Paphos man - is it good or bad? The meaning of the phrase

Very often in the speech of our contemporariesa phrase "pathetic person" is used. This expression is used by many people who do not even understand the meaning of the word "pathos" that gave rise to this phrase.

Pomposity in speech

Most likely, calling a person pretentious,speaking people have in mind some features of his character, manner of behavior, external style. First of all, the majority of the respondents gave such an explanation: "A pathetic person is an individual who loves and often uses beautiful ornate speech, sprinkled with high-flown phrases and words." An example of such a speech is the appeal of Gayev - the hero of the Chekhov play called "The Cherry Orchard" - to the old cupboard. In fact, his trick can be defined as pretentious, pompous, pretentious. And all three definitions are synonyms - so they say intelligent and semantic dictionaries. But can a person be called pretentious for his manner of expressing his thoughts?

Unlike others, standing out among all

Some people believe that a pathetic person -this is one that stands out among the entire mass of people by its unusualness, that is, bright, extraordinary, unlike the others. Thus, pathos can be called any genius - a poet, musician, scientist. But this will be fundamentally wrong. A scientist, sitting for days in his laboratory, forgetting to eat and wash - does this definition apply to him? Yes, and this artist, he is engaged in painting or jewelry business, sculpts sculptures or writes poetry, thinks little about himself at a time when creativity absorbs him with his head. Or maybe you should call a pathos someone who tries to attract attention by any means?

Peposny person - is it pozyor?

But if an individual behaves this way,if he plays a part in some pretentious film or play, if his speeches are excessively emotional and pompous if his antics are like a bad actor's play with his bombast and overblown hypocrisy, his manner of dressing and combing is so extravagant that he leads others in shock? Perhaps this person can be called pretentious? And in general, what does "pathetic person" mean - the phrase, so often used in speech? Based on the semantic meanings of the root of the definition, pathos is passion, enthusiasm, enthusiasm, creative source, figuratively, falsity. If the definition of "false", "pompous" is applicable to a person, then it would seem, then, that the expression "paternal person" is acceptable in speech. But there are no false people, there are people whose behavior is insincere, hypocritical. Therefore, this expression should also be considered incorrect.

Three meanings of the adjective "pathos" - three uses

Some people call pretentious people for their mannerdress, perform some strange actions, not because of necessity or own desire, but only in order to attract attention, "show off", as the current youth. This is what "pathetic" means from the point of view of the semantics of this word according to the data of modern dictionaries:

1) enthusiastic, high-minded, solemn;

2) fake, sugary, hypocritical;

3) prestigious.

In the first sense, the adjective can refer toto speech, behavior, artwork, a play or a film. In the second meaning, this word - sugary, hypocritical - can be correlated with a person. But in the third sense, it already seems to fit even to the subject: the car, the phone, the house. Therefore, in modern speech, such phrases are allowed, which would previously have been inappropriate.