Not All Epithets are Insults

Not All Epithets are Insults Not All Epithets are Insults Not All Epithets are Insults By Maeve Maddox Judging by the words common use in todays media, one might imagine epithet to be no more than a synonym for insult. Some epithets are insults, but the word has a wider application. For example, look at all these epithets Handel applied to the Baby Jesus in The Messiah: Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Here are some Homeric epithets: many minded Achilles, swift-footed Odysseus, the ox-eyed lady (Hera) epithet 1. An adjective indicating some quality or attribute which the speaker or writer regards as characteristic of the person or thing described; 2. A significant appellation. OED 2nd edition. In 1993 this definition was added: An offensive or derogatory expression used of a person; an abusive term; a profanity. Leaving aside the literary uses of epithets, heres a look at some ways journalists use them. Some epithets, first used by one particular writer, become so attached to persons and things that it becomes rare to see one without the other: powerful Ways and Means committee embattled Governor Rod Blagojevich worlds largest retailer Wal-Mart Sometimes epithets may be used to predispose readers to a positive or negative frame of mind without seeming to editorialize: Motorist Rodney King Troubled pop star Brittany Spears NFL star Michael Vick semi-repentant zillionaire Mel Gibson greedy Wall Street bankers Some thoughts on epithets 1. Cliched epithets are not intrinsically bad. They can be useful shorthand devices for writers and readers in a hurry. 2. The epithet is a respectable rhetorical device. Writers with more time at their disposal might revise for cliched epithets and come up with fresher epithets of their own. 3. If one is writing about someone hurling epithets it might be helpful to specify what kind of epithets were hurled. Were they racial epithets? Did they attack the target in terms of gender, politics, occupation, or morality? Its conceivable that a speaker could be showered with complimentary epithets by his listeners. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Comparative Forms of AdjectivesConnotations of 35 Words for Funny Peopleâ€Å"Least,† â€Å"Less,† â€Å"More,† and â€Å"Most†

Red White and Blue Shooter Recipe

Red White and Blue Shooter Recipe Heres a recipe for a density column thats a layered cocktail. Its perfect for the 4th of July or Memorial Day or pretty much any holiday with a red, white and blue theme. Red White and Blue Shooter Ingredients Bottom Red Layer: Chambord or Framboise (or Grenadine)Middle White Layer: Irish Cream or Half and Half or any cream liqueurTop Blue Layer: Blue Curacao (or you could dye vodka or rum with blue food coloring) You may also want to add a float of Goldschlager to get a golden gilttery firework effect. Layer the Red White Blue Shooter Fill a shot glass about a third of the way full of the red drink.Place a spoon, back side up, just above the top of the red liquid. Slowly pour the half-and-half over the back of the spoon. This will layer it over the red with minimal mixing.Use a clean spoon to repeat the process to layer the blue liquid over the white. Add some Goldschlager if you wish. I (of course) would also set this drink on fire, but thats just me. To ignite the drink, add a small amount of high proof alcohol to the top. Everclear or 151 rum are good choices. Enjoy your alcoholic density column!

In what ways, if any, were women better off in 1901 than they had been Essay

In what ways, if any, were women better off in 1901 than they had been in 1837 - Essay Example The ideology of separate spheres was a cultural philosophy of the separation of female and male roles. The line of demarcation was relatively simple. The public sphere was the domain of men and the domestic sphere was the domain of women. While this separation was not absolute, women had to contend with the cultural implications as well as the legal ramifications of having no real legal standing within the public sector. This meant without a male representative who could stand in her place to support her cause, and without that male having standing over her person, she was at the mercy of society and without much recourse to right wrongs committed against her. This ideology was not conducive to the needs of women as change began to roll through a variety of aspects of life. These changes begin to emerge during the reign of Queen Victoria and mark her reign with the advancement of society within Britain. In 1837 Queen Victoria became queen of England when her uncle, King William IV di ed. Queen Victoria was eighteen at the time of his death meaning that she was eligible to take the throne without a regent, which put her in the role as sovereign at a very young age. Her reign lasted for 63 years and seven months, during which time the world changed dramatically. A great number of advances occurred in industry, science, society, and military areas which helped civilization to move forward into a time of betterment for the citizens of England. However, it was the women’s movement that caused some of the larges changes during her reign than any other, despite the slow simmer that it held in the background of all of the other advancements. Women moved from being merely extensions of the males in their lives to full legal entities, capable of creating change within their personal circumstances through legal action. A woman became a full individual, no longer the possession of her husband, but the embodiment of her own ownership. During the early part of the 19th century, English women took up the cause of the abolishment of slavery, their voices ringing with American voices in the cause to free all men and women from ownership. During the course of this movement, a metaphor for female oppression began to emerge through the cause of slavery (Hall, Rendall, and McClelland 2000, p. 123). Eventually, the metaphor dropped away, leaving a women’s suffrage movement that was active in trying to gain roads towards allowing women the legal standing within society that would allow women to have more than the good graces of the males in their life through which to support their lives. Hall, Rendall, and McClelland (2000), state that â€Å"it was not†¦the drudgery of hard labour for women which constituted slavery for women, but the effects of long standing patriarchal oppression and its shaping of the submissive - or slavish - character of women† (p. 124). In 1846, the Westminster Review published an article that discussed the †˜fictions’ about the way in which literature was