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Word of the Month:

5/18/2022

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​Forget “decatastrophization (Blog post of March 15). The new word of the month is brachylogy, meaning to say as much as possible in as few words as possible.  It’s modernist compression before its time. Ezra Pound would love it.
      It’s a handy term for a cluster of highly compressed speech acts among the Greeks (mini-genres one could  say): maxims, riddles, proverbs et al.
      These all manage to be succinct because they don’t provide evidence or arguments  or emotional coloration for the message they  send. They leave all  that up to the  listener/reader. When you hear a brachylogy coming down the tracks, you know you have to be on your toes.
      Enough said!
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