The Catholic times. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1951-current, 1956-04-20

he called teenese II consists in adenoida or
tonsated grunts, elIiptica slang added wise
cracks, and welter of mspronounced and mis-
used verbalismS.
Put the average high school senior to the
task of plainly defining plain words that ought
TO be in the vocabulary of any person who can
read newspaper or a weekly review, and you
will see some astounding things 1t was high
school senior who defined GntltheS1S as "a dis
ease of the lungs" 1t was high school senior
who wrote thai decor,m means group of
people enough TO start meeting" It was
high school senior who defined anthology as "a
subject studied in college.
II was a selected group of high school seniors
who we're called upon to study and discuss these
eight lines from Mtons LAtte9ro:
lowered cities please us then,
And the busy hum of men,
Where throngs of knights and barons bold,
In weeds of peace, high triumphs hold,
With store of ladies, whose bright eyes
Rain influence, and judge the prize
Of wit or arms, while both contend
To win her grace whom all commend.
And here follows some part of what these
richly vocabularied seniors did with J. Milton:
Exhibit AMEN are grouped together be-
bee which creates noise The storekeeper with
their inviting faces to buy their goods. The
buyer buys the goods and all is content"
Exhibit B-"The lowered cities please us
They are noisey with the hum of busy men
There are throngs of bold knights and barons,
who in time of peace there is great praise
There are many ladies in the city. When it rains
it shows in their eyes"
Exhibit Gle states that we are pleased with
all nF tho
that are found within large city and that there
are many beautiful ladies in the city who are
influenced by rain and that many men fight
to win one particular women whomever ii may
be"
Exhibit DIE is trying here to say that
during time of peace the knights and barons
are held in the city because they have no other
place to 90 and since they had nothing else to
do they went and iost with one another for the
eye of damsel. This was done by different feats
of arms The looks of these women had the power
to command them So Milton was meaning that
the lords had nothing else TO do so they just
played around"
You notice in the quotations the lush vocabu-
larry Of the high school seniors and also the
graceful ease with which they shape abundance
OF words into graceful phrases. And what sim
plicy and directness is here. They went and
jost with one another for the eye of a damsel"
The keen understanding of words enjoyed by
these high school seniors is we'll exampled in
their Interpretation Of phrases taken from the
eight lines of L'Atlesro already quoted
l. topefed cities--"The tall buildings over all
men, Tall cities with large skyscrapers," The
cities had so many towers in them that they
looked as il they were all towers"
O. httm of men--"Snging of men as they
walk along the street." People moving up. and
down the street talking or singing "The noise
created by talking and the autos"
g. needs of pedce-"While in peace the knights
haves nothing TO do and SC they do no good as
weeds in field" THE restraining of the fight
ing spirit of the lords felt to them as weeds
holding them back" In time of war the fields
would be trodden down by soldiers; since it is
peace time the weeds grow"
4 store Of ladies'" Different kinds or varetys
of ladies'" "Probaby means that there we're
numerous ladies about SO that ii looked as though
there was a store full of them" ladies at stores
and everything they see they want to buy"
s. high triumphS hold-'"lhe ladies held the
men in high esteem" Tournaments and similar
gaIlantres;' They were so successful in war
that no one wants TO fight or make another war /"
6 to tpin her grdce--"To win her favor-~have
her appreciate him. TO get her for himself"
ITO win the favor and admiration of the ladies F."
A mans vocabulary consists of the words
he knows, readily remembers, and cor
recty II is not possible to believe that the thirty
two high school seniorsS-not run.of-mine SEN
ors, but selected as superior,-whose work we
have been viewing are equipped with a vocab.
uary of $4,000 to $4,000 words. 1t is manifest
from their work that they are cramped in ex.
preston, and do not readily find words to carry
their meaning, even when they have any intel
ligible meaning to convey.
There must be something wrong with those
surveys which rate The average citizen as $1,000
word man land he's far overraied at that and
the high school senior rs $4,000 $4,000 genius
Maybe 1S00-lB00 is right Or l50-lS0.