wide array of death euphemisms

[Rachel E. Shuttlesworth]

There's also a clip from Patch Adams where Robin Williams (dressed like
an angel) visits an angry, terminally ill patient and goes through a
list of death euphemisms. I've used it in intro to linguistics classes
with much success. I'll see if I cain't track down my transcript of the
scene.

Rachel Shuttlesworth

Mullins, Bill wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       "Mullins, Bill" <Bill.Mullins at US.ARMY.MIL>
> Subject:      Re: wide array of death euphemisms
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> I yield to that master of euphemisms for death, John Cleese:
>
> "It's passed on. This parrot is no more. It has ceased to be. It's expired
> and gone to meet its maker. This is a late parrot. It's a stiff. Bereft of
> life, it rests in peace. If you hadn't nailed it to the perch, it would be
> pushing up the daisies. It's rung down the curtain and joined the choir
> invisible. This is an ex-parrot."
>

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~

Rachel E. Shuttlesworth
CLIR Post-Doctoral Fellow
University of Alabama Libraries
Box 870266, Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35487-0266
Office: 205.348.4655/ Fax:205.348.8833
rachel.e.shuttlesworth at ua.edu