One thing I found very interesting in the reading is in Chapter 9 section C called, What Did You Say? In this section they explain how changing the name of something can affect your writing tremendously. Euphemism is when a word makes something sounds better then a neutral name. Dysphemism is the exact opposite. It makes a word or phrase sounds more negative then the neutral name. Simple conversions like these however can change your writing and can improve it so you can make your writing go in the direction you want it to. I find this so useful. For example if you wanted something to be much more dramatic and worse then what it actually was, when describing a car accident you could use the word “crashed” instead of “hit”. Hit seems more natural however crashed gives the impression that it was tragic and terrifying. Simple alterations like these can change so much.
I find understanding euphemism and dysphemism important also. The use of euphemism and dysphemism can really paint a portrait in people’s minds that is far from the truth. Most of every type of communication can probably be said to involve either euphemism or dysphemism. I certainly can say that I see the use in the marketing of products all the time. This is why I think the ability to recognize when euphemism and dysphemism is being used is very powerful. A knowledgeable person who realizes when the presentation of something is skewed will be ahead of the pack and less likely to fall into a trap.
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