Sophs #4 journal--Vernacular and Slang

One of the pleasures of reading Mark Twain is the language, specifically his narrators' and characters' use of a correct and usually comical vernacular specific to his stories' settings. No one in Wilmington, Delaware, would say something like "I don't see no points bout that frog that's better from any other frog " (really, no one would be so interested in frogs too much round here, either).

I still get a kick out of Huckleberry Finn describing his disinterest in the story of Moses in the Bible because "I don't take no stock in dead people."

Only the sarcastic and less than sartoriallly-dressed Twain could have reflected, "Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence in society."

So what is interesting about your language? If an alien somehow landed in your backyard, would he need to be given a dictionary of YOUR own special collection of words, phrases, and sayings? Probably so.

Pretend that I'm that alien. Make a list of at least 25 words, phrases, or sayings (complete with their "definitions") that would let me know exactly what you mean when you say something that isn't exactly the King's English.

One bit of advice. We're not gangstas here. Capisce?