Dundrearyism
Encyclopedia
A Dundrearyism is an aphorism
, proverb
, colloquial phrase, saying or riddle
humorously combined with another in such a way to render it nonsensical. An example is "Birds of a feather gather no moss."
The word comes from Lord Dundreary
, a character in the stage play Our American Cousin
by Tom Taylor
, who is prone to making such mistakes. The phrases were mildly popular when the play premiered in 1858, but are now largely forgotten. The play itself is mostly remembered for being the one that President Abraham Lincoln
was attending when he was assassinated.
Aphorism
An aphorism is an original thought, spoken or written in a laconic and memorable form.The term was first used in the Aphorisms of Hippocrates...
, proverb
Proverb
A proverb is a simple and concrete saying popularly known and repeated, which expresses a truth, based on common sense or the practical experience of humanity. They are often metaphorical. A proverb that describes a basic rule of conduct may also be known as a maxim...
, colloquial phrase, saying or riddle
Riddle
A riddle is a statement or question or phrase having a double or veiled meaning, put forth as a puzzle to be solved. Riddles are of two types: enigmas, which are problems generally expressed in metaphorical or allegorical language that require ingenuity and careful thinking for their solution, and...
humorously combined with another in such a way to render it nonsensical. An example is "Birds of a feather gather no moss."
The word comes from Lord Dundreary
Lord Dundreary
Lord Dundreary is a character of the 1858 British play Our American Cousin by Tom Taylor. He is the personification of a good-natured, brainless aristocrat. The role was created on stage by Edward Askew Sothern. The most famous scene involved Dundreary reading a letter from his even sillier...
, a character in the stage play Our American Cousin
Our American Cousin
Our American Cousin is an 1858 play in three acts by English playwright Tom Taylor. The play is a farce whose plot is based on the introduction of an awkward, boorish but honest American, Asa Trenchard, to his aristocratic English relatives when he goes to England to claim the family estate...
by Tom Taylor
Tom Taylor
Tom Taylor was an English dramatist, critic, biographer, public servant, and editor of Punch magazine...
, who is prone to making such mistakes. The phrases were mildly popular when the play premiered in 1858, but are now largely forgotten. The play itself is mostly remembered for being the one that President Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
was attending when he was assassinated.