got-damn
Derek Milner
peak.sound at gmail.com
Sat Dec 2 16:32:39 CST 2006
Most of my relations in Arkansas use hot-damn instead of god-damn.
Stranger yet, my uncle Skeeter says something approaching "hot-toe-
mattie". I'm sure it puts a smile on god's face every time he does.
> Both euphemistic and regional (in a space and time sense). Any
> time and place the Bible rules, such euphemisms are employed. Back
> in the 1960's, even in the lefty, atheistic NYC circles I grew up
> in, the word "damn" was considered a little risque. As it still is
> in Bible-thumping circles.
>
> Got-damn is kind of cute, in that you avoid saying "God" while
> letting the offensive "damn" slide. A modern equivalent might be
> "fuckin' a." American English has lots of these euphemisms -- they
> definitely have a Western flavor (think Yosemite Sam):
> "gol-darned," "drat," "dern," and "dag nab it" come to mind. I
> read about some town, somewhere in the Bible Belt, that wanted to
> pass an ordinance making "Heaven-o" the official greeting.
>
> Laura
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> >From: Ya Sam <takoitov@[omitted]>
>> >Sent: Dec 2, 2006 12:29 PM
>> >To: pynchon-l@[omitted]
>> >Subject: got-damn
>> >
>> >One of the pet expressions of AtD characters. And again I don't
>> remember
>> >reading it anywhere else. Is it some kind of euphimistic stuff
>> (not to say
>> >'god-damn') or is it a more regional feature?
>> >
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