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Your Mother's Tongue: Book of European Invective
 
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Your Mother's Tongue: Book of European Invective [Paperback]

Stephen Burgen (Author)

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Product Description

Book Description

A brilliantly entertaining history of bad language

Product Description

After centuries of war we Europeans are trying to get along together, but we keep treading on each other's toes. Tread on an English toe and you might get a 'Bloody hell!', or on an Italian's and you'll hear 'Cazzo!' (Prick!), a Spaniard's and you'll get 'Hostia!' (Sacred host!). And while a German will bluntly shout 'Scheisse!' (Shit!), a startled Portuguese might say 'Puta que pariu!' (The whore that bore you!). In this tour of anger, exasperation, prejudice, irony and loathing as expressed in some twenty European tongues, we learn that what is invective in one country is sweet talk in another. A single currency? Maybe. A common language? Not on your

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
A Brilliant Read 9 April 2002
By pgt - Published on Amazon.com
Format:Hardcover
This is an hilarious romp through the minefield of "invective". Taking a pan-European perspective, Burgen leads us through the taboos and nuances of language, the why and how of our swearing. One suspects that this was a labour of love for Burgen, as he clearly enjoys exposing the biases and prejudices of his British roots and those of his European confreres. Not for the faint-hearted and those shy of four letter words, this is a truly brilliant read.

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