Words Mean Things — Page 2

C3PX said:  Oh man! You are my new best friend!

Pleased to meet you, C3PX! 

I thought of the Maltese Falcon too.  I agree that the Falcon itself is a MacGuffin because it is simply there to motivate and evoke certain responses from the characters:  it could, if the story were renamed, be replaced by anything else without detriment to the plot. 

Chewtobacca said:

I thought of the Maltese Falcon too.  I agree that the Falcon itself is a MacGuffin because it is simply there to motivate and evoke certain responses from the characters:  it could, if the story were renamed, be replaced by anything else without detriment to the plot. 

 Exactly! "The Maltese Falcon" could be replaced with valuable microfilm, the case in "Pulp Fiction" could be the Maltese Falcon, and "North by Northwest" could be about finding a diamond.

Next word:

MAGIC NEGRO:

This refers to a stock character of a wise black character who comes along and teaches a white protaganist an important lesson. Unexplained mysterious powers are a plus, but not necessary.

This term is tied up into a lot of racial analysis, and like "Mary Sue" I think it gets tossed around a lot when it doesn't really fit, but that's not why I'm ranting against it.

My issue with it is that if you look up anyone describing what it means, every single person lists Morgan Freeman's character in "The Shawshank Redemption" as a good example.

Two reasons this bothers me.

a) The character, Red, is written as an old fat white guy. The movie cast Morgan Freeman but did keep a line of dialogue about him being Irish.

b) Red learns the important lesson of the film (something about hope) from the Tim Robbins character. He doesn't teach the Tim Robbins character anything or do anything especially important (except give him an itty bitty hammer).

I think Morgan Freeman is so charismatic, paternal, and charming that he gives the feeling of his character being more in line with the "Magic Negro" stereotype than the character actually is. His character is almost the opposite of the stereotype, and if Tim Robbins had been a black actor, his character would have been the one to fit it quite well.

A character that one or more (Caucasian) main character meets by chance who is afflicted with the traits stereotypically, in a pejorative sense, associated with people of colour (slow witted, subservient, clumsy, cowardly) but has secret knowledge which he freely gives to the point of self sacrifice and is dismissed once the his usefulness to the white heroes has been fulfilled.

While I agree with the general ideas of this thread and the misuse/abuse of the english language, I find it amusing to see people who dislike the incorrect use of words using words incorrectly themselves.

Despite what Merriam-Webster might say, irregardless is NOT a word!!

People who use this word generally mean regardless.  However, adding the prefix "ir" means "not."  But you also have a suffix meaning "not" that creates a double negative within the word itself.  So, while they mean "not regarding information 'x'", they are saying "not not regarding..." or "regarding information information 'x'", which is precisely what they DO NOT mean!

Finally!  Proof that xhonzi is canofhumdinger's sock.  Hooray!

Irregardless, I don't think they both should ignore me for this sentence.

CP3S said:

Xhonzi would agree with me, no doubt.

Irregardless, xhonzi would not agree with you.

Man, why won't I cut CP3S some slack?

Gaffer Tape said:

It's an inside joke here...  newb!  =P

Im staying well outa here!

canofhumdingers said:

Despite what Merriam-Webster might say, irregardless is NOT a word!!

 

I agree, but please give the word English a capital.  Merriam-Webster?  Pah!

Pendant Tree Corner :

Nanner Split said:

Hey, it's the frog that sings Neil Diamond again.  Hooray!

xhonzi said:

IGNORE for everybody!

TV's Frink's Ignore List said:

No members have you on their ignore list.

Insure vs. ensure bugs me also. 

Add further vs. farther to the list.

These sound like lawsuits.

TV's Frink said:

Add further vs. farther to the list.

I don't agree with this one.  They are interchangeable and always have been.  Further is more common in abstract senses, but that is about it; unless you meant  that farther cannot be used a verb, which is true, but I have never heard it used as such. 

Chewtobacca said:

TV's Frink said:

Add further vs. farther to the list.

I don't agree with this one.  They are interchangeable and always have been.  Further is more common in abstract senses, but that is about it; unless you meant  that farther cannot be used a verb, which is true, but I have never heard it used as such. 

usage Farther and further have been used more or less interchangeably throughout most of their history, but currently they are showing signs of diverging. As adverbs they continue to be used interchangeably whenever spatial, temporal, or metaphorical distance is involved. But where there is no notion of distance, further is used further refined>. Further is also used as a sentence modifier <further, the workshop participants were scarcely optimistic — L. B. Mayhew>, but farther is not. A polarizing process appears to be taking place in their adjective use. Farther is taking over the meaning of distance farther shore> and further the meaning of addition further invitation>.

I always thought they were in no way interchangeable.  Guess I was at least partially wrong.

What about Farger vs. Father, Judge D. Evil presiding?

TV's Frink said:

usage Farther and further have been used more or less interchangeably throughout most of their history, but currently they are showing signs of diverging.

Further is also used as a sentence modifier <further, the workshop participants were scarcely optimistic — L. B. Mayhew>, but farther is not. A polarizing process appears to be taking place in their adjective use. 

Yes; this is true, but I am determined to resist attempts to polarise time-honoured variant spellings.

The rest is all double Dutch to me.  :-)

One that really makes my blood boil is the use of the word "song" to describe any piece of music, as in, "What's the name of that song that plays when Darth Vader turns up in all the Star Wars films?".

Bingowings said:

One that really makes my blood boil is the use of the word "song" to describe any piece of music, as in, "What's the name of that song that plays when Darth Vader turns up in all the Star Wars films?".

You have noticed that too!  What is it with people these days?  

When I hum a tune, I am often asked what I am singing!  Would you believe it?  I have to explain that humming does not involve words.