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Joined: Jun 2006
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295 |
In many cases euphemisms are expressing hypocrisy. What used to be ' charwoman or man' is now, at least in this part of the world, called ' interior caretaker' . This tells that their status went up , but their wages didn't.
A forklift driver is called ' logistic assistant' for the same reason. What we (overhere) used to call 'heavy criminals' now are called ' top criminals ' placing them level with ' top lawyers', ' topmanagers' and ' top artists'.
This actually may be not a euphemism.
The garbadge man is still called garbadge man, thanks, but for how long?
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Joined: Aug 2005
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Aug 2005
Posts: 3,290 |
I think garbagemen are now called sanitation engineers. And, the antonym of euphemism is dysphemism. There's a good book on the subject by Australian linguist Kate Burridge called Euphemism and Dysphemism: Language Used as Shield and Weapon (co-authored with Keith Allan).
Ceci n'est pas un seing.
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Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,918 Likes: 2
Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 9,918 Likes: 2 |
I think garbagemen are now called sanitation engineers. And, the antonym of euphemism is dysphemism. There's a good book on the subject by Australian linguist Kate Burridge called Euphemism and Dysphemism: Language Used as Shield and Weapon (co-authored with Keith Allan). Would that were so, here they are still "garbage men", and since there seem to be no women, it is politically correct. Political correctness, of course, being a topic for another thread.
----please, draw me a sheep----
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Joined: Dec 2000
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Dec 2000
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What do you call it when a euphemism is changed, as in adding the infix 'freaking*' to 'geez louise' giving us 'geez lou-freaking-uise'?
*'Freaking' is used here as a euphemism for the actual infix in order to keep this a family-friendly site.
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Joined: Jun 2006
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Carpal Tunnel
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Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Jun 2006
Posts: 5,295 |
There's a good book on the subject by Australian linguist Kate Burridge called Euphemism and Dysphemism: Language Used as Shield and Weapon (co-authored with Keith Allan). Sounds like might be fun to read. Political correctness is just another face of eufemismness.
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