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A '''malapropism''' (also called a '''Dogberryism''') is the use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, often humorous [[utterance]]. An example is [[Yogi Berra]]'s statement: "[[Texas]] has a lot of [[electricity|electrical]] votes,"<ref>{{cite web | title = Great Quotes | url = http://www.great-quotes.com/quote/12877 | accessdate = 2011-09-28 | quote = Texas has a lot of electrical votes}}</ref> rather than "[[Electoral College (United States)|electoral votes]]".
A '''malapropism''' (also called a '''Dogberryism''') is the use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, often humorous [[utterance]]. An example is [[Yogi Berra]]'s statement: "[[Texas]] has a lot of [[electricity|electrical]] votes,"<ref>{{cite web | title = Great Quotes | url = http://www.great-quotes.com/quote/12877 |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3}}</ref> and the first person known to have used the word "malaprop" in the sense of "a speech error" is [[Lord Byron]] in 1814.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2000 |title =malaprop, n. and adj. |encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary |edition=third |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3}}</ref>

The word ''malapropism'' comes ultimately from the French ''mal à propos'' meaning "inappropriate" via "Mrs. Malaprop", a character in the [[Richard Brinsley Sheridan]] comedy ''[[The Rivals]]'' (1775) who habitually misused her words. ''Dogberryism'' comes from "Officer [[Dogberry]]", the name of a character in the [[William Shakespeare]] play ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]''. These are the two best-known fictional characters who made this kind of error&mdash;there are many other examples. Malapropisms also occur as [[speech error|errors]] in natural speech. Malapropisms are often the subject of media attention, especially when made by politicians or other prominent individuals.

The philosopher [[Donald Davidson (philosopher)|Donald Davidson]] has noted that malapropisms show how complex the process is by which the brain translates thoughts into language.

==Etymology==
The word "malapropism" (and its earlier variant, "malaprop") comes from a character named "Mrs. Malaprop" in [[Richard Brinsley Sheridan]]'s 1775 play ''[[The Rivals]]''.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2000 |title =malapropism, n. |encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary |edition=third |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3}}</ref> Mrs. Malaprop frequently misspeaks (to great comic effect) by using words which don't have the meaning she intends, but which sound similar to words that do. Sheridan presumably chose her name in humorous reference to the word ''malapropos,'' an adjective or adverb meaning "inappropriate" or "inappropriately", derived from the [[French language|French]] phrase, ''mal à propos'' (literally "poorly placed"). According to the ''[[Oxford English Dictionary]]'', the first recorded use of "malapropos" in English is from 1630,<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2000 |title =malapropos, adv., adj., and n. |encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary |edition=third |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3}}</ref> and the first person known to have used the word "malaprop" in the sense of "a speech error" is [[Lord Byron]] in 1814.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2000 |title =malaprop, n. and adj. |encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary |edition=third |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3}}</ref>


The synonymous term "Dogberryism" comes from the 1598 Shakespearean play ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'', in which the character [[Dogberry]] utters many malapropisms to humorous effect.<ref>{{cite book|title=Situated Utterances|first=Harry|last=Berger|page=499|publisher=Fordham University Press|year=2005|isbn=0-8232-2429-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2010 |title =Dogberry, n.2 |encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary online |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3 |url=http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/56415 |accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>
The synonymous term "Dogberryism" comes from the 1598 Shakespearean play ''[[Much Ado About Nothing]]'', in which the character [[Dogberry]] utters many malapropisms to humorous effect.<ref>{{cite book|title=Situated Utterances|first=Harry|last=Berger|page=499|publisher=Fordham University Press|year=2005|isbn=0-8232-2429-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite encyclopedia |year=2010 |title =Dogberry, n.2 |encyclopedia=Oxford English Dictionary online |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-957112-3 |url=http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/56415 |accessdate=2013-09-09}}</ref>

Revision as of 19:12, 21 October 2013

A malapropism (also called a Dogberryism) is the use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, often humorous utterance. An example is Yogi Berra's statement: "Texas has a lot of electrical votes,"[1] and the first person known to have used the word "malaprop" in the sense of "a speech error" is Lord Byron in 1814.[2]

The synonymous term "Dogberryism" comes from the 1598 Shakespearean play Much Ado About Nothing, in which the character Dogberry utters many malapropisms to humorous effect.[3][4]

Distinguishing features

An instance of speech error is called a malapropism when a word which is nonsensical or ludicrous in context, but similar in sound to what was intended, is produced.[5]

Definitions differ somewhat in terms of the cause of the error. Some scholars include only errors that result from a temporary failure to produce the word the speaker intended.[6] Such errors are sometimes called "Fay-Cutler malapropism", after David Fay and Anne Cutler, who described the occurrence of such errors in ordinary speech.[5][7] Most definitions, however, include any actual word that is wrongly or accidentally used in place of a similar sounding, "correct" word. This broader definition is sometimes called "classical malapropism",[7] or simply "malapropism".[5]

Malapropisms differ from other kinds of speaking or writing mistakes, such as eggcorns or spoonerisms, and from the accidental or deliberate production of newly made-up words (neologisms).[7]

For example, using obtuse [wide or dull] instead of acute [narrow or sharp] is not a malapropism; using obtuse [stupid or slow-witted] when one means abstruse [esoteric or difficult to understand] is.

Malapropisms tend to maintain the part of speech of the originally intended word. According to linguist Jean Aitchison, "The finding that word selection errors preserve their part of speech suggest that the latter is an integral part of the word, and tightly attached to it."[8] Likewise, substitutions tend to have the same number of syllables and the same metrical structure – the same pattern of stressed and unstressed syllables – as the intended word or phrase. If the stress pattern of the malapropism differs from the intended word, unstressed syllables may be deleted or inserted; stressed syllables and the general rhythmic pattern are maintained.[8]

Examples from fiction

The fictional Mrs. Malaprop, in Sheridan's play The Rivals, utters many malapropisms. In Act III Scene 3, she declares to Captain Absolute, "Sure, if I reprehend any thing in this world it is the use of my oracular tongue, and a nice derangement of epitaphs!"[9] This nonsensical utterance might, for example, be 'corrected' to, "If I apprehend anything in this world, it is the use of my vernacular tongue, and a nice arrangement of epithets",[10] although these are not the only words that can be substituted to produce an appropriately expressed thought in this context, and commentators have proposed other possible replacements that work just as well.

Other malapropisms spoken by Mrs. Malaprop include "illiterate him quite from your memory" (instead of 'obliterate')', and "she's as headstrong as an allegory" (instead of alligator).[9]

Malapropisms appeared in many works before Sheridan created the character of Mrs. Malaprop. William Shakespeare used them in a number of his plays. For example, in Much Ado About Nothing, Constable Dogberry tells Governor Leonato, "Our watch, sir, have indeed comprehended two auspicious persons" (i.e., apprehended two suspicious persons) (Act 3, Scene V).[11] And in The Merchant of Venice, Launcelot, describing Shylock, declares, "Certainly he is the very devil incarnal..." (i.e., incarnate) (Act 2, Scene II).

Modern writers make use of malapropisms in novels, cartoons, films, television, and other media.

Malapropism was one of Stan Laurel's comic mannerisms. In Sons Of The Desert, for example, he says that Oliver Hardy is suffering a nervous "shakedown" (rather than "breakdown"), and calls the Exalted Ruler of their group the "exhausted ruler".[12]

Archie Bunker, a character in the American TV sitcom All in the Family is also known for malapropisms. He calls Orthodox Jews "off-the-docks Jews" and refers to "the Women's Lubrication Movement" (rather than Liberation).[13]

The song titles, "A Hard Day's Night" and "Tomorrow Never Knows", by The Beatles, both originated as "Ringoisms" — confused speech uttered by Ringo Starr. John Lennon and Paul McCartney called the two phrases "malapropisms".[14]

Real-life examples

Malapropisms do not occur only as comedic literary devices. They also occur as a kind of speech error in ordinary speech.[6] Examples are often quoted in the media.

Bertie Ahern, Taoiseach of Ireland, warned his country against "upsetting the apple tart" (i.e., apple cart) of his country's economic success.[15]

Former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley referred to a tandem bicycle as a "tantrum bicycle" and made mention of "Alcoholics Unanimous" (Alcoholics Anonymous).[16]

It was reported in New Scientist that an office worker had described a colleague as "a vast suppository of information" (i.e., repository or depository). The worker then apologised for his "Miss-Marple-ism" (i.e. malapropism).[17] New Scientist noted this as possibly the first time anyone had uttered a malapropism for the word malapropism itself.

In August 2013, Tony Abbott, leader of the Federal Opposition of Australia addressed an audience of Liberal Party members, stating "No one, however smart, however well educated, however experienced is the suppository of all wisdom"[18]

Cross-linguistic malapropisms

The Russian word rynda for "ship's bell" comes from the English phrase "Ring the bell". The phrase was heard by Russian seamen as "Ryndu bey!", i.e., "Hit the rynda", rynda being the word for the tsar's bodyguard. Accordingly, the phrase "to hit the rynda" was used to mean "to signal time with the ship's bell", and later the bell itself has become commonly known as ship's "rynda".[19][20][better source needed]

Philosophical implications

In his essay, "A Nice Derangement of Epitaphs", the philosopher Donald Davidson suggests that malapropisms reveal something about how people process the meanings of words. He argues that language competence must not simply involve learning a set meaning for each word, and then rigidly applying those semantic rules to decode other people's utterances. Rather, he says, people must also be continually making use of other contextual information to interpret the meaning of utterances, and then modifying their understanding of each word's meaning based on those interpretations.[21]

See also

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References

  1. ^ "Great Quotes". Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-957112-3.
  2. ^ "malaprop, n. and adj.". Oxford English Dictionary (third ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2000. ISBN 978-0-19-957112-3.
  3. ^ Berger, Harry (2005). Situated Utterances. Fordham University Press. p. 499. ISBN 0-8232-2429-5.
  4. ^ "Dogberry, n.2". Oxford English Dictionary online. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 2010. ISBN 978-0-19-957112-3. Retrieved 2013-09-09.
  5. ^ a b c Aitchison, Jeanne; Straf, Miron (1982). "Lexical storage and retrieval: a developing skill?". In Anne Cutler (ed.). Slips of the Tongue and Language Production. Walter de Gruyter. pp. 197–242. ISBN 978-3-11-082830-6. Retrieved 2013-09-12.
  6. ^ a b Fay, David; Cutler, Anne (1977). "Malapropisms and the Structure of the Mental Lexicon". Linguistic Inquiry. 8 (3): 505–520.
  7. ^ a b c Zwicky, Arnold (1982). "Classical malapropisms and the creation of the mental lexicon". In Loraine Obler and Lise Menn (ed.). Exceptional Language and Linguistics (PDF). Academic Press. pp. 115–132. ISBN 978-0-12-523680-5. Retrieved 2013-09-12.
  8. ^ a b Aitchison, Jean (2012). Words in the Mind: An Introduction to the Mental Lexicon. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 1118170962.
  9. ^ a b Sheridan, Richard Brinsley (2008 [1775]), The Rivals: A Comedy, retrieved 2012-07-10 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
  10. ^ "Quotations from Richard Brinsley Sheridan". Poem Hunter. Retrieved 2012-07-10.
  11. ^ Shakespeare, William (1997 [1598]), Much Ado About Nothing, retrieved 2012-07-10 {{citation}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
  12. ^ Gehring, Wes (1990). Laurel and Hardy: A Bio-Bibliography. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-313-25172-6. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  13. ^ Shapiro, Marianne; Shapiro, Michael (2005). "Chapter 21: The semiotics of Archie Bunker". From The Critic's Workbench: Essays In Literature And Semiotics. Peter Lang. ISBN 978-0-8204-7915-6. Retrieved 2012-07-10.
  14. ^ The Beatles (2000). The Beatles Anthology. Chronicle Books. ISBN 978-0-8118-2684-6.
  15. ^ Mayer, Catherine (2007-04-26). "Mr. Popularity". Time. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
  16. ^ Kennedy, Eugene (1978). Himself!: The Life and Times of Mayor Richard J. Daley. Viking Press. ISBN 978-0-670-37258-4. Retrieved 2012-07-10.
  17. ^ "New Scientist 18 June 2005 ''Malapropism for malapropism''". Newscientist.com. 2005-06-18. Retrieved 2012-10-02.
  18. ^ "The Australian 12 August 2013".
  19. ^ Лев Васильевич Успенский (Lev Uspensky) (1962). Слово о словах: Ты и твое имя (in Russian). Лениздат. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  20. ^ Max Vasmer (1950). Russisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch (in German). C. Winter. Retrieved 4 October 2012.
  21. ^ Davidson, Donald (1986). "A Nice Derangement of Epitaphs". In R. Grandy and R. Warner (ed.). Philosophical Grounds of Rationality. Oxford University Press. pp. 157–174. ISBN 0-19-824464-9.
  • The dictionary definition of malapropism at Wiktionary
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