Re: the grammar of photographic writers

[Judy Seigel <jseigel@panix.com>]

On Mon, 15 Oct 2007, Don Sweet wrote:

> Hi Judy
>
> The term I would use to describe a construction like "we the people" is 
> apposition.  The first word is defined by the other two words. 
> Metonymy is use of one word as a symbol for another, eg "the War of the 
> Roses" using the emblems of the houses of Lancaster and York (red and 
> white roses respectively) to represent the rival armies.

Oh, I like "apposition"! Excellent....

Now just for fun I mention that when I checked the dictionary for the 
spelling of "metonymy," it gave two examples, one of them American -- 
namely, "the White House" for "president."

Well, I thought it was amusing... Anyway, I'm getting to like this "Oxford 
American Dictionary," despite its weird typography: It's portable, hence 
handier than the unabridged, which requires a voyage across the room (and 
has anyway permitted its type to get too small for human consumption).

J.