Loose sallies of the mind
Dr. Johnson characterizes the sort of thing we turn out here at
Language Log Plaza:
Johnson had further opportunity to
expand and aerate his thoughts in his periodical writings.
Throughout the time he was at work on the Dictionary he turned out
essays. He needed an income, and journalism for him was an easy
way of earning one. His second Dictionary
definition of 'essay' ('a loose sally of the mind; an irregular
indigested piece; not a regular and orderly composition') gives an
indication of how he viewed this kind of writing. (Henry
Hitchings, Defining the World: The
Extraordinary Story of Dr. Johnson's Dictionary (NY: Farrar,
Straus and Giroux, 2005), p. 115)
Hey, we work
HARD for those fees!
zwicky at-sign csli period stanford period edu
Posted by Arnold Zwicky at April 22, 2006 11:12 AM