Words for Women Writing Memoir, #55

by Matilda Butler on March 21, 2012

catnav-rosies-daughters-activePost #66 – Women’s Memoirs, Rosie the Riveter – Matilda Butler and Kendra Bonnett

Make your Word Choice the Best You Can. Here’s a Tip for Memoir Writers, Storytellers and Journalers: Our Example, #55

Have you used year-appropriate words in your memoir? Sometimes you may use a word that wasn’t in widespread use until much later than your story. To illustrate our point, we’re featuring words that can first be attributed to the period World War II between 1940 and 1945.

This word, probably better known in France, made its way into our language via literature during World War II.

belote, n.

Forms: Also belotte.
Etymology: < French belote, < the name of F. Belot, a Frenchman who perfected the game. Definition: A game of cards resembling pinocle, played with a 32-card pack. First use as listed in Oxford English Dictionary:

1941 A. Koestler Scum of the Earth 7 Soldiers—grumbling, drinking red wine, playing belotte, and bored.

1944 W. S. Maugham Razor’s Edge iii. 93 There were men with sweaty faces round tables playing belote with loud shouts.

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Background for Our (Mostly) Daily Word from World War II

A memoir writer carefully chooses her words. That’s the only way to convey meaning and emotion to readers. There is another level of word choice that a writer needs to consider. Words that are appropriate for the time period.

When Kendra and I were writing our collective memoir, Rosie’s Daughters: The “First Woman To” Generation Tells Its Story, we kept a book nearby that contained a new word that gained popularity in each year. This became a vital resource as we tried to find ways to recreate the different decades.

Let’s say you are writing about your childhood and using dialogue. Not only should you use the language level appropriate for your age, you should also be careful to not include words that weren’t even in the dictionary at that time.

Introducing Words First Known to be Used During World War II

This year, we’re going to bring you words introduced during World War II — 1940-1945. We continue our fascination with that period after our research for writing the memoir Rosie’s Daughters. Words from an era help to define that time period. We’ll post a word almost every day — always late in the afternoon. Be sure to check in regularly.

Where do we find these words? The Oxford English Dictionary, of course. OED is a resource for all writers, containing information not just about meaning and pronunciation but also about changes in our language, history and origins of more than 500,000 words. It traces the original public use of words through about 2.5 million quotations.

It is possible to search by year when the word was first introduced. By putting in 1940-1945, we found 2,122 words with a first documented use during World War II. We’re sharing many of these with you this year.

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We’ve had many requests for one over the years, but knew it would take a lot of research to do this right. Finally, this fall, we tackled the job. To learn more about the history of Rosie the Riveter’s pin, actually her employment badge, and how we created it, just click here.

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Then we came up with the idea of a Rosie the Riveter Zipper Pull. It’s just a little smaller than our Rosie Collar Pin — perfect to wear on all your jackets and vests. We never leave the house without one one.

They’re fun, inexpensive, and great conversation starters. Wear one proudly to declare that you are an empowered woman. To order yours today, just click here.

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If you want the official look, the official red and white polka dot scarf, we’ve got what you are looking for because no one else offers a true Rosie the Riveter bandana. Our bandana is a generous 27 x 27 inches so you can tie it just like Rosie the Riveter did. You also get more white polka dots — large ones just like Rosie wore — and in a random pattern. We studied her bandana to make sure we were offering you an authentic look. And finally, we’re pleased to say it is Made in the USA.

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