grandiloquent

oh come on, seriously? / meaning is obvious

Definition of grandiloquent:
"Speaking in a lofty style; pompous; bombastic.” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
2/28/08 online Washington Post eulogy, “William F. Buckley, Jr: Rapier Wit of the Right” by Henry Allen.

“What a grand and grandiloquent monster of genial and mischievous self-creation William Buckley was...”

My two cents:
Grandiloquent is an honest to God word? In the dictionary? Really?

Really.

I’m amazed and astonished. Sounds like a word you make up on the fly – you know, “I think I’ll combine grandiose and eloquent and chortle over how clever grandiloquent is.” And then damn if it doesn’t already exist. In the dictionary. As does its cousin, “magniloquent.” Simply amazitonishing!

Henry Allen remembers William Buckley with a terrific article that captures Buckley’s brilliant and irritating essence. Go read it. It’s positively brillritating.

Pardon my chortle.

apologia pro vita sua

news to me

Definition of apologia pro vita sua:
“Latin: A defense of one's life…” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
2/22/08 NYT Theater Review, “Down by the Blue, Purple, Red, Yellow Water,” by Ben Brantley, about the latest revival of Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park with George.”

“…As a portrait of the artist as an embattled and rejected man “Sunday” has been read as a sort of apologia pro vita sua by Mr. Sondheim. Like his Seurat, Mr. Sondheim has been criticized for being chillingly cerebral and remote, for having, as the show’s lyrics put it, ‘no life in his art…’”

My two cents:
If you hate Sondheim (or Seurat), there’s nothing for you here. But based on Ben Brantley’s elegant review, I could hop on a plane and go to the New York revival of “Sunday in the Park with George” in a New York minute…for the "inventive visuals" alone. Well, ok, and the music. I can’t short-change that music. Been a while since I saw a NY show, and I’m really jonesing for this one now. It's a new day, and according to Brantley, this new “Sunday” stands apart from the original 80's production. Apparently, this time at Studio 54 (yes, the Studio 54), the Roundhouse Theater folks have created a more intimate, uniquely sensual show, a precious gem that is altogether different and even more beautiful. I could go for some of that loveliness. What the world needs now...

“...That the second act ends as the first does, in a ravishing epiphany of artistic harmony, now feels more than ever like a loving benediction, bestowed by the show’s creators on its audiences. Every member of those audiences, whether consciously or not, is struggling for such harmony in dealing with the mess of daily reality. How generous of this production — and it is the generosity of all great art — that it allows you, for a breathless few moments, to achieve that exquisite, elusive balance.”

Oh good Lord, I'm fairly drooling. Priceline it is.

peroration

I don’t even know what to say about this one. Partly obvious / partly not so much. Bottom line: I guess I’m unfamiliar with this entire word.

Definition of peroration:
“Meaning #1: a flowery and highly rhetorical oration. Meaning #2: (rhetoric) the concluding section of an oration” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
2/19/08 NYT Op-Ed opinion column, “When the Magic Fades” by David Brooks.

“...The victims of O.C.S. [Obama Comedown Syndrome] struggle against Obama-myopia, or the inability to see beyond Election Day. But here’s the fascinating thing: They still like him. They know that most of his hope-mongering is vaporous. They know that he knows it’s vaporous.

But the fact that they can share this dream still means something. After the magic fades and reality sets in, they still know something about his soul, and he knows something about theirs. They figure that any new president is going to face gigantic obstacles. At least this candidate seems likely to want to head in the right direction. Obama’s hype comes from exaggerating his powers and his virtues, not faking them. Those afflicted with O.C.S. are no longer as moved by his perorations.

The fever passes. But some invisible connection seems to persist.”

My two cents:
Honestly, another political column? Will it ever stop? I know, I know. It’s all my fault. I think I’m addicted. I know I should shift up into my adult and make more mature choices. It’s just that these puppies are everywhere, and they are easy pickings. While I tire of the hype and hoopla, they sure are serving me well as fodder for this blog. I am developing a love-hate thing faster than a politician (or their spouse) can put their foot in it.

It’s not that I don’t read anything else. I just read a thoroughly entertaining, decidedly non-political article, “Celebrating the Semicolon in a Most Unlikely Location” by Sam Roberts. Seriously. I was so hoping to stumble over a blog word prospect, but “anachronism” was as close as it got, and I already know that word. Bummer. Anyway, go read it yourself and have a nice little grammatical chuckle. You can thank me later.

Truth be told, today's political article is truly remarkable. Seriously intelligent. Wicked clever. Witty, with just the right amount of sincerity and sarcasm. Not too different from the way political candidates wannabe when stumping for your vote.

solipsism

familiar word / vague meaning

Definition of solipsism:
n. Philosophy.

1. “The theory that the self is the only thing that can be known and verified.”
2. “The theory or view that the self is the only reality.” (answers.com)

[Latin sōlus, alone + Latin ipse, self + –ISM.]

Where I ran across it:
2/14/08 NYT online article, “Dumb and Dumber: Are Americans Hostile to Knowledge?” by Patricia Cohen.

“...Then there is Lee Siegel’s “Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob,” which inveighs against the Internet for encouraging solipsism, debased discourse and arrant commercialization. ...”

My two cents:
Why didn’t I take Latin in school?! The more I chronicle my way through this word list, the more I wish I had. I’ve sung my share of Latin texts over the years which grant me some insight, but it still would have been helpful to have taken a class like my husband took in college. Thirty-six years later, he still calls upon the knowledge he gained from that one elective course covering the Latin origins of English words. (Again, chalk it up to finishing school and later, art college vs. a large state university. But I can paint and sing!). Do they even offer these classes anymore? If I can find one, maybe I’ll go enroll in it. Now that’s a plan.

In the meantime, Patricia Cohen’s article is a must-read, and for me, so will be the newly released book she reviews, “The Age of American Unreason” by Susan Jacoby. Jacoby’s book isn’t just a re-hash of the perennial “smart nerds vs. dumb jocks” scenario that has been a part of our culture for ever. Nothing new in that. But apparently, she bristles at a depressing new trend, one that echoes what I observed myself recently as a non-traditional (read: old) college student. Here’s the new bad news: “Not only are citizens ignorant about essential scientific, civic and cultural knowledge [Jacoby says] but they also don’t think it matters.” Right on, sister, this is scary true. Witness: the kid sitting next to me in my Psych class in art school who proclaimed loudly after he had slept through lectures and neither studied for tests, nor did any of the reading, nor turned in any of his assignments, “Anybody who does well in this class just isn’t committed to their major!” I give the kid props for wanting to be a really swell artist, but he totally missed the concept of embracing a well-rounded education that just might inform him and inspire his art. I remember thinking at the time, “Wow, I sure hope you grow up and figure it out someday. And if not, I hope you never vote.”

vertiginous

very familiar word but the root word (ergo the definition) is eluding me at the moment

Definition of vertiginous:
adj.

“Turning about an axis; revolving or whirling. Affected by vertigo; dizzy. … Tending to produce vertigo: “my small mind contained in earthly human limits, not lost in vertiginous space and elements unknown” (Diana Cooper). Inclined to change quickly; unstable. From Latin vertīgō, vertīgin-, a whirling, from vertere, to turn.” (answers.com)

How I ran across it:
2/13/08 NYT op-ed piece, “A Flawed Feminist Test" by Maureen Dowd. It's yet another political article. I am continuing to tire of politics, but I can't help it if this word is where it is!

“...We’re not just in the most vertiginous election of our lives. We’re in another national seminar on gender and race that is teaching us about who we are as we figure out what we want America to be...”

My two cents:
Well, I actually had to look this one up to be reminded that its root word is vertigo. Duh. Of course.

Maureen Dowd writes about our society’s undeniable biases and bigotry in this historic election, but moreover, she debates whether Hillary will win or lose based on gender bias, or on something else entirely: her spouse, and her political record. Dowd’s got the opinion that some people may not vote for Hillary, not because she is a woman, but because she is who she is - the woman indubitably attached to Bill Clinton; and a woman to be judged on her political record. Therefore, Dowd proclaims the gender issue "clouded" and not a true test. Well, hello. So race (Obama) and age (McCain) aren't true tests, either. Some voters think them a deciding issue (pro and con); some don't. Some fall somewhere in between and weigh all the issues. Despite the historically progressive, epic nature of this election, no one issue can - or should - be singularly responsible in establishing its outcome. Which brings me to wonder what voters would do with a divorced, or single candidate. That would challenge our staid notion of presidential archetypes wouldn’t it? But despite our progressiveness thus far, I don’t think we (or Hillary) are there yet, either.

catenary

new word to me

Definition of catenary:
“the curve theoretically assumed by a perfectly flexible and inextensible cord of uniform density and cross section hanging freely from two fixed points. …It is identical to the graph of a hyperbolic cosine.” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
NYT art review, “Jasper Johns Shows his True Color” by Roberta Smith published February 8, 2008, about the exhibition, “Jasper Johns: Gray” at the Met in New York.

“...It ranges from Mr. Johns’s earliest chalkboardlike gray paintings of the late 1950s, with their morose, isolated objects, to his latest “Catenary” paintings, which actually depict chalkboards hung with fragile curves of white string that, some suggest, represent the human life span...”

My two cents:
Full disclosure here: maybe if I had done better in math class I would know this word, catenary. But I barely made it through Geometry and Algebra II, and Trig was undeniably beyond my ken. Still, those mathematical bywords like sine, cosine, and hyperbola are all somehow familiar, while catenary is total news to me. Thank you, Jasper Johns for the tutorial. Better living through art…

feckless

I know this word – or thought I did. Then I looked it up. Uh-oh.

Definition of feckless:
“Lacking purpose or vitality; feeble or ineffective. Careless and irresponsible. The word feckless (purposeless, irresponsible) should not be confused with reckless (careless, headstrong), despite their similar sound and overlapping meaning.” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
NYT op-ed piece “Ask Not What JFK Can Do For Obama” by Frank Rich published February 3, 2008.

“...His critics argue back that he is a naïve wuss who will give away the store. They have mocked him for offering to hold health-care negotiations so transparent (and presumably feckless) that they can be broadcast on C-Span. Obama supporters point out that Mrs. Clinton’s behind-closed-doors 1993 health-care task force was a fiasco...”

My two cents:
“Feckless” is interesting to me by virtue of its proximity to “reckless.” The definition at answers.com makes it clear the two shouldn’t be confused because after all they are similar but different and even overlap but don’t let that puzzle you because in the end even though they aren’t the same they might be considered kindred. But for God’s sake don’t mix them up. Got it. Peas and carrots. Okey dokey. Let’s move along.

Yet another political commentary graces the news (gee, that’s a shock) but Frank Rich has penned a good and balanced read. What else would we expect today – it’s Super Tuesday and the media and the politicos are all in full battle array, totally psyched and ready to rumble. I’ll be going out today to vote, but before I do I would just like to ask a question. Is anybody out there actually edified or influenced by recorded phone messages from political candidates? Dear God make them stop. I received multiple calls this weekend from Republican underdogs, Romney and Huckabee, and today I heard from McCain – and Romney yet again. While well intended and certainly not reckless, does this strategy strike anyone as intrusive, and/or just downright feckless? Friday and Saturday night’s calls were particularly annoying since they assume I would be home in the first place. Guess I made it onto some demographic list of stay-at-home old farts. Ouch. Well, I’m hurt. But, like Hillary, I’ll try not to tear up. While the Republicans continue to call all day today as well, I think I’ll just go out and vote now – for my favorite Democrat. And that will be neither reckless nor feckless.

vituperation

Very familiar word/ vague understanding of the meaning

Definition of vituperation
“…abusive censure. Sustained, harshly abusive language; invective.” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
Feb 3, 2008 NYT “Think Again” opinion column, “All You Need is Hate” by Stanley Fish.

“...But the people and groups Horowitz surveys have brought criticism of Clinton to what sportswriters call “the next level,” in this case to the level of personal vituperation unconnected to, and often unconcerned with, the facts...”

My two cents:
Look, there are some words you can just figure out by reading them in context. Vituperation is one. Given all the invectives leveled at Hillary Clinton of late, the meaning of vituperation in the context of Stanley Fish’s article is unmistakable; and what he says about it is unfortunate – and undeniable. But decoding a word in context is one thing, while defining a word that stands alone is an entirely different ball o’ wax. You just really don’t know a word if you can’t do that. And that’s what this list is all about. Admittedly, I have a problem defining vituperation out of context and on its own. I mean to change that. Come to think of it, I also have a problem with people who engage in vituperation. And that will never change.

doughty

New word for me. Pronounced like -- but not to be confused with -- “dowdy.”

Definition of doughty:
“Having or showing courage: audacious, bold, brave, courageous, dauntless, fearless, fortitudinous, gallant, game, hardy, heroic, intrepid, mettlesome, plucky, stout, stouthearted, unafraid, undaunted, valiant, and valorous. Informal: spunky. Slang: gutsy, gutty.” (answers.com)

Where I ran across it:
Slate Magazine online article “Can Vaccines Cause Autism? Eli Stone's Questionable Medicine” by Arthur Allen, posted Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2008. Originally published last May, the Slate article reported on federal hearings concerning the controversial vaccine-autism connection and some even more controversial "treatments." It is re-printed now in light of a new TV show premiering on ABC this week, suggesting the possibility of a link between vaccines and autism, and causing renewed hot debate.

“...Geier's foray into medicine has infuriated a number of parents of autistic children who sharply dispute the vaccine-autism link. In particular, it ticked off Kathleen Seidel, a doughty New Hampshire mother of a teenager with an autism-spectrum disorder. In a series of investigative blog posts, she laid bare the flimsy theoretical underpinnings of Geier's treatment protocol and its potential dangers. In January, the journal Autoimmunity Reviews retracted an article by the Geiers on the Lupron protocol after Seidel wrote a long, scathing letter to the editor in which she noted that both of the journal's co-editors are witnesses in vaccine litigation...”

My two cents:
There is definitely something amiss in our population with autism on the rise, and it is frightening. Whichever side of the vaccine/autism debate you come down on, this is a fascinating article worth reading. And as for the word “doughty” – I am at once delighted and ashamed of myself. What fun to learn a new word, but how can I not have already known such a short, simple, unassuming little word? Ours is not to reason why, ours is just to… well… admit it and doughtily forge ahead.