Muleociation

[Yerkes, Susan]

Gotcha. It is really puzzling when somebody puts what seems like a very
silly word joke and sticks it someplace that not even a pun is apt (As in,
perhaps, "in some parts of the country, the Democrat party is often
muleociated with the common ass."

-----Original Message-----
From: John McChesney-Young [mailto:panis at PACBELL.NET]
Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2003 6:09 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Re: Muleociation


"Yerkes, Susan" <SYerkes at EXPRESS-NEWS.NET> asked:

>Sorry, but is this a joke?

In embarrassment at my naivete I confess it was not. I can only observe that
the original inquirer and her colleagues were also taken in, if that's the
appropriate phrase for our common state of innocence.

>>From a non-technical point of view, seems apparent to me that the
>student is using the word "mule" as a questionably punny substitute for
>the word "ass"

Thanks to a few people who've responded here and on the Latinteach list I
now understand. It's comparable to (e.g.) "woperson" for "woman," something
I suspect has not seen any use other than jocular
- although I wouldn't be *entirely* surprised to be informed otherwise.

which still is enough to raise some folks'
>hackles (believe me, some publications still get worked up about this
>sort of thing), so I gather he or she is simply carrying the no-ass
>dictum to extremes.

I don't think it was in pursuit of a more refined style, but whether an
attempt to catch the teacher in a state of ignorance or a genuinely
unselfconscious word in the student's vocabulary or out of some other
motivation I can't guess. Even now that I understand it, I'm puzzled by its
use in a serious high school assignment and I'd still be interested in
reports of its non-colloquial use.

John
--


*** John McChesney-Young  **  panis at pacbell.net  **   Berkeley,
California, U.S.A.  ***


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