Franglish and Anguish

Subject: Franglish and Anguish
From: Vixen
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 08:45 AM

At the request of Wolfgang on the While, Drover thread, I am hereby providing the titles, authors, and a couple of samples of Franglish and Anguish.

First, Franglish. This sample is excerpted from a slim volume titled Mots D'heures: gousses, rames by Luis D'Antin van Rooten. It's a hysterically funny, extensively footnoted collection of gems like the following, which just about everyone should recognize. (there are no diacritical marks--I don't know how to do them in HTML)

Et qui rit des cures d'Oc?

De Meuse raines, houp! de cloques.

De quelles loques ce turque coin.

Et ne d'anes ni rennes,

Ecuries des cures d'Oc.

The following sample is from another slim volume titled Ladle Rat Rotten Hut, and it typifies the language known as Anguish. The collection is authored by Howard L. Chace.

O gummier hum warder buffer-lore rum

Enter dare enter envelopes ply

Ware soiled 'em assured adage cur-itching ward

An disguise earn it clotty oil die.

Harm, hormone derange

Warder dare enter envelopes ply

Ware soiled 'em assured adage cur-itching ward

An disguise earn it clotty oil die.

Enjoy!!!!

V

Subject: RE: Franglish and Anguish
From: Margo
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 10:38 AM

Here's an example of simple mispronunciation:

Monsieur and Madam DeGaulle were being interviewed by an English speaking journalist. Journalist: And what are you looking forward to now?

Mme DeGaulle: A penis.

Stunned silence.

Msr.DeGaulle: No dear, in English you pronounce the "h": Happiness.

Margie

Subject: RE: Franglish and Anguish
From: Wolfgang
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 11:03 AM

Thanks, Vixen, but I should have known better. I feel now like Joe Offer was when I was sending him a really difficult German joke. One feels the difference between being a native or a nonnative speaker. I understand bits and pieces and that's it so far. Well, I'll come back to this thread again and again and see how far I come.

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Franglish and Anguish
From: MMario
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 11:13 AM

wolfgang - in this case I think it also depends on some cultural differences and/or age groups even among native english speakers. I recognized both examples above right away - but I showed the post to a young friend - and she didn't recognize either because she didn't know the originals....whereas I grew up with them.

MMario

Subject: RE: Franglish and Anguish
From: Wolfgang
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 11:47 AM

so true, MMario, it's nearly never lack of words that stop my understanding but lack of cultural background knowledge. But your writing of "both examples" helped me to solve at least the second one (DT filename HOMERANG). I had thought of those lines above as unrelated song titles and not as lines coming from one single song. And then, with the help of Mudcat's search feature and the bits and pieces I had found out I could find the song. I had heard of that song title but nothing more. Now to the first one...

Wolfgang

Subject: RE: Franglish and Anguish
From: MMario
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 11:53 AM

wolfgang - hint...it's a children's nursery rhyme...

MMario

Subject: RE: Franglish and Anguish
From: Vixen
Date: 26 Mar 99 - 11:57 AM

Wolfgang--

The first one is a nursery rhyme from Mother Goose, hence the Mots d'heures gousses rames. It's called Hickory Dickory Dock, so you won't find it, I don't think, in the DT! I really appreciate the direction this thread has taken--so much of what we say, write, and sing is culturally encoded!

MY consciousness has been raised!

V