Thursday, July 10, 2014

Malapropism of the Day—"Alcatraz Around (My) Neck"

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Alcatraz around (my) neck
Confuses the bad reputation of a famous prison with that of the speaker in Coleridge’s famous poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, who brings misfortune on the ship by killing an albatross, and whose fellow sailors force him to wear it around his neck in penance. Boston’s mayor from 1993–2014, Thomas Menino, was famous for malapropisms—including this goof. Recent example: “I always found a job to be like an Alcatraz around my neck.” http://www.npaper-wehaa.com retrieved 3 may 2014

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