Bedlam

In this entry we will see the history of the word “Bedlam” which means “noisy chaos and wild uproar” and comes from the word “Bethlehem”

February 12 was Charles Darwin’s birthday. He set sails in 1837 aboard the H.M.S. Beagle and went on to tell us how life has evolved in our fair planet.

Languages are living organisms as well and have their own evolutionary tales. Now, there is no need to go all the way back to the Indo-European roots of all western tongues for an extensive account of the apparition of English. Instead, it would be more amusing to find out how certain expressions have changed over time (as in Spanish many words that have a silent “h” before a vowel used to have an “f”, i.e. “Hermosa” –beautiful- used to be “Fermosa”) and where they came from. This is why on this entry we will take a look at the word “Bedlam”.

“Bedlam” is a noun –a noun is a word that refers to a person, a place, a thing, a substance or a quality- that we use to talk about a noisy lack of order or a chaotic situation. E.G.: “When the law was passed, a complete bedlam broke out among the opposing congressmen”.

The word “Bedlam” evolved from “Bethlehem”, the alleged place of birth of Jesus Christ. How did this word that is usually associated with hope and salvation come to represent a situation of wild uproar? In 1402, the hospital of Saint Mary of Bethlehem, located in London, began to be used as an insane asylum. Therapy and treatment were not in the cards for such patients, towards whom containment was considered the only appropriate policy. For this reason, inside the hospital there was always shrieking, wailing and screaming in such a notorious way that “Bethlehem” and its colloquial hasty pronunciation “Bedlam” became synonyms for chaos and noise.

In William Shakespeare’s 1605 play “King Lear”, Edgar, the legitimate son of Gloucester, is forced to disguise himself as a wandering lunatic and beggar called “Tom o’Bedlam”.

First of all, in England, “Tom” is the epitome of the common name. Tom is everyone and no one. When one wishes to talk about an indefinite person who doesn’t amount to much, one mentions “Tom, Dick and Harry” or “Tom, Dick and Harriet” in order to be gender-fair. “If the university doesn’t establish a rigorous admission test for the Master Degree in Communication, we’ll have any Tom, Dick and Harriet passing off as professional journalists”.  This usage is not unlike that for John Doe, Jane Doe and Joe Schmoe in United States.

Besides, “Tom” carries the unjust prejudice of being associated with men of less than average intelligence (much like “George” in Romania), so a person can be labeled as a “Tom fool” and his actions as “tomfoolery”. In this order of ideas, “Tom o‘Bedlam” was a madman who wasn’t violent enough to be institutionalized or who had become so harmless that he could be discharged from the asylum.

Thus we end this entry which was not so much of a lesson as it was a bit of indulgence in one of the greatest pleasures of language learning: etymology, the study of the origin of words. If there is one that you know and would like to share with all the readers, please comment. It would be great to learn more from everyone.

Afterthought: the anagram for “Bedlam” is “Med lab” (Medical laboratory). Perhaps this explains recent breakthroughs in psychiatric medicine.

Make and Do

ü  DO presents a process and MAKE presents a product, be it material or intangible.

ü  DO means an action is carried out until it is complete.

ü  MAKE means that parts or ingredients have been put together into a whole.

ü  DO shows that something is prepared for later use.

ü  MAKE means that something is brought into existence.

Image generously designed by Diana Lucía Gómez.

 

In the previous entry of this English blog aimed at native Spanish speakers we saw the uses of “Say” and “Tell”, two verbs that can both be translated into Spanish as “Decir”. This time we will explore some of the main applications of “Do” and “Make”, both of which can in turn be translated as “Hacer”. We will not see every single form of these verbs because it would take ages; “Do” and “Make” are some of those words that use up several pages in any decent dictionary along with “Get”, “Set” and “Be”.

First things first: debunking the myth. In high school, many of us were told that “Do” was used for intellectual actions and “Make” for material actions. It sounds plausible and the explanation is not without a degree of logic to it. Our English teachers had to deal with 40, even 50 students in a single class, so, ready-made and incontestable capsules of information were preferred over long exploration processes that fostered autonomous learning. Classical teaching methods didn’t have any time for such things in their tight, fact-packed curricula.

Let’s understand this, then: “Do” can many times work like “Perform”. “Do” presents a process that is practically a routine, whether it’s successful or not is of no interest. Take this example: my mother has been a housewife for 30 years and she has never learned how to cook. When she boils water it gets stuck to the pot, pop corn tastes like chicken and the chicken flies headless out of the kitchen choosing to get run over by a garbage truck before being stewed by my loving mother. So:

 

My mother does the cooking at home.

 

The fact that she doesn’t cook well –there is no success in the action- doesn’t stop her from cooking every day. To talk about routines, we use “DO” and a verb in the –ING form with an article (“the” if we refer to the action in general) or a quantifier (“some”, “a little”, “a lot of” if we are referring to doing the action in a specific case).

 

I have been doing a lot of ironing since my butler quit.

“Make” can show us the product of a process. Look at the yellow rabbit in the image and you will find a couple of examples: the rabbit does the cooking at home (it’s a routine process for him) and the rabbit made dinner (it’s the product). He did some thinking (process) and finally he made a decision (product). This product can be material as well as intangible, that is indeed case-specific; the fact that “Make” can also be a synonym for “Manufacture” doesn’t restrict its meaning.

“Make” has to do with creation: we put parts or ingredients together to bring something new into existence. For instance, I have eggs and cheese and by mixing them I can make an omelette au fromage. I have vinegar, baking soda and sugar and by mixing them I can make a small volcano (I bet you didn’t know that!)

“Do” also tells us that something is being prepared to be used later. So, you do the laundry, later the clothes will be clean and you can wear them. You do the dishes after dinner so they’re dry tomorrow morning.

When an action or an event is carried out until completion, we use “Do”. So, my cousin Mildred did her high school studies in Juneau, Alaska. This means that even her prom took place in Juneau, Alaska.

 

Well, that’s it for “Make” and “Do”. Remember these simple yet crucial applications and make them part of your everyday speech and communicative techniques; you’ll see dramatic improvement in your fluency and accuracy. If you have any question and/or comment, I’ll be only too happy to read from you. If you feel you need further clarity on these verbs, ask. For now, this will have to make do!

Make and Do – en Español

 ü  DO presenta un proceso y MAKE presenta un producto, ya sea material o intangible.

ü  DO significa que una acción es llevada a cabo hasta ser completada.

ü  MAKE significa que algunas partes han sido ensambladas o algunos ingredientes mezclados para crear un todo.

ü  DO muestra que algo se deja listo para usarse después.

ü  MAKE denota que se crea algo nuevo.

En la entrega anterior de este blog sobre inglés para hispanoparlantes nativos vimos los usos de “Say” y “Tell”, dos verbos que pueden traducirse como “Decir”. En esta ocasión exploraremos algunas de las aplicaciones más importantes de “Do” y “Make”; ambos traducen “Hacer”. No vamos a ver cada una de las formas de estos verbos porque nos llevaría eones enteros. “Do” y “Make” son de esas palabras que, junto con “Get” (conseguir, etc.), “Set” (organizar, etc.) y “Be” (ser/estar), ocupan páginas completas en cualquier diccionario medianamente aceptable.

Primero lo primero: desmentir los mitos. Durante la secundaria, a muchos nos dijeron que “Do” se utilizaba en casos de acción intelectual y “Make” en aquellos de acción material. Suena plausible y tal explicación no carece completamente de fundamento lógico. Nuestros profesores de inglés tenían que lidiar con 40 y hasta 50 estudiantes en un solo grupo; de ahí que las cápsulas de información prefabricada y absoluta fueran de preferencia por encima de los largos procesos exploratorios que fomentan el aprendizaje autónomo. Los métodos clásicos de enseñanza no contemplaban tales cosas en sus estrechos currículos llenos de datos.

Así pues, entendamos esto: Muchas veces “Do” puede funcionar como “Perform” (desempeñar[se]). “Do” presenta un proceso prácticamente rutinario, ya sea exitoso o no. En español utilizaríamos “encargarse de”. Considera este ejemplo: mi madre ha sido ama de casa durante 30 años y nunca aprendió a cocinar. Cuando hierve agua, ésta se queda pegada a la olla, el maíz pira sabe a pollo y el pollo descabezado sale volando de la cocina eligiendo ser arrollado por un camión recolector de basura antes de convertirse en un guiso hecho por mi amorosa madre. De tal suerte,

 

My mother does the cooking at home.

(En casa, mi madre se encarga de cocinar).

 

El hecho de que ella no cocine bien –es una empresa sin éxito- no impide que cocine todos los días. Para hablar de rutinas usamos “DO” y un verbo en gerundio “-ING” con el artículo determinado “the” (el, la, los, las) si nos referimos a una acción en general o un cuantificador (“some” –algo de-, “a little” -un poco-, “a lot of” –mucho-) si nos referimos a la acción en un caso específico.

 

I have been doing a lot of ironing since my butler quit.

(He tenido que encargarme más y más de planchar desde que mi mayordomo renunció).

 

“Make” puede enseñarnos el producto de un proceso. Mira al conejo amarillo en la imagen y encontrarás un par ejemplos: the rabbit does the cooking at home (el conejo se encarga de cocinar en casa) –es un proceso rutinario para él- y the rabbit made dinner (el conejo hizo la cena) –es el producto-. He did some thinking (se puso a pensar) –proceso- y finalmente  he made a decisión (tomó una decisión) –producto-. Este producto puede ser material o intangible, eso depende del caso; el hecho de que, además, “Make” pueda funcionar como sinónimo de “Manufacture” (manufacturar, fabricar) no restringe su significado.

“Make” tiene mucho que ver con la creación: ensamblamos partes o mezclamos ingredientes para crear algo nuevo. Por ejemplo, tengo huevos y queso. Mezclándolos, I can make an omelette au fromage (puedo hacer una tortilla de queso). Si mezclo bicarbonato de soda, vinagre y azúcar, I can make a small volcano (puedo hacer un pequeño volcán) -¡Apuesto a que no sabías eso!

“Do” también nos dice que algo se deja listo para ser usado después. De esa forma, you do the laundry (lavas la ropa), luego la ropa estará limpia para que te la pongas. You do the dishes (lavas los platos) después de la cena y mañana en mañana estarán secos.

Cuando una acción o un evento son realizados hasta que estén completos, usas “Do”. Así,  my cousin Mildred did her high school studies in Juneau, Alaska (mi prima Mildred hizo sus estudios de secundaria en Juneau, Alaska). Eso quiere decir que incluso su graduación tuvo lugar en Junaeau, Alaska.

 

Bien, eso es todo en cuanto respecta a “Make” y “Do”. Ten presentes estas simples pero cruciales aplicaciones e incorpóralas en tu habla diaria y en tus técnicas comunicativas, verás un mejoramiento exponencial en tu fluidez y tu precisión. Si tienes alguna pregunta y/o comentario, me alegrará mucho leerte. Si sientes que necesitas mayor claridad sobre estos verbos, pregunta. Por ahora, ¡Imagina los milagros que con esto vas a hacer! (¿Make o Do?)