April 2005 Archives
Two for the Price of One: captious; pica (pied, magpie,
pie); fustian (fusty); palladian; trepan; wattle (wattle and daub); frottage
Eyesight, used figuratively: lyncean; purblind;
strabismus; inveigle; tunnel vision; scotoma; myopic
Papal Election: scrutineer; conclave; consistory;
plinth; novendial (novennial, novena); papabile; lapidary
Terms from French: louche; sobriquet; cap-a-pie;
soubrette; beau ideal; volte face; amour propre
Two for the Price of One
Each word featured this week has two separate
meanings, conveying two different concepts. Thus you get a double-benefit,
"two for the price of one".
captious 1. fault-finding; with a petty and quarrelsome eagerness to
object, as a captious critic
2. calculated to confuse,
entrap and entangle through subtle argument
[from Latin for sophistical, insidious; ult. from L. capere, to seize]
Meaning 1:
fault-finding
Writers as a class are irritable, temperamental, captious,
and sensitive.
Carl Van Vechten, The Tiger in the House
They that have grown old in a single state are generally found to be morose,
fretful and captious; tenacious of their own practices and
maxims; soon offended by contradiction or negligence; and impatient of any
association but with those that will watch their nod, and submit themselves to
unlimited authority.
attrib Samuel Johnson
Meaning 2: entrapping into argument
A captious question, sir, and yours is one,
Deserves an answer similar, or none.
William Cowper, Tirocinium
pica 1. abnormal
craving to eat inedible substances, such as chalk, ash, dirt
2. a printer's measure,
equaling 1/6 in. (in typewriters, a certain type-style of 10 char/in.)
The 'pica' craving is sometimes seen in pregnancy, and in certain nutritional
deficiencies or mental disorders.
related terms: pie a familiar kind of pastry
pied patterned with separate colors (orig., black and white) in
distinct patches
If your pet seems
to have developed a craving for dirt or an uncontrollable urge to lick
concrete, it may have pica. The possible cause: a
nutritional deficiency, or maybe just plain boredom.
Interesting etymology: All this is from a common bird which chatters constantly, will
eat almost anything, and is a thief and pilferer that will filch bright baubles
and trinkets. Apparently these were seen as female qualities, for in Latin the
bird's name is pica, the feminine of picus 'woodpecker'. In Old
French this became pie, and Middle English used both names, pica
and pie, for the bird.
This then evolved in several directions.
1. For the bird's name, English added its own feminine reference. In
slang, Margaret, Meg and Mag were used to scorn supposed 'female' traits,
especially idle chatter (e.g. Magge tales = tall tales, nonsense). Our
chattery bird's name evolved from pie to magget the py to magot-a-pie
to maggoty-pie to maw-pie. Today we call it the magpie.
2. The coloration of the pie bird black and white patches came to be
called pied, much as an item with spots is called spotted.
3. Pica, a craving to eat inedibles is from the pica bird's willingness
to practically anything.
4. Pica, a type-size: Both names of the bird, pica and pie,
were later used for the intricate rules which the Church devised to calculate
Saints' days each year, based on the changing dates of Easter, etc. (The rules
were devised in the late 1400s, as best I can tell.) It's not clear why the
rules were so named; Perhaps the rules in print or as we say "in black
and white" recalled the coloring of the bird.
'Pica' as a print style is
thought to derive from these document, for many print styles (pica, canon,
brevier, primer) track the names for ecclesiastical documents. However,
there is no know copy of the pica rules printed in pica type.
5. Pie: a pastry-dish: Very soon pie was used to name the bird,
it also came to be used for a food of multiple ingredients baked in pastry,
like a chicken pot pie. (This later evolved to include
today's fruit pies.) With such quick timing, it's thought that the pie food
comes from the pie bird. (As a parallel, notice the similarity between haggis
and haggess haggis being another food of multiple meats, and haggess
an old name for the magpie (from agace, its sometime-name in French).
Why would the pastry be named for
the bird? Perhaps, as some say, because it collects various items just as the
bird has multiple colors and filches all sorts of trinkets. But I'd think that
the more likely connection is that the bird eats all sorts of foods, indeed
almost anything, and the pastry dish too can hold almost any miscellaneous
leftovers the cook may have on hand.
fustian (noun;
also used as adj.)
1. a strong cotton fabric, thick and twilled; includes courduroy.
2. bombastΉ; inflated, pompous language full of high-sounding words
above the subject
[from Latin, or from El Fustat, a place in
ΉInterestingly, 'bombast' also originally had a fabric meaning: "raw
cotton"
The traditional
proletarian dress is fustian, as worn by countless
Chartists and their leader Feargus O'Connor. If Tony Blair ever shows up in a fustian
suit, it will be time to get worried.
Keith Flett, New Statesman, Sept. 6, 2004
[Ambassador Minton] had a written speech with him fustian and
bombast, I imagine. But
he put the formal speech away. "I am about to do
a very un-ambassadorial thing," he declared. "I am about to tell you
what I really feel ." Perhaps Minton had inhaled too much acetone.
Kurt Vonnegut, Cat's Cradle
Yossarian was unmoved by the fustian charade of the burial
ceremony, and by
[and much later:] All he could ever see was Aarfy, with whose fustian
moon-faced ineptitude he had finally lost all patience.
Joseph Heller, Catch 22
Some writers confuse fustian with fusty
old-fashioned; also, smelling damp or stuffy; musty.
to transform
worn-out, traditional, old, fustian [fusty?]
Richard Mullen, Contemporary Review, April, 2000
The first meaning given seems quite useful,
but is in fact very rarely used.
palladian 1. relating to wisdom or study [from Pallas Athena,
the goddess of wisdom]
2. of the neoclassical major architectural style that was extremely in 18th
century
[after Andrea Palladio, 16th cent. architect from whom this style is
derived. The U.S. White House is an example of Palladian architecture. See here,
a picture being worth a thousand words.]
Yet even as
William Strauss, The Fourth Turning
Once again, the first meaning given seems quite
useful, but is in fact very rarely used.
trepan 1. to
ensnare or entrap (noun: a snare; or, a trickster)
2. an old surgical instrument
to cut into the skull to relieve pressure (or a like boring instrument for
mining). (verb: to use a trepan; to bore.)
had General
Washington suffered you to command the open country above him, I think it a
very reasonable conjecture that the conquest of Burgoyne would not have taken
place, because you could, in that case, have relieved him. It was therefore
necessary
to trepan you into a situation in which you could
only be on the defensive, without the power of affording him assistance. The
manoeuvre had its effect, and Burgoyne was conquered.
Thomas Paine, To General Sir William Howe
You can void your warranty [if you] open your iPod.
external modifications
can void your warranty to. For example, if you choose to trepan
your iPod so as to screw a holder directly onto it, you would void your
warranty.
Guy Hart-Davis, How to Do Everything with Your iPod
wattle 1. the red fleshy skin hanging at the throat
of a turkey or chicken, or like neck-skin on other birds or on lizards 2. a framework of stakes with branches
interwoven, to form a fence.
[wattle and daub the same, overlaid with clay, as a construction
material.]
The two meanings are probably unrelated etymologically.
The loose flesh of
his neck shook like a cock's wattles.
James Joyce, Ulysses
As soon as you had crossed the drawbridgetop of the village street it had
only one street and this extended for about half a mile, with thatched houses
of wattles and daub on either side of it.
T. H. White, The Once and Future King
frottage [based on
F. for 'rubbing']
1. in art, the technique of creating a design by
rubbing soft charcoal, or the like, over paper which has been placed over an
uneven surface
2. in life, the practice of rubbing against a
clothed person for (ahem) gratification, as in a crowd
British newspapers, particularly The Independent, seem especially fond of
'frottage' in the latter sense.
though their
farewell hug sometimes came close to frottage, she had
managed to escape without damage.
Reginald Hill, Good Morning, Midnight
When Miranda denies an insurance claim by phone, she first consoles the
would-be claimant with a free vocal massage (for male callers it's closer to a
vocal frottage)
Miranda sounds as if she's ready to
propose a dinner-date. Until she gets the information she needs to deny the
claim, whereupon the telephone romance ends.
Richard Dooling, Bet Your Life
As to 'frottage' as an art technique, the
art-authorities disagree:
[Max] Ernst
invented "frottage," a new method for generating
surprising imagery. He placed a sheet of paper over rough surfaces like wood
planks and rubbed with a soft pencil. He then elaborated on those patterns to
produce fantastic, sometimes monstrous, imagery.
Carol Strickland & John Boswell, The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash
Course in Art History
Strindberg
invented frottage, the making of rubbings
from other objects, half a century before Max Ernst incorporated them into his
work.
Tom Rosenthal, The Independent on Sunday, January, 2005
Eyesight, used figuratively
It is commonplace, almost automatic, to use
'seeing' as a metaphor. "Yes, I see," means, "I
understand," and some people are are insightful while others are visionary.
But some people 'can't see the forest for the trees,' and some things 'aren't
worth a second look'.
This week we present sight terms with potential use as metaphor.
lyncean pertaining to or like a lynx; keen-sighted.
the blue-blood
astronomer Percival Lowell, who a century ago fired imaginations with his
peremptory claim that "we may consider as certain" that "Mars is
inhabited by beings."
In 1877, Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli
had seen "canali," or channels, on Mars. With his 24-inch refractor,
Bill Kauffman, My favorite Martian - astronomer Percival Lowell,
American Enterprise, Jan-Feb, 1998
purblind 1.
partially sighted. 2. lacking in discernment or understanding.
[originally meant 'completely blind', from 'pure' + 'blind']
There are still
thoughtless dilettante or purblind worldlings, who sometimes ask
us: "What is it that
Winston Chrurchill, March, 1940 broadcast, excoriating those waiting on the
sidelines
An apparently technical debate is taking place on
Bruce Anderson, The Spectator, Nov. 2, 1996
"You drive much faster than my mummy, mister."
I slowed down from a blind seventy to a purblind fifty.
"Why do you think I have ceased caring for you, Lo?"
"Well, you haven't kissed me yet, have you?"
Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita
Today's quotes struck me as especially
enjoyable, so do forgive me for going on at length.
strabismus
1. improper alignment of the eyes (e.g., cross-eye, lazy eye, etc.)
2. fig; rare: perversity of intellectual perception
[from Gk. strabizein to squint]
she really was
almost grotesquely lovely.
Orin's doubles partner who as a strabismic
was something of an expert on female unattainability felt that this was the
kind of hideously attractive girl you just knew in advance did not associate
with normal collegiate human males.
David Foster Wallace, Infinite Jest: A Novel
A lawyer is a moral strabismic, who revels in sharked up
reasons.
Elbert Hubbard, Contemplations (1902), in
... savage races can be brought to the knowledge of, and obedience to, an
orderly civil community. The instruments of civilisation must vary with the
various character of the life upon which they are to operate effectively. Yet
there are strabismic monitors of African civilisation who,
representing no high moral standard in themselves, have laid down a rule of
conduct for the
Henry Wellington Wack, The Story of the
[Agravaine is imprisoned in the castle.] It was a nice room, but to one in
Agravaines state of suppressed suspicion a trifle too solidly upholstered. The
door was of the thickest oak, studded with iron nails. Iron bars formed a neat
pattern across the only window.
In the morning the strabismic
plug-ugly with the red hair brought him food and drink, while in the evening
the non-grunter did the honours. It was a peaceful life, but tending towards
monotony, and Agravaine was soon in the frame of mind which welcomes any break
in the daily round.
P.G. Wodehouse, Sir Agravaine; A Tale of King Alfreds Round Table, in The
Man Upstairs
inveigle to win
over a person by deceitful coaxing, flattery, cajolery
This is a 'vision' word, for the root sense is 'to blind' the victim's
judgment. From F. or M.Fr. aveugler 'to make blind', or some form of
that term. This in turn is from late L. aboculus, from = ab without
+ occulus eye.
You may recognize one of our sample quotes, used last week for another word.
When Miranda
denies an insurance claim by phone, she first consoles the would-be claimant with
a free vocal massage (for male callers it's closer to a vocal frottage)
because her voice is a delicate inveigling rasp textured by
fifty-dollar bottles of wine, designer chocolates, and I imagined, other
mysterious and intriguing bad habits.
Miranda sounds as if she's ready to
propose a dinner-date. Until she gets the information she needs to deny the
claim, whereupon the telephone romance ends.
Richard Dooling, Bet Your Life
She was young, she was pure, she was new, she was nice
She was fair, she was sweet seventeen.
He was old, he was vile, and no stranger to vice
He was base, he was bad, he was mean.
He had slyly inveigled her up to his flat
To view his collection of stamps,
And he said as he hastened to put out the cat,
The wine, his cigar and the lamps:
"Have some madeira, m'dear."
-
We know the term tunnel vision - 1.
inability to clearly perceive things unless they are close to the center of the
field of view. 2. informal the tendency to focus exclusively on a
limited view.
"A lot of
entrepreneurs have tunnel vision," says Jeffrey
Geibel, marketing consultant. "They believe if they build a better
mousetrap, the world will beat a path to their door. This is arrogance. They
should ask, 'What problem am I solving?' "
Mark Henricks, Entrepreneur, April, 1996
The counterpart of "tunnel vision"
would be a 'blind spot', the medical term for which is scotoma an area
of diminished vision within the visual field; a literal "blind spot".
[Greek skotoma, from skotos darkness]
We previously noted that 'scotoma' would be suitable for figurative use. I can
now such figurative use by Oliver Sacks, author of The Man Who Mistook His
Wife For A Hat. Sacks's usage appears in a collection which states its
theme thus: "Scientists and historians can cite many cases of scientific
and technological claims, hypotheses, and proposals that, viewed in retrospect,
have apparently taken an unaccountably long time to be recognized."
Oliver Sacks
discusses examples of historical "scotoma," or the
forgetting and neglect of earlier clinical observations subsequently recognized
as of great importance.
- Jacket blurb for Prematurity in Scientific Discovery: On Resistance and
Neglect (Ernest B. Hook, editor)
But scotoma involves more than prematurity, it involves the deletion
of what was originally perceived, a loss of knowledge, a loss of insight, a
forgetting of insights that once seemed clearly established. All the are
surprisingly common in all fields of science. They raise the deepest questions
about why such lapses occur. What makes an observation or a new idea
acceptable, discussible, memorable? What may prevent it from being so, despite
its clear importance and value?
Oliver Sacks, Scotoma: Forgetting and Neglect in Science, in the above
book
myopic
nearsighted; unable to see distant objects clearly; also fig.: lacking
foresight; shortsighted
There is of course a counterpart medical term meaning farsighted: hyperopic.
I find it interesting that we do not use that term figuratively. Our figurative
has adopted only the negative term, not the praiseworthy one.
Those who run
cricket in this country, especially at the domestic level, are for the most
part a self-serving, pusillanimous and self-important bunch of myopic
dinosaurs unable to take any but the shortest-term view of everything.
- Henry Blofeld, The Independent, 22 Sept. 2003. I understand that Mr. Blofeld
is a cricket-commentator of some note.
even today officially sanctioned discrimination is not a thing of the past.
Against this background, claims that law must be "colorblind"
must
be seen as aspiration rather than as description of reality. This is not to
denigrate aspiration
Yet we cannot
let color blindness become myopia
which masks the reality that many "created equal" have been treated
within our lifetimes as inferior both by the law and by their fellow citizens.
US Sup. Ct. Justice Brennan, in Regents of U. of Calif. v. Bakke
(1978)
Papal Election
In recognition of momentous events happening
this week, I am departing from my planned theme. Instead, we will share such
words as I've been able to find in regarding the election of a new pope.
scrutineer one who examines something closely and thoroughly. (Brit:
one who takes or counts votes)
On the fourth ballot,
the result was quasi-unanimous ... Cardinal Joseph Hφffner of Germany told the
media there was no need to count the votes, because the only name read out by
the scrutineer was Luciani [Pope John Paul I, elected 1978].
- John L. Allen Jr., How a Pope is Elected, National Catholic Reporter,
April 7, 2005
A reader notes: In the UK a scrutineer is one who checks such things as cars or
motorcycles prior to their being allowed onto a race-track or similar. This has
led to a back-formation that has created the word "scrutineering" for
the action of scrutinizing machinery in this way.
Habemus papam -- We have a
pope.
conclave a confidential or secret meeting
[from Latin clavis key; referring to 'a lockable room']
The earliest usage of the term was in
reference to papal election: "The cardinals, that wolden save
The forme of lawe in the conclave, Gon for to chese a new pope." (John Gower, 1393)
The papal conclave
is a process through which 115 temporary prisoners choose one among them to
serve a life sentence.
Tom Hundley, Chicago Tribune, April 18, 2005
consistory the
council of cardinals; or, a church tribunal or senate; or (rare),
a solemn assembly or council
[from L. for 'place of assembly'; ult. from L for 'to stand together']
Paul VI elevated
him to the rank of cardinal in the consistory of June 27, 1977.
Biograhphy of new pope, in Asia News
plinth an
architectural base (as for a column or statue)
Pope Paul VI (1963-78), in his private notes, speaks of a pope's dreadful solitude
and isolation:
I was solitary
before, but now my solitariness becomes complete and awesome. Hence the
dizziness, the vertigo. Like a statue on a plinth - that is how I
live now. Jesus also was alone on the cross. I should not seek outside help to absolve
me from my duty; my duty is too plain: decide, assume every responsibility for
guiding others, even when it seems illogical and perhaps absurd. And to suffer
alone. Me and God. The colloquy must be full and endless.
quoted by John Cornwell in Hitler's Pope: The Secret History of Pius XII
Television pictures showed the Pope's body lying on a plinth,
his hands clutching a rosary and his pastoral staff under his arm.
Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery Channel, April 4, 2005
A series of words today:
novennial of a nine-year period
novendial a religious ceremony lasting for nine days; a funeral
ceremony on the ninth day after the burial
novena a prayer service lasting nine days, or weekly for nine weeks
We may compare the
novendial period of mourning for a pope.
W. B. McDaniel (1924)
Theoretically, the
cardinals are not supposed to discuss the papal succession, even among
themselves, before the nine-day mourning period called the Novemdiaes.
John L. Allen Jr., as cited above for 'scrutineer'
papabile [pl. papabili]
a viable candidate to be elected pope, or for other high office
[also used as adj; in other words, 'popeable'. The older adj. is papable.]
Many dictionaries are behind the times on this word. Of those in one-look, only
Wikipedia has it, and there only in the literal papal sense and as an
"unofficial" 20th century coinage.
But OED fully recognizes the word, and both its senses have a longer history.
Indeed, the extended sense was used as early as 1754, by Pitt.
Under Hague, all
things considered, the party is in good shape. Kenneth Clarke and Michael
Heseltine are now marginal figures
Chris Patten, who looked papabile
a year ago
has already admitted that the game is up and Hague is boss.
Paul Johnson, The Spectator, Sep. 19, 1998
Today's word is especially interesting in
its figurative sense. The new pope used it in that sense, shorty before his
election.
lapidary 1. noun a gem-cutter, or the art of
gem-cutting; adj. relating to gem-cutting
[includes cutting polishing,
cutting, engraving of gems and other stones]
2. (of language)
elegant and concise
[Latin lapidarius stonecutter, from lapis stone]
"Follow me.
The Risen Lord says these words to Peter. "Follow me" this lapidary
saying of Christ can be taken as the key to understanding the message which
comes to us from the life of our late beloved Pope John Paul II.
Card. Joseph Ratzinger, at funeral mass of Pope John Paul II; April 8, 2005
(English rendering taken from the Vatican's site)
Terms from French
Having fallen behind in the words of the
day, we'll play a bit of catch-up. This week's theme is 'Terms from French',
beginning with a word that would also fit our recent theme of 'Eyesight as
Metaphor'.
louche disreputable or dubious; shady but in a rakishly appealing
way
[most dictionaries miss the
qualification after the 'but']
[from F. meaning 'cross-eyed'; ult. from Latin luscus blind in one eye]
... the drama, the
beauty, the louche charm and the brutality of horse racing.
Deirdre Donahue, USA Today, Dec. 28, 2001, reviewing the book Seabiscuit
The late Pope was truly a man for the masses and no slave to the cultural
fashions beloved of the louche Left of the West.
Piers Akerman, Australia Daily Telegraph, April 12, 2005
Thanks to the famous Monte Carlo casino, Rainier maintained the aura of
gambling as a high-rolling sport of dashing counts and louche
playboys.
Robin Givhan, The Washington Post, April 11, 2005
sobriquet a nickname
(pronounced 'sobrikay'; occas. spelled 'soubriquet')
[from M.Fr. soubriquet, meaning lit. "a chuck under the chin"]
[WC note: Though dictionaries do not say so, a sobriquet typically names a
characteristic of the subject; that is, it is an epithet. For example,
"Joe" is a nickname for Joseph, but wouldn't typically be called a
sobriquet.]
Originally, nurses
were appointed to schools as de facto public health pest control officers,
combing through the heads of kids for infestations. Hence the sobriquet,
Nit nurse, a term carrying a pejorative connotation.
Hugh Reilly, The Scotsman, Apr 27, 2005
John Paul II's unique stamp on the papacy earned him the sobriquet
of the "people's pope" due to his ability to connect with people of
every faith.
Kevin McElderry, AFP, April 20, 2005
Among his critics [the new Pope] has earned the sobriquet
"God's rottweiler" but his supporters say he is a courteous, gentle
man and an outstanding theologian with a deep sense of spirituality.
Jonathan Petre, Bruce Johnston, 'God's rottweiler' is the new Pope,
Telegraph, Apr 20, 2005
cap-a-pie at all
points
[literally, 'head to foot]
Book review by Jan
Morris, in New Statesman, Jan. 12, 2004:
Its subject is the sea-rivalry between Britain and Germany that was a principal
cause of the First World War.
a struggle between the two greatest navies of
the day, the ancient Royal Navy of the British and the young, technologically
brilliant Imperial Navy of the Germans.
Jutland dominates three chapters of this volume.
it was in the North Sea that
the two great enemies finally faced one another cap a pie,
gun to gun
Don't confuse our recent word sobriquet
(silent t) with soubrette, where the t is pronounced.
soubrette theater 1. the role of a saucy, coquettish
maidservant or like subordinate (also, the actress in that role) 2. a
woman of the stage who, in real life, is that sort of flirty person
As I understand it, the soubrette is always a subordinate, not upper-crust, and
is always a supporting role. That is, a lead character, even one so flirty as
Scarlett O'Hara or any early Katherine Hepburn role, is not a soubrette.
On rare occasion, the term is used for such a female who is not in the
world of theater, television etc. For example:
[Who] can resist
the delights of a nice piece of French pastry? Just stop by Bernard Runo's
Parisian bakery, Sweet Thang. One of his recent ads featured a photo of his
shop framed by a pair of sleek feminine legs sporting stiletto heels and the
proclamation, "The Best Cheap Tarts on North Avenue." The pastries
are scrumptious, and
are delivered to your table by a smiling soubrette,
one of the many beautiful French babes who work at Sweet Thang. Bernard says,
"They give immediate credibility to my products."
Mike Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times, May 25, 2003
For some reason, the task of explaining the birds and bees was not entrusted to
our biology teacher but to a hectoring, sergeant-major type of a fellow from
the PT department.
Worse
was his use of Scottish country dancing as a cruel
and unusual punishment.
To add to the terror,
does teacher not pair you off
with one Tizzi (at least I think that's how this soubrette's sobriquet
was spelled) Malone, the most stupendously endowed girl of that or any other
year.
Tom Shields, The Sunday Herald, Nov. 16, 2003
beau ideal the
perfect type or model [French beau idιal ideal beauty]
[views of
professor Martin Flaherty]
The Electoral College was designed [because] the framers ... had a certain distrust
of direct democracy. "They wanted to sway the election to the man with the
best character, not some demagogue," he says. George Washington, a man of
great reputation without strong positions on the issues of his day, was their beau
ideal.
Dan Ackman and Lisa DiCarlo, Forbes.com, Nov. 27, 2001
I was the beau ideal of the morbid young aesthetical
To doubt my inspiration was regarded as heretical
Until you cut me out with your placidity emetical.
Sing "Booh to you Pooh, pooh to you" And that's what I shall say!
Gilbert & Sullivan, Patience
George Fitzhugh defended slavery as a practical form of socialism that provided
contented slaves with paternalistic masters, thereby eliminating harsh
conflicts between employers and allegedly free workers. 'A Southern farm is the
beau ideal of Communism; it is a joint concern, in which the
slave ... is far happier, because ... he is always sure of support.'
Jeffrey Rogers Hummel, Emancipating the Slaves, Enslaving Free Men: A
History of the American Civil War
volte face a
complete and abrupt reversal of policy, position, etc.; an about-face
Not surprisingly,
Moscow rejected an invasion of Iraq and opposed an American-sponsored draft UN
resolution. But Washington persuaded Russia ... In the crucial UN vote Moscow
not only dropped its objections but came out in favour of a new resolution that
implied, though did not directly threaten, force. The volte face
came at a price for Moscow; Baghdad abruptly cancelled a multi-billion-dollar
oil-exploration contract with three Russian companies.
Olivia Ward, New Internationalist, Jan-Feb, 2003
amour propre; amour-propre self-esteem (typically with sense of
excessive pride; vanity) [literally, 'love of oneself']
At 24, in 1951,
the critic was engaged by Guinness as Player King in his second Hamlet.
Guinness invested much amour propre in this production. Tynan
called it "Hamlet with the pilot dropped" and said it was cast with
"exuberant oddness". Its failure turned out to be a major factor in
Guinness's move away from the classics and Shakespeare and into films,
ultimately television, and new plays.
Tom Sutcliffe, Aug. 7, 2000, in The Guardian, on the death of Sir Alec
Guinness