Elisa Segrave

Wham bam, thank you Ma’am

Why do Americans seesaw between violence and politeness?

issue 24 February 2018

I love Americans’ kindness, generosity and energy but am often thrown by their exaggerated politeness and euphemistic speech. They use ‘passed’ for ‘died’ and always say ‘excuse me’ if they brush against you in a shop. They sentimentally refer to ‘your puppy’ when the dog is patently over three years old.

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