2016年4月10日星期日

poseur, devolve, banana republic, pejorative, talking shop, stigmatised

Scotland will soon be one of the most powerful subnational states in the world

Devolving tax powers benefits Scotland but may do little to keep the union together

More control over tax may whet Scots' appetite for independence.

ECON.ST

A Smuggled Girl's Odyssey of False Promises and Fear

By DAMIEN CAVE and FRANCES ROBLES

Cecilia, a 16-year-old Guatemalan seeking a better life in the United States, fell prey to "coyotes," the smugglers who lure migrants, on a trip that devolved into outright abduction.

Violence Strikes Antigovernment Rallies in Thailand

By THOMAS FULLER 10:51 AM ET

Three people were killed, including two children, and more than 50 injured at protests as the country’s power struggle devolved.

The current position is that council housing is a more and more residualised and stigmatised sector, with the term 'council' increasingly used as a pejorative. Whereas in its early years, council housing was an acceptable option for much of the population, it is now increasingly an option only for those reliant on social security.

With their unruly hair, matted beards and saffron kurtas, the singers (baul means “crazy”) are difficult to miss. Neither Hindu nor Muslim, they are said to be insane with the love of God and wander the countryside, as they have for centuries, singing enigmatic songs about the blessings of madness and the life of a seeker. Tagore adored the bauls, and even declared himself one of them.

I sat on the ground and listened to the hypnotic music. Bauls have grown popular in recent years and, inevitably, poseurs have tried to cash in. So when another traveler, a well-off Kolkatan with an expensive camera, joined us, I asked, “Do you think he is a real baul singer?”

Poseur is a pejorative term, often used in the punk, heavy metal, hip hop and goth subcultures to describe a person who copies the dress, speech, and/or mannerisms of a group or subculture, generally for attaining acceptability within the group or for popularity among various other groups, yet who is deemed to not share or understand the values or philosophy of the subculture. While this perceived inauthenticity is viewed with scorn and contempt by members of the subculture, the definition of the term and to whom it should be applied is subjective. While the term is most associated with the 1970s- and 1980s-era punk and hardcore subculture, English use of the term originates in the late 19th century.^[1]

The G20: Talking-shop-on-Thames
Transatlantic tensions suggest that there will be no grand bargain at next month’s grand summit

Ms. Cassell identifies another explanation for the drop in interest, which is linked to the pejorative figure of the “nerd” or “geek.” She said that this school of thought was: “Girls and young women don’t want to be that person.”

Japanese voters have finally tired of their banana republic politicians
By Julian Ryall in Tokyo
Last Updated: 12:01am BST 10/09/2008

Japan's forthcoming election could force its ruling party from power for only the second time in more than 50 years. The question many Japanese are asking is: Why has it taken so long?

The Liberal Democratic Party seems certain to lose its majority in the Lower House, matching its 2007 defeat in the Upper House, when the country goes to the polls on November 9.

Defeat would be a body blow to the LDP, a political machine that has ruled Japan for all but 10 months since it first formed a government in 1955. Imagine in Britain if the Conservatives had been in power since Anthony Eden became prime minister.

A talking shop, or talking-shop, is a pejorative term applied to organisations to imply that they are unproductive, bureaucratic and self-serving; lacking in respect, authority or power.
The term has been applied to many political forums, some elected, for example supranational bodies like the United Nations, the European Parliament, and the Organisation of African Unity; and devolved or autonomous bodies like the National Assembly for Wales or the regions of England.

Policing Northern Ireland: The end of the beginning
Justice and policing are now devolved. What difference will it make?

devolve

発音〔divάlv〕verb

[with object] 1transfer or delegate (power) to a lower level, especially from central government to local or regional administration: measures to devolve power to the provinces (as adjective devolved) devolved and decentralized government

More example sentences Synonyms
1.1 [no object] (devolve on/upon/to) (of duties or responsibility) pass to (a body or person at a lower level): his duties devolved on a comrade

More example sentences
1.2 [no object] (devolve into) • formal degenerate or be split into: the Empire devolved into separate warring states

More example sentences

Derivatives

devolvement: More example sentences

Origin

late Middle English (in the sense 'roll down'): from Latin devolvere, from de- 'down' + volvere 'to roll'.

━━ v. （任務など）ゆだねる［られる］ ((on, upon)); （財産など）渡す［る］, 伝える［わる］ ((to)).

dev・o・lu・tion
〔dèvəlú:ʃ

n〕

　━━ n. 継承; 譲渡; （権限の）付託; 【生物】退化.

Banana republic is a pejorative term for a small, often Latin American, Caribbean or African country that is politically unstable, dependent on limited agriculture, and ruled by a small, self-elected, wealthy and corrupt clique.^{[citation needed]}

e Wikipedia article "Banana republic".

pejorative Show phonetics
adjective FORMAL
disapproving or suggesting that something is not good or is of no importance:
Make sure students realise that 'fat' is an unflattering or pejorative word.
It comes as quite a shock to still hear a judge describing a child as 'illegitimate', with all the pejorative overtones of that word.

pejorative or literal sense