. Seuss ), a child asks to go to the ''euphemism'', where ''euphemism'' is being used as a euphemism for '' Outhouse ''. This euphemistic use of "euphemism" originally occurred in the play '' Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? '' where a character requests, "Martha, will you show her where we keep the, uh, euphemism?". It is analogous to the 18th-century use of ''unmentionables'' for ''underpants''. SEE ALSO
REFERENCES
EXTERNAL LINKS
|