#sibilline

OF THE PURITY OF DICTION

PART FIRST

THE ART OF EXPRESSION

CHAPTER I.

BARBARBARISMS

 § 1. Violations of the purity of proper diction are called Barbarisms.

There are four kinds, viz. :

Provincialisms.

Obsolete words.

Unauthorized words.

Foreign words.

Of the four, I will give a brief overview of the first.

                                       PROVINCIALISMS

 In certain regions of the country words and forms of speech come into use which do not belong to the language of well-educated English speakers.  This term is also applied to pure words which have been forced by certain vulgar classes of the uneducated to assume meanings not in accordance with the Standard.

A few select examples:

Buncombe-popular favor sought by a demagogue.

Fice-a small dog.

Gump-a blockhead.

Hypped-.affected by low spirits

Larrup-whip, flog.

Pickaninny-a negro child.

Peert-(corruption of pert)-lively.

Savergous-rude and fierce in manner.

Spondiculous-coins piled for counting.

I am keeping you

As a friend

Probably I'll go first but we both know that, not in a sad way, it just seems likely

You know the heart of me and always make me feel like me

Respected

A magical and rare gift that I gained retrospectively to be able to see the person inside always despite the odds.

My sister has it for me, but has it not for Mother's shadow memory.

I see Mother's wonder person now, now

                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Friday, Nov. 8th

(didn’t go to open mike-for what)

Dear Jersey,

  I had to splurge and get a studio photographer for Zero's senior pics. I just couldn't ask you to come over here to do it, I know you are broke, busy, and asking you to do it is like asking me to make a crap flyer. You would want to do a great job, but would hate it. Soooooo, I shelled out.

  I was always in the "not pictured" section of the year book. My dad wouldn't pay for class photos. He said that he knew what I looked like. I just couldn't do that to Z..

  Out here you have about three ways to do it if you are a male senior:

You have the something under a tree scenario. Dappled shade, maybe sitting on a low lying limb, resting chin contemplatively on knuckle, or resting boot heel on trunk,  chin to chest, cowboy hat brim shading face. That's the tree. Autumn tree. Even though the year book comes out in late spring. Then there is the classic car. Here, naturally, it's a 50’s era suped up cherry pick up. The pose for this is always arms crossed, beefing out the bi's, leaning back on the driver's side door, confident/borderline smug half grin/smirk (devilish/devil may care), the legs are crossed at the ankles. The attire for this one and the aforementioned is a button down cotton shirt (western in style most commonly) and faded Levi's, although if conservative, Wrangler's. Finally, and this one is what I went for (it is just a coincidence that it happens to be non-gender specific), there is the wheat field scene. Amber light-that light so specific to this time of year. Usually at sunset, though this effect was artificial (the shoot was mid-imagine-oh, never mind). If the senior is a female, she billows, maybe runs fingers over wheat tops walking. The young men sit with knees up gazing toward destinies foretold by commencement speakers.

  So, Zero, too, sat.

  I thought the artiste captured his esprit marvelously.

  I hope you are not offended that I did not ask you. But I think this person did a remarkable job, even for this small town, even for a studio photographer. For Zero.

  I hope it prints well.

  I included a magnet that you can use as clip for chip bags.

XO

Hope the stewarding isn't giving you veiny ankles.