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Andrew Walsh
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 7:09 am
Post subject: no offence but |
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"No offence, but you make the village idiot seem intelligent."
"I don't mean to be rude, but you are the ugliest person I have ever seen."
It is common practice to preface insults with phrases such as "No offence"
as if they somehow lessen the magnitude of the insult, making it somehow
socially acceptable.
I find this really irritating and am on a personal crusade to stamp it out!
Yet I don't know what this practice is called in the English language.
How can I eliminate something that I can't even name?
Can anyone help me?
What is this practice called?
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Molly Mockford
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 12:35 pm
Post subject: Re: no offence but |
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At 12:37:48 on Fri, 1 Jul 2005, Andrew Walsh
<awtemp3.nospam@somelab.com> wrote in
<42c4ac74$0$8661$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au>:
| Quote: | "No offence, but you make the village idiot seem intelligent."
"I don't mean to be rude, but you are the ugliest person I have ever seen."
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And similarly, in Usenet, one finds gems like:
"You are a foul and useless troll LOL"
"This is the stupidest post I have seen in years  "
Basically, I think it's a matter of "I'll say what I like, but don't hit
me!"
--
Molly Mockford
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety - Benjamin Franklin
(My Reply-To address *is* valid, though may not remain so for ever.) |
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Nick Wagg
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:07 pm
Post subject: Re: no offence but |
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"Andrew Walsh" <awtemp3.nospam@somelab.com> wrote in message
news:42c4ac74$0$8661$5a62ac22@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au...
| Quote: | "No offence, but you make the village idiot seem intelligent."
"I don't mean to be rude, but you are the ugliest person I have ever
seen."
Can anyone help me?
What is this practice called?
|
Lying? Contradiction? Witzelsucht?
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Matthew Huntbach
Guest
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| Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2005 2:39 pm
Post subject: Re: no offence but |
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On Fri, 1 Jul 2005, Andrew Walsh wrote:
| Quote: | "No offence, but you make the village idiot seem intelligent."
"I don't mean to be rude, but you are the ugliest person I have ever seen."
It is common practice to preface insults with phrases such as "No offence"
as if they somehow lessen the magnitude of the insult, making it somehow
socially acceptable.
I find this really irritating and am on a personal crusade to stamp it out!
Yet I don't know what this practice is called in the English language.
How can I eliminate something that I can't even name?
Can anyone help me?
What is this practice called?
|
I think this usage started for statements which were genuinely intended
to be helpful but might be deemed offensive. "No offence, but ..."
followed by a statement on personal hygiene may really be intended
to help a colleague who is unaware of something. Sometimes it is still
used this way, but the development of the tag to mean just "something
offensive will follow" will probably kill it and some other formulation
will have to evolve.
Matthew Huntbach |
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