Date:  Wed, 13 Sep 1995 16:24:58 -0600

From:  Marianna Di Paolo <m.dipaolo[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]M.CC.UTAH.EDU>

Subject: Re: contempt vs. content



>Marianna di Paolo writes (in response to Tom Clark),

>

>>>I've lived in and out of Utah. I knew "contempt" before I lived there,

>>>but I've heard "content" used by old husbands who know better than to

>>>rile their wives. But Marianna Dipaolo will be able to set us all right.

>>>Cheers,

>>>tlc

>

>>Well, I wish I could, Tom, but I have never heard the expression with

>>anything other than "contempt". But so far the discussion suggests that

>>"content" only occurs in Utah and maybe only in small towns. Is that

>>right?

>>

>

>Well, Marianna, I can assure you that while my "content" may have been picked

>up in New York (Manhattan or Long Island--the source, no doubt, of my

>"jew-le-ry"), or perhaps in California (L.A. or Berkeley), or even in the

>midwest (Ann Arbor or Madison), it most definitely was not contracted in a

>small town in Utah.

>

>Larry





Sorry, Larry, I didn't remember your contribution when I tried to respond

to Tom Clark. I must say that I enjoyed Tom's contextualization of his

first hearing of "Familiarity breeds conTENT". Have the rest of you only

heard it used facetiously as well or is it used in other types of contexts

as well?









Marianna Di Paolo

m.dipaolo[AT SYMBOL GOES HERE]m.cc.utah.edu

Linguistics Program

2300 LNCO

University of Utah

Salt Lake City, UT  84112