|
There are no potholes in the streets of Tucson, Arizona, just "pavement deficiencies." The Reagan Administration didn't propose any new taxes, just "revenue enhancement" through new "user's fees." Those aren't bums on the street, just "non-goal-oriented members of society." There are no more poor people, just "fiscal underachievers." There was no robbery of an automatic teller machine, just an "unauthorized withdrawal." The patient didn't die because of medical malpractice, it was just a "diagnostic misadventure of a high magnitude." The U.S. army doesn't kill the enemy anymore, it just "services the target." And the doublespeak goes on. Doublespeak is language that pretends to communicate but really doesn't. it is language that makes the bad seem good, the negative appear positive, the unpleasant appear attractive or at least tolerable. Doublespeak is language that avoids or shifts responsibility, language that is at variance with its real or purported meaning. It is language that conceals or prevents thought; rather than extending thought, doublespeak limits it. . . . (Lutz, Buscemi and Smith 7th ed. 187-188)
|
There are no potholes in the streets of Tucson, Arizona, just "pavement deficiencies."
Those aren't bums on the street, just "non-goal-oriented members of society."
The patient didn't die because of medical malpractice,
The U.S. army doesn't kill the enemy anymore,
it just "services the target."
The first clause in each sentence asserts a negative (i.e. "There are no potholes in the streets of Tucson, Arizona") while the second expresses a deceptive euphemism ("just 'pavement deficiencies'"). The sentences in the second paragraph also use grammatically parallel structures.
|
Doublespeak is language that pretends to communicate but really doesn't. it is language that makes the bad seem good, the negative appear positive, the unpleasant appear attractive or at least tolerable. Doublespeak is language that avoids or shifts responsibility, language that is at variance with its real or purported meaning. It is language that conceals or prevents thought; rather than extending thought, doublespeak limits it. . . .
|
Parallel structure is not only an effective means of maintaining coherence within paragraphs, but can also be used to create coherence among paragraphs in longer texts. Lutz does this in his essay. He uses an organizing sentence to let the reader know what he is going to cover. He says: "There are at least four kinds of doublespeak" (188). He then uses four topic sentences that are linked to the organizing sentence by key words ("kind," "doublespeak") and have parallel structure to introduce the four divisions of doublespeak:
|
The first [kind of doublespeak] is the euphemism, an inoffensive or positive word or phrase used to avoid a harsh, unpleasant, or distastful reality. A second kind of doublespeak is jargon, the specialized language of a trade, profession, or similar group, such as that used byb doctors, lawyers, engineers, educators, or car mechanics. A third kind of doublespeak is gobbledygook or bureaucratese. Basically, such soublespeak is simply a matter of piling on words, of overwhelming the audience with words, the bigger the words and thelonger the sentences the better. The fourth kind of doublespeak is inflated language that is designed to make the ordinary seem extraordinary; to make everyday things seem impressive; to give an air of importance to people,situations,or things that would not normally be considered important; to make the simple seem complex.
|
A second kind (subject) of doublespeak is (linking verb) jargon (predicate noun).
So, on this point the four sentences are exactly alike, and although the endings of the sentences vary somewhat in structure, they are parallel in what they do: each defines the predicate noun: euphemism, jargon, gobbledygook, or inflated language.
To define the predicate noun, the first two topic sentences use an appositive which is a group of words that acts like an adjective to describe a preceding word.
The first [kind of doublespeak] is the euphemism, an inoffensive or positive word or phrase used to avoid a harsh, unpleasant, or distastful reality.
A second kind of doublespeak is jargon, the specialized language of a trade, profession, or similar group, such as that used byb doctors, lawyers, engineers, educators, or car mechanics.
A third kind of doublespeak is gobbledygook or bureaucratese. Basically, such soublespeak is simply a matter of piling on words, of overwhelming the audience with words, the bigger the words and thelonger the sentences the better.
The fourth topic sentence defines the term "inflated language" using a relative adjective clause.
The fourth kind of doublespeak is inflated language that is designed to make the ordinary seem extraordinary; to make everyday things seem impressive; to give an air of importance to people,situations,or things that would not normally be considered important; to make the simple seem complex.
The pattern of the sentences is very similar: the kind of doublespeak is named by a predicate noun and then defined by either an appositive, an independent sentence, or a relative adjective clause. However, the sentences as a whole are close enough to being alike that one resonates with the others, reminding the reader that he is dealing with coordinate ideas, and all these topic sentences are connected to the organizing sentence through the repetition of key terms ("There are at least four kinds of doublespeak" ).
Thus, the reader knows where he stands in the progress of the discussion, he is reminded of where he has been, and he is able to predict what is coming next. For a reader, such clear orientation is the pragmatic definition of coherence. For further examples and discussion, click here.
| Return to Glossary |