[Ads-l] “bow-wow”, adj. = “high sounding =?UTF-8?Q?=2C_grandiloquent=E2=80=9D=3F=2C_?=1826

[Robin Hamilton]

In _Reminiscences of Michael Kelly_, Vol. 2, pp. 161-162.  1826
[https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=hREbAAAAYAAJ&], we find:

QUOTE

He [Sheridan] then made a sort of rumbling noise with his voice (for he had
not the smallest idea of turning a tune), resembling a deep gruff bow, wow,
wow; but though there was not the slightest resemblance of an air in the
noise he made, yet so clear were his ideas of effect, that I perfectly //
understood his meaning, though conveyed through the medium of a bow, wow,
wow.

UNQUOTE

Scott's journal entry on Jane Austen is dated March 14, 1826.

In _The Quarterly Review_, Vol. 34 (June, 1826), Scott published
(anonymously, but later republished in a collection of his work in 1835), a
review of Kelly's work, quoting the passage in question.

(p. 246 of QR34 --https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=51ZEAQAAMAAJ&)

It seems possible that Scott had the passage from Kelly in mind when he
compared his own style to that of Jane Austen.

Robin Hamilton

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-----Original Message----- 
From: Joel Berson
Sent: Sunday, April 10, 2016 1:34 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
Subject: Re: “bow-wow”, adj. = “high sounding, grandiloquent”?, 1826

I can only say that Trench's "high sounding" presumably does not mean
literally "high pitched" (sense 1) but rather "sounding or appearing
important or impressive (but in reality having little substance); pompous,
bombastic; pretentious" (sense 2), which dates from 1624.

For the actual connection with a dog's speech, you'll have to get it from
(to mix metaphors) the horse's mouth -- a dog, or Sir Walter, or some
earlier coiner.  I can't imagine how to search the databases for this usage.

Joel 

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