positive "star-crossed"

[Dave Wilton]

My analysis is a bit different. A sloppy marketing writer slapped together a
description of a Valentine's Day card that featured stars, using the phrase
"star-crossed lovers" without thinking.

In the case of the AP story, the headline-writer is just punning.

I'm not convinced these represent a semantic shift, at least not yet.
They're just puns/errors. I'd need a few more examples from outside of
marketing copy and headlines to be convinced the meaning has actually
changed.


-----Original Message-----
From: American Dialect Society [mailto:ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] On Behalf Of
Garson O'Toole
Sent: Sunday, February 05, 2012 3:18 PM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Re: positive "star-crossed"

Garson O'Toole wrote:
>
> Nancy: Thanks for pointing out this intriguing semantic shift. Here
> are two examples of "star-crossed" being used in a way that deviates
> from the traditional Shakespearian meaning I think.
>
> The term "star crossed" appears in a greeting card description at the
> Papyrus website.
> http://goo.gl/lrS05
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Star Crossed Lovers
>
> You're a match made in the heavens. Metallic thread stitching, gems
> and silver foil embellish this celestial Valentine's Day card
> featuring deep blue colors with a silhouette of a couple sitting on
> the hillside.
>
> Front: [blank]
> Inside: You are the stars in my sky, you are my everying / Happy
> Valentine's Day with all my love
> [End excerpt]
>
>
> The term "star crossed" is used in the headline of an article about a
> "trouble-free" spacecraft at the independent.co.uk website.
> http://goo.gl/HNmmj
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Star crossed spacecraft nears Valentine's date
> By Paul Recer, AP
> Monday 14 February 2000
>
> Trouble-free and performing as planned, a robot craft is on target to
> become the first spacecraft to orbit an asteroid in a Valentine's Day
> rendezvous with a space rock named for the Greek god of love.
> [End excerpt]

Here is my lay-person analysis (I'm not an academic in the language area):

In the traditional meaning of "star crossed" the word "star" is a
reference to fate as foretold via astrological means. The word
"crossed" refers to cross purposes or differing fates. This
interpretation is understandably difficult for some speakers.

The Papyrus website used "star crossed" to refer to the lateral
movement of the stars in the sky. The stars which were crossing the
lovers were auspicious because they had a heart shape. The term might
have been intended as a jocular reference if the writer was aware of
the traditional meaning.

The spacecraft article used "star crossed" to refer to the relative
movement of the craft in the sky. In the visual field the craft and
stars appeared to be crossing. The craft was described with the phrase
"humming along flawlessly" which showed that traditional negative
connotations were absent.

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