2021 Word Game

[richardandtracy]

Attic

('Attic Salt' was a description applied to Lady Harriet Cavendish [daughter of 'Georgiana' the eponymous character in the film 'Duchess'] in 1809 by her Aunt Lady Bessborough, when trying to persuade her long term lover Granville Leveson Gower to marry Harriet. It led to a spectacularly successful marriage in a faithless time, and Harriet's sharp mind, wit & integrity shine through so brightly in her surviving letters that it's impossible not to deeply admire her.
Sorry to go on about it, but I read a book by Paula Marshall in 1992 [maybe] called 'An Unexpected Passion' that was so well written that I have slowly researched all I can about Harriet and Granville since [with the Internet Archive being a godsend], and found that Marshall was accurate in everything she wrote, even to getting the correct tone of voice for the characters so that they were speaking again in her book. Many of the words she put in their mouths were their own quotes lifted wholesale from their letters.)

Regards,

Richard.

[Mabel Figworthy]

mad woman (a well-known occupant of theattic in many a Gothic novel)

Richard, what did the aunt actually mean by the phrase "attic salt"?

[wendywombat]

Rapunzel
she was locked in the attic of a tower

[Mabel Figworthy]

plait

[richardandtracy]

Golden

Mabel,
Attic Salt is a dry, delicate and incisive wit. There are connotations that the person referred to is extremely bright, and the full implications of what they say can only be savoured by the extremely knowledgeable, and the wit adds additional flavour to conversations for those who can appreciate it.

Regards,

Richard

[Mabel Figworthy]

Rod (one of my favourite shades of Splendor silk is called goldenrod)

=============

Richard - ah, Attic as in "pertaining to [classical] Athens" - get it now

[Sojourner]

Stewart

[richardandtracy]

Monarch

(Different spelling of Stuart)

[wendywombat]

Butterfly

[rcperryls]

Alice in Wonderland (remember the bread and butterflies?)

[wendywombat]

Bandersnatch

[Mabel Figworthy]

Bandit

Carole, I do remember the bread-and-butterfly! When I was studying English I took several courses in translation, and in one of them I and two other students looked at translations of Alice into Dutch, German and Italian. "Butterfly" being the word that is most different across all European languages (vlinder, Schmetterling, mariposa, farfalle, papillon...) it is not surprising that the bread-and-butterfly caused translators quite a bit of grief

[wendywombat]

Geronimo

[jocellogirl]

Silks

[Mabel Figworthy]

worm

(Interesting link, Jo is there a Geronimo brand of silk I've missed so far???)

[rcperryls]

earth

[richardandtracy]

Clay

Regards,

Richard

[Sojourner]

Cassius

[Mabel Figworthy]

Casio

[Sojourner]

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