the Shandy-Lack theory revisited

[George Thompson]

I'm glad to see that the Shandy-Lack theory has been so readily accepted.  I was afraid I was going to be asked to put together a list of all thelexicographers and philologists who were named Preposition, Methatesis, and the like.

GAT

George A. Thompson
Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre", Northwestern Univ. Pr., 1998, but nothing much lately.

----- Original Message -----
From: Dennis Preston <preston at MSU.EDU>
Date: Monday, August 27, 2007 12:18 pm
Subject: Re: the Shandy-Lack theory revisited
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU


> Who needs this more recent evidence? In Louisville KY years ago there
> was a proctologist named Assman. I'm a believer.
>
> dInIs
>
>
>
> >---------------------- Information from the mail header
> >-----------------------
> >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> >Poster:       George Thompson <george.thompson at NYU.EDU>
> >Subject:      the Shandy-Lack theory revisited
> >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> >To refresh your memories: some time ago I called your attention to
> >the Shandy-Lack hypothesis of Onomastic Determinism, first proposed
> >by ca. 1770 Walter Shandy in the novel Tristram Shandy, and
> >elaborated ca. 1950 by the British ornithologist David Lack.  Shandy
> >held that one's name determined the future tenor of one's life, and
> >Lack, by citing a number of ornithologists whose names were the
> >names of birds or parts of birds, showed that it specifically
> >determined one's career choice.
> >A mounting accumulation of additional evidence -- for instance a
> >story in the NYTimes a few years ago that cited a fisheries expert
> >named Herring -- justifies referring to this now as a theory.
> >
> >In any event, the August 24/31 2007 issue of the Times Literary
> >Suppl. reviews a book on the bad effect of 500 years of destruction
> >of habitat and bounties put upon supposed pest species has had on
> >English wildlife.  The book is called "Silent Fields", and is by a
> >naturalist named Roger Lovegrove.
> >Need more proof be called for?
> >
> >(Published by Oxford U Pr., and sounds fairly interesting.)
> >
> >GAT
> >
> >George A. Thompson
> >Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre",
> >Northwestern Univ. Pr., 1998, but nothing much lately.
> >
> >------------------------------------------------------------
> >The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
>
> --
> Dennis R. Preston
> University Distinguished Professor
> Department of English
> Morrill Hall 15-C
> Michigan State University
> East Lansing, MI 48864 USA
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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