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Quarantine, pandemic, social distancing, shelter in
place – not all new words, but phrases that have become part of our lives
because of the COVID-19 and which will long be associated with 2020.
Throughout the centuries, there have always been
phrases that have earmarked a generation. I say “For Pete’s sake” all the time
and every time I do, my grandkids ask, “Who’s Pete?” This particular phrase comes from the expression for Christ’s sake. Some people, for religious reasons, don’t want
to use the word Christ
in a negative way, and, instead, use Pete
as an alternative. It originated around 1900. According to the Oxford
English Dictionary, "for Pete's
sake" expresses frustration or annoyance and prompted similar sayings such
as "for the love of Pete" in 1906.
Very often, the expressions or
sayings don’t make sense literally. I can remember my aunt saying “it’s the cat’s
pajamas”. That always made me laugh because of course, cats don’t wear pajamas.
That phrase became popular in the U.S. in the 1920s, along with “bee’s knees”
and “the cat’s whiskers.” In the 1920s, the word cat was used as a term to
describe the unconventional flappers from the jazz era. This was combined with
the word pajamas (a relatively new fashion in the 1920s) to form a phrase used
to describe something that is the best at what it does, thus making it highly
sought and desirable.
I never really thought about pajamas
being a fairly modern word as versus nightgown, or nightrail. I do recall once
an editor telling me that “shirtwaist” wasn’t the appropriate term for a blouse
in the time period I was writing. I’m not sure every reader would catch
individual words but as an author I want to be as authentic as possible.
When I was researching “An
Interlude”, I wanted a few words that would have been appropriate and used
during the roaring twenties. I loved finding “my main squeeze” to indicate a
loved one; “hard boiled” to indicate a mean or ruthless man, and the still usable
“don’t take any wooden nickels.”
Words and phrases help the reader
understand the time period of the novel. For example, when writing historical,
an author must be very careful to use phrases that were part of a particular
century. You don’t “turn on a light” back in the Middle Ages when candles were
used. Simple words also indicate time and place. Does your villain steal an
SUV, jalopy, roadster, barouche or wagon? Does “Alexis” turn on the lights when
you enter a room, or does your butler? (Although I suppose that is not mutually
exclusive.)
All of this is just part of the fascinating
research I like to do before I start writing. Having a vocabulary that creates
a sense of time for my stories is just as important as knowing what color their
hair and eyes are. For a chuckle and to recall some fun phrases from your
childhood, visit https://www.bustle.com/articles/25318-88-hilarious-slang-terms-from-the-20th-century-to-sprinkle-through-your-writing-like-youre-putting.
I invite you to explore Books We
Love and see how I and other authors use words and phrases in our stories. And
in this new time of needing to maintain our personal space and boundaries, know
that Books We Love is trying to help by offering a FREE download book every day
of the pandemic. Check their website at http://www.bookswelove.com/.
They’re also having an April contest, which actually deals with the blog, so
check it out.
Barbara Baldwin
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Showing posts with label it's the cat's pajamas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label it's the cat's pajamas. Show all posts
Friday, April 10, 2020
Words of Our Times
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