Winning Words 11/18/09
“Don’t be a prude; be prudent….Don’t quarrel by mail….Don’t confuse bathos with pathos.” (Minna Thomas Antrim) These are three quotes that I like from Minna’s book: “Don’ts For Girls—A Manual of Mistakes,” published in 1902. You can buy it online for 784 rupees. I had to look up “bathos” to get the point of that one. Each quote seems relevant, even after 100 years. ;-) Jack

FROM LG IN MICHIGAN: Hey, don't keep us in suspense... What's "bathos" mean? FROM JACK: In school, when you said something like that, what did the teacher say? MORE FROM LG: Oh mannnnnn!! Okiedokey! I'll "look it up"! :)

FROM L IN ILLINOIS: Looks as if you're going to make us all look up "bathos." FROM JACK: I hope that "bathos" doesn't describe the thought of these daily Winning Words.

FROM LB IN MICHIGAN: I assume you tried this already. You can read a scanned copy of this book--and others she wrote--on http://books.google.com. Just search by her name and all her scanned books will be listed. You can select this one and read the scanned pages. FROM JACK: Ask a librarian if you are stumped. I did read the "Don'ts" book, but it didn't have any personal info about the author.

FROM MOLINER CF: I disagree with MTA's "Don't quarrel by mail." I find it saves a lot of bloody noses. FROM JACK: Face to face allows clarification. Many things are said in letters that are misunderstood and lead to further animosity.

FROM SH IN MICHIGAN: I bit and looked up both words: All the pathos I can muster, I see it is only raising bathos in you. But it is the "Don't quarrel by mail" that I am guilty of so often. Were the Apostle Paul's letters quarrelling by mail or are those instances of not quarrelling, just being right? Just thinking about letters here on the computer and wondering if Minna has the best truth, that we should always handle our stuff face-to-face where people can see if we have pathos or bathos.

FROM JACK: Simply stated, bathos is insincere pathos.