Humpty Dumptyism

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Humpty Dumptyism (sometimes hyphenated or written as a single word) is the insistence on a meaning of a word that is not generally accepted by others. Also sometimes referred to as The Humpty Dumpty Principle. The term derives from Through the Looking-Glass by Lewis Carroll (Chapter 6):

'I don't know what you mean by "glory",' Alice said.

Humpty Dumpty smiled contemptuously. 'Of course you don't—till I tell you. I meant "there's a nice knock-down argument for you!"'

'But "glory" doesn't mean "a nice knock-down argument",' Alice objected.

'When I use a word,' Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, 'it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less.'

'The question is,' said Alice, 'whether you can make words mean so many different things.'

'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master—that's all.'

[edit] See Also

• Idiolect

[edit] External links

• Humptydumptyism on the Consumerium Development Wiki: discussion of Humpty Dumptyism as a trolling tactic.

[edit] References

• Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll. This online edition does not indicate what edition's pagination it follows. The relevant passage is at p. 364 by their pagination.