Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-09-27
Bonbast.

The new psychology is an instrument
that may be applied to interpret older
ways of behavior. The books tell us
that bombast was flowery and grandi-
ose way of speaking which was rather
ambitious and should not be employed
too freely. They add that the term
was derived from TheophratuS Bonn
bastus Won Hohenheim. known as Para
CELSIUS Q490-154D. who was something
OF an irregular physician who excited
the enmity Of his colleagues. So they
saddled this name on him to mean in
extravagant language something that
might be placed on circus posters and
displayed to rural audiences.
When bombaSt is affected for a pur-
pose it loses its inner psychology; when
1t is resorted to sincerely as an express
sion of character of the bombaster 1t
suggests one variety of inflated ego, or
the superiority complex. The social
sanction always enters. Unless it makes
an effect and is more or less accepted,
1t Is not likely to be INDUCED in. The
oratorical tradition of these big United
States has favored bombast, or tolerated
it. Political halls abound in it.
There is speech on one of the follow
ing topics, and it doesn't mater which:
Farm relief, the submerged tenth, old
age pensions, child labor. 1t begins
with Greece and Athens. mentions the
Spartan custom of exposing infants on
Mount Olympus, then it jumps to the
barons of Runnymede demanding the
Magma Charta from King John in 1915;
another hop of $50 years and Lincoln
signs the Proclamation of Emancipa-
ton; then the nineteenth century, with
its cotton gin, steamboat, locomotive,
ether, telegraph and telephone; next
the electric lamp and wireless, and,
finally, the airplane. Comes the TWEEN
tieth century and the aggressive RooSe-
the subject of the bill with a mass of
statistics. An hours time of the con-
clave of the representatives of a mighty
Nation has been spent amid the inter-
ruptions of applause when particu-
larry grandioSe sentiment or historical
figure was mentioned. Such is a polit
zeal. bombastic spree. Why bombast?
Well, why does drum major wear
that absurd headgear and flourish that
great silver-plated stick? To appear
bigger than he is and more important.
So this speech on a subject that has no
more to do with Greece and King John
and Lincoln and modern inventions and
your favorite Presidents than an adver-
tisement of a remedy for stiff joints
must be shot off with this preliminary
skyrocket, with it's bursting balls, before
the orator gets down to what we call
brass tacks.
Thus he and his subject feel properly
important, and the constituency that
gets the speech in the mails has a re-
f1ected glory from the grandiloquence
of their representative. 1t may be that
the political purpose of legislatures is
to pass laws: its psychological purpose
Is to confer sense of Importance upon
its members. OF course, this doesn't
apply in general; it is just the habit of
o few-or Is 1t few?
Few or many, it is an interesting bit
of psychology. 1t may be quite inno-
cent or merely foolish, but there 1t is.
It's the old story-a mountain in labor
and there issues mouse. You aim at
the sublime and you accomplish the
ridiculous. All because human nature
demands that sense of bigness of an
inflated ego.