tropism

Here’s a word I thought I knew -- and didn’t.

Definition of tropism:
n. (trohp-ism) “an involuntary orienting response; positive or negative reaction to a stimulus source ... The turning or bending movement of an organism or a part toward or away from an external stimulus, such as light, heat, or gravity.” (answers.com).

Not to be confused with the word, “trope,” which means:

n.

1. "A figure of speech using words in non-literal ways, such as a metaphor.
2. A word or phrase interpolated as an embellishment in the sung parts of certain medieval liturgies.
3. 1533, from L. tropus "a figure of speech," from Gk. tropos "turn, direction, turn or figure of speech," related to trope "a turning" and tropein "to turn," from PIE base trep- "to turn" (cf. Skt. trapate "is ashamed, confused," prop. "turns away in shame;" L. trepit "he turns"). Technically, in rhetoric, a figure of speech which consists in the use of a word or phrase in a sense other than that which is proper to it." (answers.com)
   

Where I ran across it:
10/21/08 NYT article, “Patio Man Revisited” by David Brooks.

“…But, most of all, there is a tropism toward order and stability. …”

My two cents:
Lesson for today: while different, trope and tropism still have the same meaning at their root: “Turn.”

Wait. I’m having a moment. “Turns” are popping, uninvited, into my head. It’s a veritable free-association fest in there:

Turn around bright eyes…

To everything turn, turn, turn…

Turn around and you’re tiny, turn around and you’re grown…

Turn your radio on…

Like a carousel that's turning, Running rings around the moon (...like the windmills of your mind)

And finally: “In olden days a hint of stocking was looked on as something shocking, now Heaven knows, anything goes…” I suppose this has absolutely nothing to do with turning, but I'm not editing this free-association fest. It's coming straight off the ol' ticker tape. Lucky you. Wait, I take that back. Metaphorically speaking, it has everything to do with turning. Ooh, look, a trope.

Somewhere along the way, we took a wrong turn. As The World Turns (upside down), our stomachs churn over an economy that has taken seriously ill, and is taking a daily turn for the worse. It's taken some time and effort, but thanks to greed, avarice, stupidity and denial, we have managed to dig ourselves an enormous economic hole. The once thriving economic worm has now turned, and we find ourselves looking straight into the gaping maw of uncharted madness. Banks, mortgage companies, big retail stores are going under daily, and dispossessed homeowners are turning their keys in their locks for the last time. Our economy is a nightmare, a bad joke. Wall Street's "turned funny," too. Nobody’s laughing. It’s a veritable, stomach-turning, blood-curdling “Turn of the Screw” horror story that has, indeed, “held us round the fire, sufficiently breathless.” Don’t hold your breath, people. It’s going to take some time to turn this boat around. This is no time for panic.

But Who Can We Turn To? Where destiny leads us, of course, where steady hand and calm head prevail. For life-saving sustenance and holy guidance I'm turning back, forswearing my foolish ways, and falling prostrate on the altar of the One, the Only: Warren Buffett. He has already written a re-assuring, post-apocalyptic epistle to the world in last week's NYT. Thanks be to Buffett. Amen.

Time’s up, kids. Pencils down. We've turned in our papers, and have failed miserably. We turn away in shame. The test of time, turns out, is a real bitch.