is "dirty blonde" depreciative?

[Jonathan Lighter]

Eighteenth Law of Linguistics: "If you gotta ask, probably nobody knows."

JL

On Sun, Mar 25, 2012 at 11:30 AM, Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at gmail.com> wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: is "dirty blonde" depreciative?
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> And here I thought someone could plow new ground. I should have known.
>
> Eric
>
> On Sun, Mar 25, 2012 at 10:49 AM, Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at yale.edu
> >wrote:
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> > Poster:       Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
> > Subject:      Re: is "dirty blonde" depreciative?
> >
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
> > On Mar 25, 2012, at 10:42 AM, Eric Nielsen wrote:
> >
> > > I agree that "dirty blonde" is not generally considered as attractive
> as
> > > "golden blonde". In fact, it just barely makes it into being blonde.
> > >
> > > But, I think dirty blondes do escape some ridicule. One doesn't usually
> > > have a dirty blonde in mind when a blonde joke is told. At least I
> don't
> > > think so.
> > >
> > > Eric
> >
> > Maybe just for those dirty blonde jokes (on late-night and cable).
> >
> > LH
> > >
> > >
> > > On Sun, Mar 25, 2012 at 9:02 AM, George Thompson <
> > george.thompson at nyu.edu>wrote:
> > >
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> > >> -----------------------
> > >> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > >> Poster:       George Thompson <george.thompson at NYU.EDU>
> > >> Subject:      Re: is "dirty blonde" depreciative?
> > >>
> > >>
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> > >>
> > >> I would take it as pejorative only in the esthetic sense of a color
> that
> > >> falls within the range of "blonde", but is less attractive than
> "golden
> > >> blonde".  Not a reflexion on the character or personality of the woman
> > >> (usually, I suppose) under the hair.
> > >>
> > >> GAT
> > >>
> > >> On Sat, Mar 24, 2012 at 8:12 PM, Geoffrey Nunberg <
> > >> nunberg at ischool.berkeley.edu> wrote:
> > >>
> > >>> From the OED:
> > >>>
> > >>> dirty blonde adj. and n. orig. U.S. (mildly depreciative)  (a)
> adj.(of
> > >> the
> > >>> hair) dark blonde; blonde tinged with a darker colour;  (b) n.a
> person
> > >> with
> > >>> hair of this colour.
> > >>>
> > >>> When I was growing up, the term referred simply to a hair color, with
> > no
> > >>> implication of disapproval.
> > >>>
> > >>> Geoff
> > >>>
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> > >>> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
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> > >>
> > >>
> > >>
> > >> --
> > >> George A. Thompson
> > >> Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre", Northwestern
> > >> Univ. Pr., 1998, but nothing much since then.
> > >>
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