Euphemism and Dysphemism
Condition: SECONDHAND
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We all use euphemisms every day - `nice' expressions that shield us from the offensive or frightening things they describe. Euphemisms have existed throughout recorded history; they are used even by preliterate peoples and have probably been around since recognizably human languages first developed. The same is true of offensive language, or 'dysphemisms' - words used as weapons against others, or release valves for anger and frustration. In this entertaining study, Keith Allan and Kate Burridge embark on a linguistic and social-psychological exploration of this intriguing universal human practice.
Author: Keith Allan
Format: Hardback, 275 pages
Published: 1991, Oxford University Press Inc, United States
Genre: Linguistics
We all use euphemisms every day - `nice' expressions that shield us from the offensive or frightening things they describe. Euphemisms have existed throughout recorded history; they are used even by preliterate peoples and have probably been around since recognizably human languages first developed. The same is true of offensive language, or 'dysphemisms' - words used as weapons against others, or release valves for anger and frustration. In this entertaining study, Keith Allan and Kate Burridge embark on a linguistic and social-psychological exploration of this intriguing universal human practice.