We say a lot about ourselves by what we don't say. Words and phrases like 'collateral damage', 'wardrobe malfunction', 'vertically challenged', and old favourites like 'unmentionables' (trousers, apparently) or 'lady of the night' - all are ways of not using particular words. UNMENTIONABLES is a rollicking exploration of the history of euphemistic usage, looking at how taboos connected to sex, death, religion, war, politics, business and matters of status have produced an extraordinary linguistic creativity, and how euphemistic speech has changed over the centuries. It looks at how euphemisms are born, and how they die (or 'experience a negative outcome') and it explores why it is that we create euphemisms, and the different purposes - from the benign to the sinister - that they serve. (Is 'euphemism' a euphemism for lying?) Lively, entertaining, and crammed with fascinating nuggets of information, UNMENTIONABLES is a celebration of the richness of language. Why have just one word for
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About the Author:
Ralph Keyes is the author of fifteen books. IS THERE LIFE AFTER HIGH SCHOOL? was made into a Broadway musical that has been produced around the world. CHANCING IT was a New York Times 'Notable Nook'. Keyes has appeared on Oprah Winfrey, The Tonight Show, and is a frequent guest on NPR radio shows.
Review:
'Keyes has done a spectacular job . . . I LOVE IT WHEN YOU TALK RETRO is a fascinating read' * Knoxville News Sentinel * 'It's both funny and fun to discover where ... phrases come from' * Los Angeles Times * 'A handy collection' * Boston Globe * 'One of the most entertaining reference books of all time' * Herald Times * Praise for I LOVE IT WHEN YOU TALK RETRO * : *
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- PublisherJohn Murray Publishers
- Publication date2011
- ISBN 10 1848542070
- ISBN 13 9781848542075
- BindingPaperback
- Number of pages342
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Rating