Re: Kalini Sapak - new lang

*Muke! eskrë »

> *Is* it commoner to say that a woman is like a woman than it is to say a
man
> is like a woman?  Hmm, or maybe it's in saying that a woman isn't being
> womanly.   Either way'd be an interesting cultural point.
Odd, that, the subtle nuances that sneak up on you and bite you when you
aren't concentrating. The other day on the radio they played You Keep Me
Hanging On, a perfectly normal classic pop song, except this was the Tom
Jones version from '67 or whenever. And halfway through the first verse I
started wondering what he'd sing when he got to the line "Why don't you be a
man about it"... of course, he just sang "Why don't you be a woman about
it", which was the obvious, but somehow seemed odd. It's just not a normal
expression, at least not in my humble experience. Which just kind of
illustrates the point under discussion. Hopefully.

> (Reminds me of seeing an English verb conjugated in a multilingual
> dictionary online: It listed all the person and tense forms, like "I am
> melting", "We are melting", "You are melting".... "I have melted"...)
Certainly forms which would be rarely used in polite conversation.

Oh, and rehi everyone; after a year or more on NOMAIL I fancied catching up
with the list. There have been many developments in the Jameld dept., and no
doubt I'll be boring you with my lovely new irregular verbs sometime soon.

James

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james@zolid.com  James Campbell  Zeugma--Our Life Is Design  www.zolid.com

If you want to find the way back home, I'll just step aside
If you're lost and you want to stay lost, I could be your guide
                                                Colorblind James 1952-2001
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