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Last updated on August 6th, 2017 at 02:10 pm
An academic writes:
Why are people making up words?
The same academic subsequently writes:
I stand corrected. According to the OED, “beclowned” is in fact a word.
- The good perfesser also misuses the phrase “begs the question”. I was polite enough to point it out to him in his comment section. In order that he avoid further beclowning himself.Posted by kcom on 2007 02 24 at 12:39 PM • permalink
- I can see why he’s a visiting prof. Apparently if the guy hasn’t heard of a word before it must be made up.
For such a brilliant writer he sure seems to have a limited vocabulary. Doonesbury’s author looks like a “fucking Nobel Prize winner.” Either he’s using a very uninspired word, or there’s a Nobel Prize category I haven’t heard of before. So I guess to operate at this academic level you and Instapundit should have said that Paul Campos “fucked himself.”
More proof that 99.999% of blogs are just wasting server space.
Posted by Matt in Denver on 2007 02 24 at 12:46 PM • permalink
- Viking Era IT?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFAWR6hzZekPosted by andycanuck on 2007 02 24 at 01:03 PM • permalink
- “I stand corrected. According to the OED, “beclowned” is in fact a word.
And in the act so he becomes the example.
Ahh, the simple Karma of “beclowning”
to be beclowned you must be the clown and in doing so….Posted by joe bagadonuts on 2007 02 24 at 01:11 PM • permalink
- Nice catch, kcom! I pointed out after you that at least the Visiting Prof is being ideologically consistent, even if his/her logic sucks.Posted by The_Real_JeffS on 2007 02 24 at 01:12 PM • permalink
- Check out the link and read the narrative:
I stand corrected. According to the OED, “beclowned” is in fact a word. Of, course, this is something that the righties discovered only after they had put it into circulation. They of course are using this discovery to trumpet their claims that they don’t, in fact, make shit up.
Which begs the question: if you use a word thinking that you are making shit up, and find out later that you were NOT making shit up, then does that really mean that you weren’t making shit up in principle? I could, for example, assert that our president has herpes. If, years down the road, we discover that he DOES have herpes, then does that mean that I wasn’t making it up?
What a f*ckin’ moron!
Posted by Mystery Meat on 2007 02 24 at 01:17 PM • permalink
- I was forced to point out to the good Perfesser the process of neologism—did he reckon that all words sprang fully formed from some ancient OED?
I also pointed out that I invented the term “Dimocrat” which is now sweeping the Web.
Posted by Harry Bergeron on 2007 02 24 at 01:20 PM • permalink
- The guy has Hurricane Wolcott linked under his ‘Really Smart’ category. Says it all, really …Posted by Crispytoast on 2007 02 24 at 01:34 PM • permalink
- #15 kcom
I believe it is: one of the new words that are added from year to year.
Had he been around then, I wonder what the good Visiting Prof would have thought of the King of Neologisms, William Shakespeare. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if the Bard invented “beclowned”.
Posted by Spiny Norman on 2007 02 24 at 02:11 PM • permalink
- Not another OED pedant! The very strength of English is in its ability to grow and adapt. Most languages have quarter to half a million words; English has at least twice that. Not only has it absorbed the main languages of the original invaders (Saxons, Vikings, Normans and Latin-speaking churchmen), but it has been influenced and shaped by every culture it has met upon the way. If needs be, it will outright borrow a word, or, true to its Germanic ancestry, it will coin words. Unlike French, there’s no government department overseeing English. And its thriving as a result.Posted by AlburyShifton on 2007 02 24 at 03:39 PM • permalink
- “I can see why he’s a visiting prof.”
He’s both ignorant and self-righteous, hence the perfect academic.
Though, I would prefer he didn’t visit.
Posted by Dave Surls on 2007 02 24 at 03:55 PM • permalink
The very strength of English is in its ability to grow and adapt. Most languages have quarter to half a million words; English has at least twice that. Not only has it absorbed the main languages of the original invaders (Saxons, Vikings, Normans and Latin-speaking churchmen), but it has been influenced and shaped by every culture it has met upon the way. If needs be, it will outright borrow a word, or, true to its Germanic ancestry, it will coin words. Unlike French, there’s no government department overseeing English. And its thriving as a result.
Absolutely. I once the following quote:
“English doesn’t borrow from other languages. English follows other languages down dark alleys, knocks them over, and goes through their pockets for loose grammar.”
Posted by Rob Crawford on 2007 02 24 at 04:08 PM • permalink
- He does get touchy when being “analized”. Reading the rest of the blog is enervating and chalky, coruscating with wit of the standard ennobled by the admired Wolcott. One wonders if his degree is annotated “Please Handle Delicately”.
Cheers
Posted by J.M. Heinrichs on 2007 02 24 at 04:12 PM • permalink
- Really must admire the way he keeps arguing in the second post after the foundations for his original argument have been blown away. At that point, one would assume an academic would go away, reconsider the evidence and revise their conclusions. Not this guy; he just tinkers slightly at the edges and keeps going.
- In his defence, there is something to be said for academics of all shades of political opinion to take notice of the language and the ways that words are used and abused.
So he gets it wrong some of the time. No big deal as long he is prepared to learn as well as hand out advice.
Let the person who is infallible cast the first mean-spirited stone.
- Well, he’s possibly learned what “begs the question” actually means, but his posts show little other learning going on, I think.Posted by JorgXMcKie on 2007 02 24 at 05:54 PM • permalink
- O/T
Channel surfing free-to-air thismorning Mrs Fitz and the idiot who hosts 9’s game shows were talking about the Canadian woman who took her children from their Aussie father in Lebanaon and returned to Canada.They both commented “In this age of multinational families who says who gets custody and where the children live.” “Yes, it’s a very difficult question.”
Have these idiots never heard of the Hague Convention?
More on the Hawatch case here and the Sunday Telegraph article.
Then I changed to Channel 10. “Cool Aid”. Shit. I think I’ll just stop watching 10.
- There’s a big difference, which this twit fails to understand, between using a clumsy word which doesn’t actually exist because you have no feel for the English language (such as “impactful”), and deliberately inventing an amusing neologism. The first is worth complaining about, but anyone who gripes about the second has just had a sense of humour failure.
So the fact that “beclowning” turns out to already be a word is completely irrelevant. It was *supposed* to be an amusing and novel use of words. Does this really need to be said?
(I know this sort of academic. They can just kill a fun night out stone dead).
Posted by Blithering Bunny on 2007 02 24 at 06:38 PM • permalink
And if my students start using (beclowned), I will be a righteous left-wing crusher of dissent and force them to stop.
Wow. Let’s hope he doesn’t teach a class about Shakespeare.
And is anyone surprised that he’d view use of the word as a proxy for the political orientation of a student and seek to punish the student for it?
Posted by Rob Crawford on 2007 02 24 at 07:54 PM • permalink
- And is anyone surprised that he’d view use of the word as a proxy for the political orientation of a student and seek to punish the student for it?
In fairness, a later comment of his says he meant that as a joke, but of course the truth value of that is anyone’s guess, given the dearth of actual funniness in his blog.
Still, that’s the beauty of a good beclowning…the origin/target doesn’t even need to be funny themselves. Good thing that making fun of academics isn’t classified as hate speech yet.
- Once the professor realized his stupid error, he should have just gone with it.
- #21 Rob,
“The problem with defending the purity of the English language is that English is about as pure as a cribhouse whore. We don’t just borrow words from other languages; on occasion, English has pursued other languages down alleyways to beat them unconscious and rifle their pockets for new vocabulary.”
—James Nicoll, 1990James is a good fellow for a Canuck 🙂 Buy a T-shirt or mug here.
Regards,
Ric
- Shakespeare made up words including “Orb”, “bump”, “Hurry,” “Lonely”, Dwindle” and “Illumine.” So did Lewis Carrol – “Jabberwock,” “Snark-hunt,” etc. So did many other writers.
If the likes of Shakespeare and Lewis Carrol can make up words, why has our self-styled and inaccurate academic got his knickers (before consulting the OED) in a twist over the fact Tim has allegedly done so?
- I’m wild again, beguiled again
A simpering, whimpering child again
Belefted, bothered and beclowned – am i(apologies to Frankie)
Posted by eeniemeenie on 2007 02 24 at 10:30 PM • permalink
- I dare say this word also isn’t in our academic’s vocabulary:
research
/riserch/• noun the systematic study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.
• verb 1 carry out research into. 2 use research to discover or verify information to be presented in (a book, programme, etc.).
— DERIVATIVES researcher noun.
— ORIGIN obsolete French recercher, from cerchier ‘to search’.
Posted by Art Vandelay on 2007 02 24 at 10:41 PM • permalink
- Folks from almost all walks and stages of life are writing reams thanks to Internet addiction. Millions are learning concision and expressiveness. Under such circumstances, a body naturally mints a word now and then. There’s nothing forced or artificial about it, unlike the inert slush that academics in the humanities so often produce. It’s back to past centuries in freedom of word invention, when neither squire nor squirette balked at rolling with word elements around in the hay.
- OT only in czecho do anarchists protest against protests against the USA
Police have clashed with around a 100 anarchists in the town of Beroun near Prague. Police used smoke bombs to disperse the anarchists, who were trying to break up a demonstration by extreme rightwing
nationalists against the building of a proposed US radar base in the Czech Republic.
- Not all professors are nincompoops. Not all nincompoops are professors.
However, it appears that 100% of this particular professor is 100% nincompoop.
Posted by Steve Skubinna on 2007 02 24 at 11:07 PM • permalink
- And yet, that adds up to 200%… man, that’s a lot of nincompoopery!Posted by Steve Skubinna on 2007 02 24 at 11:09 PM • permalink
I stand corrected. According to the OED, “beclowned” is in fact a word.
I’ll bedamned.
Posted by richard mcenroe on 2007 02 25 at 12:32 AM • permalink
- If you want to read truly turgid (a real word – look it up) prose, go to anything with the MLA stamp on it.Posted by JorgXMcKie on 2007 02 25 at 01:15 AM • permalink
- An Italian friend, a Italian language teacher at home, says English dominates the world simply because no one tries to enforce its purity. He says it is a true living language, adding new words and grammar every day. French, on the other hand, is a dead language because the Academe Francais won’t let it evolve.
My contribution
flanneriate: (v) to grow wealthy by not practising what you preach
- Even perfessors made up words. Tolkien even made up whole languages. Just as well he wasn’t in this guy’s class – he’d have been flunked for his right-winged sympathies.Posted by AlburyShifton on 2007 02 25 at 02:38 AM • permalink
- #42, PW:
Good thing that making fun of academics isn’t classified as hate speech yet.
You obviously aren’t up to date on the PC codes in U.S. universities. Take a look at this article, and be afraid. Be very afraid.
An Italian friend, a Italian language teacher at home, says English dominates the world simply because no one tries to enforce its purity. He says it is a true living language, adding new words and grammar every day. French, on the other hand, is a dead language because the Academe Francais won’t let it evolve.
Now will he make the same mental leap with the economy?
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