MUTUAL ADMIRATION SOCIETY

 

Se habla de a mutual admiration society cuando dos se alaban y se echan flores, y se emplea de manera sarcástica. “A mutual admiration society, eh?” says Ruth Rendell about two people who compliment each other, in her book The best man to die.” (London: Arrow Books Ltd, 1981). La expresión la hizo popular la obra de Broadway Happy Hunting (1956) y la letra decía: 

We belong to a Mutual Admiration Society

My baby and me

We belong to a Mutual Admiration Society

 I think he’s handsome and he’s smart

I think that she’s a work of art

I say that he’s the greatest man

And likewise I’m her biggest fan

I say her kisses are like wine

.............................................

Cosas curiosas del idioma que todo nativo sabe o debiera saber.

LIVING AND DEAD LANGUAGES

 When according to accounts, we had 6500 different languages in the world, we were told that several languages died daily. I hear now that the number has increased to 7000. Those figures do not jibe. How are languages counted? Who decides between language and dialect? Who issues language death certificates? Do you remember Dalmatian? When Tuone Udaina died in 1898, the Dalmatian language died with him. He was the sole speaker left. We must assume that he spoke to himself only and managed to communicate in other languages or else he would have been unable to express his needs and ideas. This language lore does not wash with me.  There are American languages spoken by tribes of only 300 members. A language like that has no future not because it is more or less suitable for modern life but because the voice intercourse is very limited, although this is relative. I, for one, speaking English and Spanish can in theory communicate with over one thousand million people. In fact, some days I talk to no one. I go out of a morning, stroll around, board a bus or two, buy a book... without uttering a word. Sometimes I am approached by a tourist who speaks neither English nor Spanish and we must recourse to gestures. I have also noticed that I talk and write passé English and Spanish, the way these languages were spoken in the mid-twentieth century.  With my demise, both languages will die and become extinct, only to be found in musty books. But I digress. I shall return to this shortly to explain that languages are dying all the time. 

FRAY JUSTO PÉREZ DE URBEL

Fray Justo Pérez de Urbel (1895-1979), fue catedrático de historia en la Universidad Complutense, medievalista, abad mitrado del Valle de los Caídos, rabioso franquista, y un buen profesor. Me colé en una de sus asignaturas de doctorado por despiste. Leí "Escritores españoles de la Edad Media lejana" que me pareció una asignatura interesante y sin reflexionar a qué escritores españoles "de la edad media lejana" pudiera referirse me apunté. El primer día de clase Fray Justo explicó que el tema versaba sobre "escritorios" españoles, no escritores. No había vuelta atrás. Pero el curso me resultó interesante y cada vez que oigo nombrar El nombre de la rosa, de Umberto Ecco, me viene a la memoria Fray Justo hablándonos de los escritorios medievales y los monjes amanuenses. Recibí un sobresaliente. Reseño esto como anécdota y el despiste de un doctorando de 23 años.