Rehema Ellis, talking on MSNBC earlier this afternoon about proceedings in a Buffalo courtroom: “The gentleman did apologize.”
Perhaps Ellis didn’t want to say his name. Neither do I. But gentleman has got to go. The gunman did apologize. The killer did apologize. Or said that he apologized.
Garner’s Modern English Usage on gentleman :
Gentleman should not be used indiscriminately as a genteelism for man , the generic term. Gentleman should be reserved for reference to a cultured, refined man.Never for reference to a mass murderer.
comments: 4
I share your pain. I'm too disgusted to give specific examples, but I sure hate how the people who wouldn't agree with inflation of the money supply, and wouldn't leave their tools dulling in the rain, are same people who have no sense of personal responsibility for inflating and dulling our word supply.
Sorry, Sean, but you lost me: I have no idea what you mean.
I think the point of the post is getting lost here: gentleman is a genteelism that has no place in a discussion of a mass murderer. That’s all I’m confident that Rehema Ellis feels plenty of responsibility for her language choices. I suspect that’s why she said gentleman, to preserve some kind of decorum.
I always associate gentleman with NYC police talking on camera: “We encountered a gentleman waving a machete,” &c.
That’s all. I’m confident, &c.
Post a Comment