seems appropriate to some of the discussion on FW -----Original Message----- From: Wordsmith [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Sent: Monday, November 3, 2003 12:03 AM To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: A.Word.A.Day--Potemkin village
potemkin village (po-TEM-kin VIL-ij) noun An impressive showy facade designed to mask undesirable facts. [After Prince Potemkin, who erected cardboard villages for Catherine II's visit to the Ukraine and the Crimea in 1787.] "And that raises the key question: is SBC serious? ... Or is this all a Potemkin village, meant to impress regulators?" Seth Schiesel, SBC Is Going National With Its Local Service, The New York Times, Oct 9, 2000. Imagine a Hollywood set and you'd have a good idea of the original Potemkin village. In 1787, when Catherine the Great visited the Ukraine and the Crimea, Prince Grigori Aleksandrovich Potemkin (1739-1791), a Russian army officer, statesman, and her lover, decided to put up elaborate cardboard houses apparently full of splendor in the villages Catherine was shown. While this setup depicted an illusion of prosperity, the real condition of the village was hidden behind this facade. A Potemkin village is, in other words, whitewash taken to the Nth degree. While Potemkin is the subject of many a legend, Potemkin village is his claim to fame. Terms named after people, such as this one, are called eponyms. This week in AWAD we'll see some more not-so-common eponyms. -Anu Sponsors' Messages: Need a book? Visit Abebooks for used, rare, and out-of-print books. Browse over 45 mil. books from over 12,000 booksellers: http://abebooks.com/aWordADay.shtml And Try an awesome stress reliever: Crazy Aaron's Thinking Putty! In adult-sized handfuls and amazing colors, http://puttyworld.com ............................................................................ Heaven gives its glimpses only to those / Not in position to look too close. -Robert Frost, poet (1874-1963) Send your comments to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe or unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with "Subject:" line as "subscribe <Name>" or "unsubscribe". Archives, FAQ, gift subscription form, bulletin board, and more at http://wordsmith.org/awad/ Pronunciation: http://wordsmith.org/words/potemkin_village.wav http://wordsmith.org/words/potemkin_village.ram _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://scribe.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
