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From: brad@SU-ISL.ARPA
Newsgroups: net.bizarre
Subject: Re: more on lost positives
Message-ID: <113@SU-ISL.ARPA>
Date: Tue, 17-Sep-85 14:17:55 EDT
Article-I.D.: SU-ISL.113
Posted: Tue Sep 17 14:17:55 1985
Date-Received: Thu, 26-Sep-85 07:03:08 EDT
References: <581@tellab1.UUCP>
Reply-To: brad@SU-ISL.UUCP (Bradley Clymer)
Organization: Information Systems Lab, Stanford University
Lines: 35
Keywords: lost, positives
Summary: 

In article <581@tellab1.UUCP> barth@tellab3.UUCP (Barth Richards) writes:
>In regards to the net discussion of "lost positives":
>
>		[etc]
>
>But the point is that their ways would seem improper, and so "unknown" people,
>especially "unfriendly, unkind, unknown" people and their ways were thought of
>as uncultured as a result of ignorance. Hence the relationship:
>
>		  unknown----------------->uncultured.
>
>Interestingly enough, the word "couth" is in the Dictionary, with the
>definition "sophisticated, polished." The really BIZARRE part is that this
>word "couth" is a backformation from "uncouth" and appeared about 1896.
>So a lost positive was reinstated in the language quite by accident, and is
>now on the way out again. (I mean, how many of you out there in netland use
>the word "couth" in daily conversation?)

I remember when I was a sousaphone player in the marching band at Ohio State
seeing a sign written by other band members demanding:


1)  Some f***ing couth for the 'basses' [Sousaphone players]


well, 

I thought that was kind of a bizarre choice of words.  Given the reputation of 
the sousaphone section at the time, I was never sure whether that f-word was
intended as a modifier or simply an expletive...

...now a semi-retired tuba player


brad clymer