Subject
SKB on dictionaries, "astuteness," and "Nabokovianness"
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Jansy: the fact that yr dictionary listed 'astute' but not 'astuteness' has an
interesting lexico-historico (to ape Polonius!) background. When the Fowler
brothers were compiling a Pocket-sized version of the CONCISE Oxford Dictionary
(known as COD with a slight snigger), circa 1924, they decided to _save_ space
by adding 2 prefaces: NOTE ON SUFFIXES (p xviii), and INFLEXION (p xix)
The idea was that where a particular English suffix or inflexion had a
predictable and consistent 'impact' on the root, they would omit the full entry
as a key word. Thus, you could look up '-ness' and 'astute' but not
'astuteness.' Under '-ness' you find
-ness, suffix attachable to ANY adjective to make a noun normally meaning the
quality indicated by the adjective; SUCH A NOUN MAY BE FORMED EVEN WHEN ANOTHER
HAVING THE SAME SENSE EXISTS, e.g. humbleness (humility) [E]
(The caps are mine, all mine)
In the introduction, the Fowlers make the following remarkable remark:
"A small number of these suffixes stand apart from the rest as being attachable
WITH ABSOLUTE FREEDOM to _any_ English word fulfilling certain conditions,
without regard to whether it is known EVER to have had the suffix attached to it
before or NOT."
(The list of these suffixes includes -ly; -ness; -er [agent]; -er -est
[comparitive/superlative]; -able; -ish; -less; -like.)
Those familiar with the Fowlers' reputation as 'prescriptionists' rather than
'descriptionists' may be surprised. Prescriptionists tend to say 'there's no
such word' until it's 'blessed' by a dictionary entry. I can understand Jansy's
passing confusion -- without a specific entry under 'astuteness,' who knows? Is
the author 'playing' with words? Is the nomal form 'astutity?'
Anyroad, with Fowlers' blessing, we can say 'Nabokovianness' even if this is its
very first occurrence! And/or 'Nabokovianity?'
skb
on 13/9/06 3:39 PM, Vladimir Nabokov Forum <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU> wrote:
> Dear Dmitri,
> Thank you for your careful answer. I copied the name Croci from the internet (
> I'd only heard of a much later Benedetto Croce and I mistakenly trusted the
> information I received).
> My English dictionaries carry the word "astute" but not "astuteness" ( for the
> Italian "astuzia").
> In Portuguese, we have the feminine "astúcia" (astuteness!) but, for
particular
> individuals we must add "a"( feminine) or ""o" (masculine) according to the
sex
> of who is astute or is capable of shrewdness.
Search the archive: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/archives/nabokv-l.html
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm
interesting lexico-historico (to ape Polonius!) background. When the Fowler
brothers were compiling a Pocket-sized version of the CONCISE Oxford Dictionary
(known as COD with a slight snigger), circa 1924, they decided to _save_ space
by adding 2 prefaces: NOTE ON SUFFIXES (p xviii), and INFLEXION (p xix)
The idea was that where a particular English suffix or inflexion had a
predictable and consistent 'impact' on the root, they would omit the full entry
as a key word. Thus, you could look up '-ness' and 'astute' but not
'astuteness.' Under '-ness' you find
-ness, suffix attachable to ANY adjective to make a noun normally meaning the
quality indicated by the adjective; SUCH A NOUN MAY BE FORMED EVEN WHEN ANOTHER
HAVING THE SAME SENSE EXISTS, e.g. humbleness (humility) [E]
(The caps are mine, all mine)
In the introduction, the Fowlers make the following remarkable remark:
"A small number of these suffixes stand apart from the rest as being attachable
WITH ABSOLUTE FREEDOM to _any_ English word fulfilling certain conditions,
without regard to whether it is known EVER to have had the suffix attached to it
before or NOT."
(The list of these suffixes includes -ly; -ness; -er [agent]; -er -est
[comparitive/superlative]; -able; -ish; -less; -like.)
Those familiar with the Fowlers' reputation as 'prescriptionists' rather than
'descriptionists' may be surprised. Prescriptionists tend to say 'there's no
such word' until it's 'blessed' by a dictionary entry. I can understand Jansy's
passing confusion -- without a specific entry under 'astuteness,' who knows? Is
the author 'playing' with words? Is the nomal form 'astutity?'
Anyroad, with Fowlers' blessing, we can say 'Nabokovianness' even if this is its
very first occurrence! And/or 'Nabokovianity?'
skb
on 13/9/06 3:39 PM, Vladimir Nabokov Forum <NABOKV-L@LISTSERV.UCSB.EDU> wrote:
> Dear Dmitri,
> Thank you for your careful answer. I copied the name Croci from the internet (
> I'd only heard of a much later Benedetto Croce and I mistakenly trusted the
> information I received).
> My English dictionaries carry the word "astute" but not "astuteness" ( for the
> Italian "astuzia").
> In Portuguese, we have the feminine "astúcia" (astuteness!) but, for
particular
> individuals we must add "a"( feminine) or ""o" (masculine) according to the
sex
> of who is astute or is capable of shrewdness.
Search the archive: http://listserv.ucsb.edu/archives/nabokv-l.html
Contact the Editors: mailto:nabokv-l@utk.edu,nabokv-l@holycross.edu
Visit Zembla: http://www.libraries.psu.edu/nabokov/zembla.htm
View Nabokv-L policies: http://web.utk.edu/~sblackwe/EDNote.htm