Jane Austen's Hapax Legomenon

[sartorias]

A post from me about Jane Austen, romance, and writerly intent as part of the Athena's Daughters Kickstarter.

There are still tons of goodies offered.

Comments

[whswhs]

This is really a tangent, but as a copy editor I couldn't help wondering: Is the proper adjectival form for "ton" really "tonnish"? I would have guessed it to be "tonish." Of course that's going by the assumption that (a) it's an imported French word, from ton, pronounced tõ, (b) it's pronounced in English like the familiar word "tone," and (c) the single n in "tonish" would preserve the vowel, whereas a double n would change it to the vowel in "tun"; I haven't actually looked up the pronunciation. And in any case English spelling is not always flawlessly logical, though more so than it's given credit for.

[sartorias]

Well, I seem to recollect that Georgette Heyer used 'tonnish' but maybe that was her copiers. She did use the term a lot in her books. It was very important to her world of the stylish elite.

[whswhs]

I would think that the word would have occurred in period sources, where it could be checked?

[sartorias]

I have not seen it used nearly as much as Heyer used it in her fiction. I've mostly found it used as "ton" for style, and later on as a synonym for the beau monde. I may have seen it used as an adjective, but I don't have the time to plow page by page through my massive collection of letters and diaries to look for the spelling of one word. If it's wrong, well, it's wrong! But I would be very surprise if anyone spelled it 'tonish' -- that looks too unfamiliar.

[nineweaving]

And while I'm at it:

ton, n.3

Etymology:  French ton manner in general < Latin tonus , tone n. in colouring, etc

[sartorias]

1815--that's about as early as i ever found it being used for the beau monde, but far more frequently when the silver fork novels first became popular, in the 1830s.

Thank you!

[nineweaving]

Fascinating then, that ton for the actual beau monde has indeed been in use as long as for the conceit.

My pleasure! This is just the sort of little task I love, like matching silks.

Nine

[sartorias]

Rarer--much rarer, but it was, indeed.

[pameladean]

Oh, that's brilliant, and really highlights what makes me uncomfortable about Heyer's work.

Not that I don't read and reread it, mind, but Jane Austen really had a more expansive mind than Heyer.

P.

[sartorias]

Yes, exactly. I adored them as a teen, but gradually they have slid into guilty pleasure, and some of them I don't reread at all.

[nineweaving]

Dear me. I got sidetracked by semantics (as one does), and didn't tell you what a wonderfully lucid and insightful reading this is.

Nine

[athenais]

I am delighted it was funded so quickly and I look forward to it very much.

I am also delighted by the research into tonish vs. tonnish! I never knew!

[sartorias]

Thanks to Nine!