Malaprop
mal . a . prop/noun/ the unintentional use of an incorrect word in place of a word with a similar sound, resulting in a nonsensical, sometimes humorous utterance
I am interested in words–their origins, how they sound, what they mean, how people use them. So whenever I encounter an unusual, interesting language usage, I pay attention. Recently, I came across a handout I made some years ago to share with my students (I liked having a good laugh with them). The handout is from a compilation of bloopers that the admissions departments of Bates and Vassar Colleges put together from students’ admissions essays written in an effort to be admitted into these prestigious colleges. I found them amusing once again. Here is a sampling from the list.
* If there was a single word to describe me, that word would be “profectionist.”
* I was abducted into the national honor society.
* I want to be bilingual in three or more languages.
* I have made the horror role every semester.
The kind of error the students made is called a malaprop or a malapropism. From the definition given above, you’ll see that a malaprop results from word-confusion, from making an unsuitable word choice that often ends up being humorous. The derivation is from a French word that means “inappropriate.” The word malaprop was introduced into English way back in 1775 based on a character, Mrs. Malaprop, in The Rivals by English playwright Richard Sheridan. Mrs. Malaprop tried to use sophisticated language whose meaning she didn’t understand, so she frequently got her words mixed up, or as we would say today, she misspoke, with comic results. She said things like “illiterate him from your memory” and “learn of contagious countries.” Very likely you have heard of baseball player Yogi Berra who was famous for using malapropisms. He said things like “He hits from both sides of the plate; he’s amphibious.” Or “It’s not the heat; it’s the humility.” Also, “Take it with a grin of salt.” Perhaps you have your own examples of malapropisms that you have heard.
Malapropisms are sometimes merely humorous; at times they are wildly funny, but many people consider it frivolous to laugh at such linguistic missteps. Life is too serious for that, they seem to think, forgetting Solomon’s wise proverb: “A merry heart does good like a medicine.” That benefit of a merry heart is what a small group of humor researchers are exploring. A Psychology Today article points out that the researchers may not be getting the same level of respect that other scientific researchers receive, yet their work is valuable nonetheless. Humor is natural to humans, the researchers assert. To prove this, the article challenges readers to try going without laughing, even a chuckle, for a day. It’s said to be impossible.
Humor research may lack respectability, yet the small studies that have been done have found that humor benefits the body’s circulation, lungs, and muscles. It can be valuable in promoting wellness. Perhaps you have heard of Norman Cousins. His 1979 book, The Anatomy of an Illness, tells how Cousins, diagnosed with an irreversible, degenerative bone disease, cooperated with his physicians in his treatment and used humor to fight and overcome the disease. He told an interviewer, “Ten minutes of good belly laughter would give me two hours of pain-free sleep.” His source of laughter was television comedies (which were actually funny then and watchable without embarrassment). His inspirational story shows that laughter, combined with courage and determination, can make the mind an effective ally in healing the body.
“Laughter is the Best Medicine,” is a popular, long-running column in Reader’s Digest. Some people read the short humorous pieces before reading anything else in each issue of the magazine. Scientists, writing in the journal Neuron in 2003 reported that laughter is good for mental health. It “breaks the cycle of negativity.” Researchers are now investigating how humor works in the human brain. Studies have been done to explore the area of the brain that humor influences. A positive type of humor, it was found, can decrease loneliness, shyness, and self-esteem issues.
Humor has been defined as “the quality of being amusing or comic, especially as expressed in literature.” Vulgarity isn’t humor, although much of what passes for comedy nowadays is vulgar. Rather, humor can be found in a wry or witty twist of a phrase, or in an unusual treatment of an incident to see its funny side. Shakespeare wrote powerful tragedies, but he also wrote delightful comedies, even some tragi-comedies, which point to the fact that life is a mixture of the pleasant as well as the unpleasant. I have heard some people say that God must have a sense of humor, and they give a reason. I don’t know whether He does, but I have heard ministers who know Greek say that He loves a “hilarious” (cheerful) giver. In that case we ought to laugh heartily when the offering plate is passed during the church service.
Because humor is fun, many people look at enjoying a good laugh as meaningless, too trivial, but it actually promotes good health and even has a positive effect on some of the common challenges of aging. “Fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14). That is what the Psalmist says about how God made us, and He made us to enjoy life and all its health benefits. Laughter fits very nicely into His plan for our well-being. Take time to laugh each day.
Blessings,
Judith
*****
“I am not going to buy my kids an encyclopedia.
Let them walk to school as I did.”
Yogi Berra