Great post! Thanks for the cool information. I especially like the reference to Dogberry in Shakespeare.
An interesting definition of a useful word
The word ‘malapropism’ is among the wordiest of words, denoting a misused word. Specifically, a malapropism is an erroneous word used in place of another, correct word, e.g. ‘at this pacific moment’ (rather than specific moment) or referring to a place of scientific experiment as a ‘lavatory’ rather than laboratory. So much for the technical meaning of the word ‘malapropism’ itself, but what is the history of the term?
View original post 374 more words
Vauquer Boarding House 
Miss Marple-ism cracked me up!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That was a good one too.
LikeLike
Learned a new word today! Thanks for sharing 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I knew this word, but not all the interesting information. When I saw this post at Interesting Literature, I couldn’t resist the photo.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Seeing as my concentration in both undergraduate and graduate school was Restoration Drama, I am well aware of Mrs. Malaprop. The key to a memorable malapropism isn’t just to use the wrong word but rather to mis-use a similar word which makes the speech and therefore the speaker seem that much more ridiculous or humorous (as silent as an allegory on the banks of the Nile).
Remember Mrs. Slipslop?
LikeLiked by 1 person
No, I don’t know Mrs. Slipslop. 😦 I never actually read Sheridan’s play (looks like I should!), only know of it.
LikeLike
Actually, Mrs. Slipslop is Fielding … you did read Tom Jones, right?
Sheridan is a late Restoration dramatist and as such is a good example of the tropes developed by the real Restoration dramatists like Farquhar and Etheredge. My theses were all on William Wycherley and often were detailed analyses of those dramatic tropes like the aside.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks, Mike. No – haven’t read Tom Jones either. I love 19th Century books, but never really got a taste for 18th Century books in general.
LikeLike