Asnowclone is a clichéd phrase in which one or more words can be substituted to express a similar idea in a different context, often to humorous or sarcastic effect. For example, the Iraqi dictatorSaddam Hussein's widely publicized phrase "the mother of all battles" in 1991 spawned such variations as "the mother of all traffic jams".[1] The termsnowclone was coined in 2004, derived fromjournalistic clichés that referred to the number ofInuit words for snow.[2]
The linguistic phenomenon of "a multi-use, customizable, instantly recognizable, time-worn, quoted or misquoted phrase or sentence that can be used in an entirely open array of different variants" was originally described by linguistGeoffrey K. Pullum in 2003.[3] Pullum later described snowclones as "some-assembly-required adaptable cliché frames for lazy journalists".[2]
In an October 2003 post onLanguage Log, a collaborative blog by several linguistics professors, Pullum solicited ideas for what the then-unnamed phenomenon should be called.[3] In response to the request, the word "snowclone" was coined by economics professorGlen Whitman on January 15, 2004, and Pullum endorsed it as aterm of art the next day.[2] The term was derived by Whitman fromjournalistic clichés referring to the number ofEskimo words for snow[2] and incorporates a pun on thesnow cone.[4]
The term "snowclone" has since been adopted by other linguists, journalists, and authors.[4][5]
Snowclones are related to bothmemes and clichés, according to theLos Angeles Times's David Sarno: "Snowclones are memechés, if you will: meme-ified clichés with the operative words removed, leaving spaces for you or the masses toMad Lib their own versions."[6]
Pullum, in his first discussion of what would later be called a snowclone, offered the following example of a template describing multiple variations of a journalistic cliché he had encountered: "If Eskimos haveN words for snow,X surely haveM words forY."[3]Pullum cited this as a popularrhetoricaltrope used by journalists to imply that cultural groupX has reason to spend a great deal of time thinking about the specific ideaY,[7][8] although the basic premise (that Eskimos have a larger number of words for snow) is often disputed by those who study Eskimo (Inuit andYupik) languages.[9]
In 2003, an article inThe Economist stated, "If Eskimos have dozens of words for snow, Germans have as many for bureaucracy."[10] A similar construction in theEdmonton Sun in 2007 claimed that "auto manufacturers have 100 words forbeige".[11]
The original request from Geoffrey Pullum, in addition to citing the Eskimos-and-snow namesake of the term snowclone, mentioned a poster slogan for the 1979 filmAlien, "In space, no one can hear you scream", which was cloned into numerous variations stating that in space, no one can hear you belch, bitch, blog, cream, DJ, dream, drink, etc.[3]
Frequently seen snowclones include phrases in the form of the template "X is the newY". The original (and still common) form is the template "X is the new black", apparently based on a misquotation ofDiana Vreeland's 1962 statement that pink is "the navy blue of India".[12] According to language columnist Nathan Bierma, this snowclone provides "a tidy and catchy way of conveying an increase, or change in nature, or change in function – or all three – ofX".[13]
Examples include a 2001 album titledQuiet Is the New Loud, a 2008 newspaper headline that stated "Comedy is the new rock 'n' roll",[14] and the title ofthe 2010 book and 2013Netflix original seriesOrange Is the New Black.
"The mother of allX", ahyperbole that has been used to refer to something as "great" or "the greatest of its kind", became a popular snowclone template in the 1990s. The phrase entered American popular culture in September 1990 at the outset of theGulf War, whenSaddam Hussein'sRevolutionary Command Council warned the U.S.-ledCoalition againstmilitary action in Kuwait with the statement: "Let everyone understand that this battle is going to become the mother of all battles."[15][16] The phrase was repeated in a January 1991 speech by Saddam Hussein.[17] Acalque fromArabic, the snowclone gained popularity in the media and was adapted for phrases such as "themother of all bombs" and New Zealand's "Mother of all Budgets". TheAmerican Dialect Society declared "the mother of all" the 1991Word of the Year.[18] The term "Father of All Bombs" was created by an analogy.[19][20]
The Arabic phrase originated from anArab victory over the Sassanian Persians in 636 CE, described with the earliest known use of the phrase "mother of all battles" (Arabic:ام المعاركumm al-ma‘ārik). Although popularly used to mean "greatest" or "ultimate", the Arabicumm al- prefix creates a figurative phrase in which "mother" also suggests that the referent will give rise to many more of its kind.[21][22] The phrase was used in the naming of a mosque inBaghdad, theUmm al-Ma'arik Mosque.
The template "X-ing while Black", and its original popular construction "driving while Black", are sardonic plays on "driving while intoxicated", and refer to Black people being pulled over by policesolely because of their race.[23][24] A prominent variant, "voting while Black", surfaced during the U.S. presidential elections of 2000 and 2004 in reference to attempts to suppress Black votes.[23] Snowclones of this form, highlighting the unequal treatment of Black people, have included "walking while Black" for pedestrian offenses,[25][26] "learning while Black" for students in schools,[27] "drawing while Black" for artists,[24] and "shopping while Black"[28][29] or "eating while Black"[25] for customers in stores and restaurants. A 2017 legal case prompted the variant "talking while Black".[30]
The template has been applied to other groups; the term "flying while Muslim" appeared post-9/11 to describe disproportionatesuspicion shown towards airline passengers perceived to be from the Middle East.[31]
"ToX or not toX" is a template based on the line "To be, or not to be", spoken by the titular character inWilliam Shakespeare's playHamlet (around 1600).[32] This template appears to have existed even beforeHamlet and had previously been explicitly used in a religious context to discuss "actions that are at once contradictory and indifferent—actions that, because they are neither commanded nor prohibited by Scripture, good nor evil in themselves, Christians are free to perform or omit".[33]
In general usage, "toX or not toX" simply conveys "disjunction between contradictory alternatives",[33] which linguistArnold Zwicky described as an "utterly ordinary structure".[32] A Google search by Zwicky for snowclones of the form "to * or not to *" resulted in over 16 million hits, although some apparent occurrences may be cases of a naturalcontrastive disjunction unrelated to the Shakespearean snowclone template.[32]
The earliest known literary mention of the template "HaveX, will travel" is the title of the bookHave Tux, Will Travel, a 1954 memoir by comedianBob Hope. Hope explained that "Havetuxedo, will travel" was a stock phrase used in short advertisements placed by actors inVariety, indicating that the actor was "ready to go any place any time" and to be "dressed classy" upon arrival.[34][35] The use of variations of this template by job seekers goes back considerably earlier, dating to at least the 1920s, possibly around 1900, inThe Times of London.[36]
Variants of the snowclone were used in the titles of the 1957Western television showHave Gun – Will Travel,Robert A. Heinlein's 1958 novelHave Space Suit—Will Travel,[37][38]Richard Berry's 1959 song "Have Love, Will Travel",The Three Stooges' 1959 filmHave Rocket, Will Travel,Bo Diddley's 1960 albumHave Guitar Will Travel,Megadeth's 1997 song "Have Cool, Will Travel", andJoe Perry's 2009 albumHave Guitar, Will Travel.
Beginning withFritjof Capra'sThe Tao of Physics, there have been numerous, sometimes serious but more often tongue in cheek examples of this snowclone. Examples include the 2000romantic comedyThe Tao of Steve and the 1982 philosophical treatiseThe Tao of Pooh byBenjamin Hoff.
"X considered harmful", an established journalistic cliché since at least the mid-20th century, generally appears in the titles of articles as "a way for an editor to alert readers that the writer is going to be expressing negative opinions aboutX."[39] As a snowclone, the template began to propagate significantly in the field ofcomputer science in 1968.[39] Its spread was prompted by aletter to the editor titledGo To Statement Considered Harmful, in whichEdsger Dijkstra criticized theGOTO statement incomputer programming.[39][40] The editor ofCommunications of the ACM,Niklaus Wirth, was responsible for giving the letter its evocative title.[41]
"X as a service" (XaaS) is a business model in which a product use is offered as a subscription-based service rather than as an artifact owned and maintained by the customer. Originating from thesoftware as a service concept that appeared in the 2010s with the advent ofcloud computing,[42] the template has expanded to numerous offerings in the field ofinformation technology and beyond it, as inmobility as a service.[43]
In 1995, linguistDavid Crystal referred to this kind of trope as a "catch structure", citing as an example the phrase "to boldly split infinitives that no man had split before", as originally used inDouglas Adams'sThe Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy radio series (1978).[44] The phrase referencesStar Trek ("... to boldly go where no man has gone before"), humorously highlighting the use of asplit infinitive as an intentional violation of a disputed traditional rule of grammar.[45]
In the study of folklore, the related concept of aproverbial phrase has a long history of description and analysis. There are many kinds of such wordplay, as described in various studies of written and oral sources.[46]
Suffixes created from a shortened form of a word are sometimes called snowclones,[47] but can also be described aslibfixes, short for 'liberated suffix'. These are "lexical word-formation analog... [in]derivational morphology".[48] Libfixes include formations like the English-gate suffix drawn from theWatergate scandal, or the Italian-opoli, abstracted from theTangentopoli scandal.[49]
There's a new term of art, 'Flying While Muslim' ... intended to draw parallels to the American phenomenon known as 'driving while black'...
In its most general use,to X or not to X denotes the disjunction between contradictory alternatives. But the form also acquired a more specific function in theReformation discourse ofChristian liberty... Though discussions of this sort occurred most frequently in theological writings,Elizabethan parishioners attending services each week would have likely heard preachers fillto X or not to X with a variety of verbs...
Hoofers, comedians and singers used to put ads inVariety. Those ads read: 'Have tuxedo, will travel'. It meant they were ready to go any place, any time... It also meant that they would be dressed classy when they showed up.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)All these gates are examples of a snowclone, a type of clichéd phrase defined by the linguist Geoffrey Pullum as 'a multi-use, customisable, instantly recognisable, timeworn, quoted or misquoted phrase or sentence that can be used in an entirely open array of different variants'. Examples of a typical snowclone are: grey is the new black, comedy is the new rock'n'roll, Barnsley is the new Naples, and so on.
Xgate as a snowclone? Not quite. I see the conceptual similarity, but the very words he quotes show that I originally defined the concept (in this post) as a phrase or sentence template. TheXgate frame is a lexical word-formation analog of it, an extension of the concept from syntax into derivational morphology.
