tushery

Thân thiện

The author's historical novel was dismissed as mere tushery.

Definition

Noun: - Writing of poor quality characterized by an affected choice of archaic words: A pejorative term for a style of writing, often in historical or pseudo-historical fiction, that is considered bad because it overuses archaic or pseudo-archaic language (like "tush," "prithee," "forsooth") in an unnatural, forced, or pretentious manner to create a sense of antiquity.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The novel's attempt at medieval dialogue descended into pure tushery, making it difficult to read.
  • Critics dismissed the playwright's work as mere tushery, full of "thees" and "thous" but lacking genuine feeling.
  • He avoided tushery in his historical novel by using modern prose to convey the characters' emotions.

Advanced Usage

• The term is often used in literary criticism to specifically critique an author's artificial and unsuccessful attempt to mimic older forms of English. It implies a lack of authenticity and skill.
• It can be applied beyond fiction to describe any affectedly archaic use of language, such as in certain types of poetry, legal documents, or formal speeches.

Variants and Related Words

• Tush (interjection): An archaic exclamation of contempt or impatience (e.g., "Tush! Never tell me such a story"). This is the type of word whose overuse contributes to "tushery."
• Archaism (noun): An old or obsolete word or phrase. Tushery is the excessive and affected use of archaisms.
• Pseudo-archaic (adjective): Falsely or artificially old-fashioned in style.

Synonyms

• Affectation: Artificial behavior or speech adopted to impress.
• Purple prose: Writing that is overly ornate, flowery, or sentimental.
• Bombast: High-sounding language with little meaning.
• Pretentiousness: Attempting to impress by affecting greater importance or merit than is actually possessed.

Related Idioms and Phrases

• To lapse into tushery: To start using an affected archaic style.
  • Whenever he writes about knights, he tends to lapse into tushery.

Học thuật

Noun

1. writing of poor quality; characterized by affected choice of archaic words