File spoon-archives/phillitcrit.archive/phillitcrit_1997/phillitcrit.9707, message 90


From: searc-AT-intex.ie
Date: Thu, 24 Jul 1997 17:21:08 +0000
Subject: Re: PLC: Mot du jour


Date:          Thu, 24 Jul 1997 09:53:13 -0400
From:          Reg Lilly <rlilly-AT-scott.skidmore.edu>
To:            PhilLitCrit <phillitcrit-AT-jefferson.village.Virginia.EDU>
Subject:       PLC: Mot du jour
Reply-to:      phillitcrit-AT-jefferson.village.Virginia.EDU

I'm leaving today for a conference in Urbino, Italy, and won't be back
until August 4.  I hope you all make use of and develop this space, and
I'll look forward to logging on when I get back.  Spoon Admin will be
watching over administrativa; if you should want to contact an 'official
human entity,' you can send a message to
spoons-AT-jefferson.village.virginia.edu.


For today, how about:

"Cacography", n. [*caco- and Gr. *graphia*, from *graphein*, to write.]
	1. illegible writing.
	2. incorrect spelling. [can't waint to use this on papers]

Not exactly the most ponderous word, but a nice little one anyway.  And
it got me to thinking about other words.  Its hard to believe that
"kakistocracy" [Gr. *kakistos*, superl. of *kakos*, bad and *kratia*
from *kratein*, to rule], which means "government by the worst men in
the state: opposed to *aristocracy*," doesn't drip from the lips of
every reporter and isn't in the motto of the Washington Post. Since
there's a word for bad spelling, I thought there should be a word for
"bad idea" or "bad thinking", right?  Clearly the rhetoricians [probably
those evil, wicked ones of late Roman antiquity in whose hands Greek
philosophy devolved to rhetoric and finally was disgorged in the trivium
;-)] wholly appropriated the appropriate word for their exclusive use,
viz. "cacology" [Gr. *kakologia*, evil speaking, abuse], which has but
one meaning: "substandard pronunciation or diction." (What an
under-utilized word!  We could load this baby up big time!)  So, maybe
"cacosophia," but of course that doesn't exist because it would be an
oxymoron.  So there is no word for "bad idea" and that, I say, is
"kaka."
>>>It's also indo-European for shit! namely in Old Irish, etc
	I hope others will do the honors in the coming day?  And hey,
non-English languages are more than welcome!


Ciao! (you didn't want a moderator and now you don't got'un) 
Reg Lilly
Skidmore
Rlilly-AT-scott.skidmore.edu


   

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