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Introspection

by | May 5, 2019 | Words Etc | 0 comments

Introspection

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Introspection is the examination of one’s own conscious thoughts and feelings. In psychology, the process of introspection relies exclusively on observation of one’s mental state, while in a spiritual context it may refer to the examination of one’s soul. Introspection is closely related to human self-reflection and is contrasted with external observation.

Introspection generally provides a privileged access to one’s own mental states, not mediated by other sources of knowledge, so that individual experience of the mind is unique. Introspection can determine any number of mental states including: sensory, bodily, cognitive, emotional and so forth.

Introspection has been a subject of philosophical discussion for thousands of years. The philosopher Plato asked, “…why should we not calmly and patiently review our own thoughts, and thoroughly examine and see what these appearances in us really are?” While introspection is applicable to many facets of philosophical thought it is perhaps best known for its role in epistemology; in this context introspection is often compared with perception, reason, memory, and testimony as a source of knowledge.

We

We

by | Mar 28, 2019 | Family, Life & Timing, Words Etc | 0 comments

As I am apt to do, I think about big picture life in quiet moments. Especially when I am in a pleasant environment around nature. I thought about what I wanted life to be, wished it would be, hoped it was underneath all of the overlays of existence. Its overwhelming to digest. Most people don’t do it. At least not until they feel the sand in the hourglass running out. My father was like that in his later years. He would talk to me differently than he had when I was a boy. He would mention words of wonder about the world, the power of religion in positive ways for troubled souls.

Dad wasn’t religious, but he became religious, as in a devotion to the wholeness in which he started viewing the world. I knew what he was going through, but as a teenager troubled by my own growing pains, I didn’t appreciate it. He died soon after my eighteenth birthday, and that is precisely when I started to first open my eyes to what he was seeing, how he felt. I thought about him and about that time, when I wrote the words below on a sloping green hillside under the sun. <MB

Copyright © Michael Bailey | All Rights Reserved

The Only Way to Live

by | Dec 27, 2017 | Words Etc | 0 comments

To live honestly, is to spend quiet time with ourselves doing nothing but thinking about life, and what we feel about it. Deeply, honestly,

I don’t mean some few random minutes of thumbnail introspection, whilst in the throes of passion, perhaps during a conflict or interaction about our strongest beliefs, followed by making a grand statement or two, spoken aloud, or to ourselves, as we putter around the house, doing laundry, or feeding house pets.   Anybody can do that.

I mean really devoting specifically directed block of time, of thirty or more minutes, in quiet isolation, on a periodic basis, alone with ourselves, free of interruption and distraction, thinking about what we really feel deep inside about who we are, what we want, need, and believe to be most important to help us feel balanced with, and reasonably adjusted to, the complexities, and challenges of life.

It is most important that when spending this time alone to think about who we are, we do so with no pretense, or illusion, on realistic expectations, circumstances beyond our control, or a denial of who we are, innately, instinctively, without apology, guilt, conflict, or hesitancy.

For better or worse, given the benefit or consequences, to face all of this without fear, is the only way to live honestly within oneself. It will help us be who we really are, and it will allow us to live honestly with others.

It is the only way to live..

<MB

Malapropism

by | Nov 8, 2017 | Words Etc | 0 comments

Malapropism

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A malapropism (also called a malaprop or Dogberryism) is the use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, sometimes humorous utterance. An example is the statement by baseball player Yogi Berra, “Texas has a lot of electrical votes”, rather than “electoral votes“.[1] Malapropisms often occur as errors in natural speech and are sometimes the subject of media attention, especially when made by politicians or other prominent individuals. Philosopher Donald Davidson has noted that malapropisms show the complex process through which the brain translates thoughts into language.

Humorous malapropisms are the type that attract the most attention and commentary, but bland malapropisms are common in speech and writing.

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.[2] Mrs. Malaprop frequently misspeaks (to comic effect) by using words which don’t have the meaning that 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 phrase mal à propos (literally “poorly placed”). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first recorded use of “malapropos” in English is from 1630,[3] and the first person known to have used the word “malaprop” in the sense of “a speech error” is Lord Byron in 1814.[4]

The synonymous term “Dogberryism” comes from the 1598 Shakespeare play Much Ado About Nothing in which the character Dogberry utters many malapropisms to humorous effect.[5] Though Shakespeare was an earlier writer than Sheridan, “malaprop/malapropism” seems an earlier coinage than “Dogberryism”, which is not attested until 1836.[6]

Distinguishing features

An instance of speech error is called a malapropism when a word is produced which is nonsensical or ludicrous in context, yet similar in sound to what was intended.[7]

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 which the speaker intended.[8] Such errors are sometimes called “Fay-Cutler malapropism”, after David Fay and Anne Cutler, who described the occurrence of such errors in ordinary speech.[7][9] 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”,[9] or simply “malapropism”.[7]

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).[9]

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

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.”[10] 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.[10]

Examples from fiction

The fictional Mrs. Malaprop in Sheridan’s play The Rivals utters many malapropisms. In Act 3 Scene III, she declares to Captain Absolute, “Sure, if I reprehend any thing in this world it is the use of my oraculartongue, and a nice derangement of epitaphs!”[11] 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“,[12] —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).[11]

Malapropisms appeared in many works before Sheridan created the character of Mrs. Malaprop. William Shakespeare used them in a number of his plays, almost invariably spoken by comic ill-educated lower class characters. Mistress Quickly, the inn-keeper associate of Falstaff in several Shakespeare plays, is a regular user of malapropisms.[13] 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).[14]

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”; in The Music Box, he inadvertently asked a policeman, “Don’t you think you’re bounding over your steps?” meaning “stepping over your bounds” – which Hardy corrected, causing the cop to get more angry at him.[15] British comedian Ronnie Barker also made great use of deliberate malapropisms in his comedy, notably in such sketches as his “Appeal on behalf of the Loyal Society for the Relief of Suffers from Pismronunciation”, which mixed malapropisms and garbled words for comic effect – including news of a speech which “gave us a few well-frozen worms (i.e., well-chosen words) in praise of the society.”[16][non-primary source needed]

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).[17]

Real-life examples

Malapropisms do not occur only as comedic literary devices. They also occur as a kind of speech error in ordinary speech.[8] Examples are often quoted in the media. Welsh Conservative leader Andrew Davies, encouraged the Conservative party conference to make breakfast (i.e. Brexit) a success. Bertie Ahern, former Taoiseach of Ireland, warned his country against “upsetting the apple tart” (i.e., apple cart) of his country’s economic success.[18][19]

Former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley referred to a tandem bicycle as a “tantrum bicycle” and made mention of “Alcoholics Unanimous” (Alcoholics Anonymous).[20]

Australian politician Tony Abbott once claimed that no one “is the suppository of all wisdom” (i.e., repository or depository).[21] Similarly, as reported in New Scientist, an office worker had described a colleague as “a vast suppository of information”. The worker then apologised for his “Miss-Marple-ism” (i.e. malapropism).[22] New Scientist noted this as possibly the first time anyone had uttered a malapropism for the word malapropism itself.

Texas governor Rick Perry has been known to commonly utter malapropisms, for example describing states as “lavatories of innovation and democracy” instead of “laboratories”.[23]

During a Senate hearing, Philippine presidential communications assistant secretary Mocha Uson stumbled on the legal phrase “right against self-incrimination” by invoking her “right against self-discrimination” instead.[24]

Philosophical implications

In his essay “A Nice Derangement of Epitaphs”, 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.

Further reading

External links

  • The dictionary definition of malapropism at Wiktionary
Quotes

Quotes

by | Oct 23, 2017 | Words Etc | 0 comments

I wonder if we could love passionately, if ecstasy would be possible at all, if we knew we’d never die.

—Abraham Maslow

 

“Where is wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?”

—T.S Eliot

 

The mind learns by doing. The heart learns by trying.

—Unknown

 

Take what you want, said God, and pay for it.

—Spanish Proverb

 

Sex without love leaves the body cold. Love without sex leaves the soul empty.

—Linda Goodman

 

Don’t judge a man by what he has. Judge a man by what he gives.

—Unknown

 

A man’s reach should exceed his grasp, otherwise what’s Heaven for?

—Robert Browning

 

Genius begins great works. Labor alone finishes them.

—Unknown

 

“What we are aiming at when we fall in love is a very strange paradox. The paradox consists of the fact, that when we fall in love, we are seeking to re-find all or some of the people who we were attached as children. On the other hand, we ask our beloved to correct all of the wrongs that these early parents or siblings inflicted upon us. Love contains in it the contradiction; the attempt to return to the past and the attempt to undo the past”

—From the film, Crimes and Misdemeanors

 

“Perhaps the most one can say is that the normal artist at his easel goes from his normality out to the edges of his personality and approaches madness. Meanwhile, the psychotic artist goes from his craziness out to the edges of his personality and approaches the normal. They come from different directions, but they meet in a no man’s land we call art.”

—Unknown

 

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”

—Emerson

 

“Science is the remedy to feeling at odds with employees over getting more work out of them.”

—Taylor

 

two shall be born…the whole wide world apart

and speak in different tongues…and have no thought

each, of the other’s being…and no heed

and these same two

o’er unknown seas, to unknown lands, shall cross

escaping wreck, defying death

and all unconsciously

shape each act, and bend each wandering step

to this one end…

that one day, out of darkness

they must meet

and read Life’s meaning in each other’s eyes

and these same two

along some narrow way of Life shall walk

so nearly side by side

that should one turn, ever so little space

to left…or right

their needs must be acknowledged, face to face

and yet…

with wistful eyes, that never meet

and groping hands that never clasp

with lips, calling in vain, to ears that never hear

they seek each other all their weary days

and die unsatisfied

…and this is Fate

—unknown

“Until a person can say deeply and honestly, “I am what am I am today because of the choices I made yesterday,” that person cannot say, “I choose otherwise.”

—Stephen R. Covey

 

“You have to be very careful if you don’t know where you’re going, because you might not get there.

—Yogi Berra

 

“When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.

—John Ruskin

 

“Love is but the discovery of ourselves in others, and the delight in the recognition.

—Alexander Smith

 

“The deepest hunger of the human soul is to be understood. The deepest hunger of the human body is for air. If you can listen to another person, in depth, until they feel understood, it’s the equivalent of giving them air.”

—Stephen R. Covey

 

“For one human being to love another: that is perhaps the most difficult of all our tasks, the ultimate, the last test and proof, the work for which all other work is but preparation.

—Rainer Maria Rilke

 

If you trap the moment before it’s ripe,

The tears of repentance

you’ll certainly wipe;

But if once you let the ripe moment go

You can never wipe off the tears of woe.

—William Blake 1791

 

“You fall out of your mother’s womb, you crawl across open country under fire, and drop into your grave.”

—Quentin Crisp

 

“Next to a circus there ain’t nothing that packs up and tears out faster than the Christmas spirit.

-Kin Hubbard

 

If you can find something everyone agrees on, it’s wrong.”

-Mo Udall

 

An idea isn’t responsible for the people who believe in it.

-Don Marquis

 

Democracy is a device that ensures we shall be governed no better than we deserve.

-George Bernard Shaw

 

A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend upon the support of Paul.

-George Bernard Shaw

 

The trouble with our times is that the future is not what it used to be,

-Paul Valery

 

Human war has been the most successful of our cultural traditions.

-Robert Ardrey

 

Under certain circumstances, profanity provides a relief denied even to prayer.

-Mark Twain

 

Men have a much better time of it than women; for one thing they marry later; for another thing they die earlier

-H.L. Mencken

 

Lying is a way of taking personal responsibility for reality.

-Garrison Keillor

 

Conversation is the enemy of good wine and food.

-Alfred Hitchcock

 

Government is too big and important to be left to the politicians.

-Chester Bowles

 

Misogynist: A man who hates women as much as women hate one another.

-H.L. Mencken

 

If we were not all so interested in ourselves, life would be so uninteresting that none of us would be able to endure it.

-Schopenhauer

 

The trouble with the rat race is that even if you win, you’re still a rat.

-Lily Tomlin

 

Ours is a world where people don’t know what they want and are willing to go through hell to get it.

-Don Marquis

 

You can have what you want or what you need, but not both.

-Unknown

The cause of almost all relationship difficulties is rooted in conflicting or ambiguous expectations around roles and goals. Whether you are dealing with the question of who does what at work, how you communicate with your daughter when you tell her to clean her room. or who feeds the fish and takes out the garbage, you can be certain that unclear expectations will lead to misunderstanding, disappointment, and withdrawals of trust.

Communication is primarily a function of trust, not of technique. When the trust is high, communication is easy, it’s effortless. it’s instantaneous, and it’s effective-it works. But when the trust is low and the Emotional Bank Account is overdrawn, communication is exhausting, it’s terribly time-consuming, and it’s like walking around a minefield.

-Steven Covey

 

“Listening to your heart, finding out who you are, is not

simple. It takes time for the chatter to quiet down. In

the silence of “not doing” we begin to know what we feel.

If we listen and hear what is being offered, then anything

in life can be our guide…Listen.”

-Unknown

 

“I’m not who I was twenty years ago and I won’t be who I am now in the next twenty years.”

-FM2030 (From Optimism 1)

 

“Conventional names define a person by his past.”

-FM2030 (From Optimism 1)

 

“There’s far less mystery to human behavior than there are problems.”

-Anonymous

 

“House guests are like fish. After two days they start to smell.”

-Unknown

 

“If you want to sell something to everybody, make sure it has a big bust line.”

-Unknown Advertising Executive

 

“Life is a game. You’re either playing yours or you’re playing somebody else’s.”

– Michael Bailey

 

“If you want to know where the country is heading. Look at the Congressman.”

-Michael Bailey

 

“There’s no such state as formless. Some boundaries are further away, but they are always there.”

-Michael Bailey

 

“I like lesbians. They’re like really cool men.”

-Michael Bailey

 

“Problems cannot be solved by the same consciousness that created them”

-Albert Einstein

 

“Men are made both fools and heroes by women.”

-Michael Bailey

 

“Money is like sex. You think of nothing else if you don’t have it.”

-James Baldwin

 

“Be kind, because everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”

-Plato

Spells

Spells

by | Jan 20, 2017 | Words Etc | 0 comments

I’ve become a man of spells lately…

Dizzy spells

Hearing spells.

Headache spells

Vision spells.

Equilibrium spells

Orientation spells.

Loss of Memory spells

Spells of spells…

I think I know what it is, what they are. Or, I don’t know what it is. Somehow none of them really bother me…anymore.

>MB