Euphemisms: The Politics of Words
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One of the first pieces of advice given to writers is to write from the heart, to write honestly. Most of us take it. Because it’s good advice. Honesty helps readers relate to the writer and to what is being written.
But, of course, just like anything else, words can be used to manipulate. Through the omission of facts, the selective use of facts, the use of emotive language and, perhaps the most insidious, through euphemisms.
According to the Macquarie Dictionary, a euphemism is “the substitution of a mild, indirect or vague expression for a harsh, blunt or offensive one”. Sometimes it’s to soften the blow as in the case of saying someone has passed away so that we don’t have to say that they died. More often these days, though, euphemisms are being used to protect the writer or speaker rather than the recipient of the words.
Perhaps less surprising is the fact that most of these kinds of euphemisms used today occur in the realm of politics. Gone are the days of statesmen and women, replaced by people who are in it for the money and the power. And when they’re caught out doing the wrong thing, the euphemisms come out as frequently (and as easily) as breaths.
Have you ever watched a politician being interviewed after it becomes public knowledge that they have done or said something they shouldn’t have? You’ve likely sat through it (if you can stand to) thinking to yourself, “Why don’t they just admit they were wrong?” The words “I’m sorry” or “I was wrong” rarely form part of their explanation without being followed by a justification that contradicts the admission of regret or inappropriateness. And if they do, there always seems to be an unspoken component. “I’m sorry (I got caught).”
Here are a few euphemisms currently doing the rounds in political circles:
*“You’re in my thoughts and prayers” really means “I don’t care enough to actually do anything about it so you’ll have to content yourself with my thoughts and prayers”.
*“You’ve taken me out of context” really means “That’s exactly what I meant but I don’t understand why you are getting all up in my grille about it”.
*“It’s just a witch hunt” really means “All the allegations are true but I don’t want to give up my huge salary, cushy perks and/or position of power”.
*“Free speech is everyone’s right” really means “I’m going to say the meanest, nastiest things you’ve ever heard and encourage others to do the same and you can’t do a damn thing about it”.
*“Alternative facts” really means “lies”. This is the newest iteration of euphemisms that have been floating around for decades, if not centuries, such as “economical with the truth”, “misspeaking”, “terminological inexactitude”, “post-truth” and “misinformation”.
*“The silent majority” really means “most of the people who contact me about this say the opposite to what I’m going to do but I’m going to assume there are a lot of people out there that just haven’t contacted me and think like I do because that suits my agenda”.
*“Working families” really means “people I’ve never met and will do everything I can to avoid ever meeting in the future if at possible”.
*“Family values” really means “those things that I talk about in public to shame others while I think about screwing the mistress I have holed up in a million dollar apartment in the city”.
*“Tax relief” really means “a cut so miniscule individually you’ll never notice the difference in your weekly wage but so huge collectively that you’ll really notice it when you need education or health care”.
The great thing about politicians is that they can be (and frequently are) mocked when they use this kind of language and if they don’t knock it off, they can be (and frequently are) voted out of office. If we’re really lucky, they’ll disappear quietly into retirement (less and less frequent these days unfortunately).
The great thing about writers (all good writers anyway) is that if euphemisms have somehow managed to wriggle their way into our work, we can rid our writing of them during the editing process. Once you have an awareness of them, they’re quite easy to spot.
I’ll give the final word to a man who wrote a rather famous essay on the decline of the English language because of euphemisms and other bad writing habits and wrote the definitive novel, 1984, on what has come to be known as “doublespeak”:
“Political language… is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind. One cannot change this all in a moment, but one can at least change one’s own habits, and from time to time one can even, if one jeers loudly enough, send some worn out and useless phrase… into the dustbin where it belongs.”
Politics and the English Language, George Orwell
