Blessings, Curses, Hopes, and Fears: Psycho-Ostensive Expressions in Yiddish

In this delightful book, the author enumerates and classifies the formulas Yiddish speakers use to express their emotions. It is a rarity among scholarly books, for it brings joy while it teaches; it makes us smile, sometimes roar with laughter, while it develops the most rigorous linguistic argumentation. The author analyzes the many kinds of Yiddish psycho-ostensives ranging from blessings and thanks to lamentations and curses. To a person who mentions something horrible you can say: Zalts dir in di oygn, fefer dir in noz! (Salt into your eyes, and pepper into your nose!). Or to a child you might tenderly murmur: A gez nt dir in yeder Zyverl! (A health to all your little body-parts!). The author illustrates how these formulas can be used to fulfill social conventions, to keep away evil, to show off or even to deceive the listener. Comments [1999]