[HPforGrownups] Oh, Quit Whinging

[Laura Ingalls Huntley]

No: HPFGUIDX 83208

Grannybat:
> From my exposure to the HP universe and various British mysteries and
> comedies that air on my local PBS station, I was under the impression
> that the word "whinging" was equivalent to the American "whining" --
> that high-pitched, irritating form of pleading employed by tired
> toddlers and manipulative grownups to wear down adult resistance.
> (Why, hello, Mr. Pettigrew.) But I've just read a page from the PoA
> movie article featured in Xpose Magazine that refers to the Dursley's
> suburb as Little Snoring.
<snip>
> I tried looking up Whinging on the Britspeak section of the HP
> Lexicon, but it's not listed. Is this just a matter of the print
> media once again not getting their facts straight, or am I missing
> one of the subtle nuances of British language?
>

Rather than waiting for an actual Brit to answer this question, I'll 
jump right in and do it myself like the yankee I am ^_~.

Your first impression of whinging was correct:  it *does* mean to 
whine.  Don't believe me?  Well, you don't have to take *my* word for 
it!  According to Merriam-Webster Online:

Main Entry:	whinge
Pronunciation:	'hwinj, 'winj
Function:	intransitive verb
Inflected Form(s):	whinged; whing·ing or whinge·ing
Etymology:	from (assumed) Middle English, from Old English hwinsian; 
akin to Old High German winsOn to moan
Date:	12th century
British : to complain fretfully : WHINE

By the way, I *strongly* recommend www.m-w.com to absolutely 
*everyone*.  I usually use it at least once a day, when I want to know 
the *exact* definition of a word, variations in spelling and 
pronunciation, etc.  Also, there's a thesaurus (which I don't use as 
much, as the one in Word is perfectly adequate for my needs).

I agree that Little Whinging *is* a jab at the Dursleys and their 
socioeconomic kin (though what JKR has against the middle class, I 
don't know *shrugs*).

Honestly, I have no idea what might be up with the article which 
refered to "Little Snoring," unless they were trying to make a joke 
about how boring the Dursleys are.  Which, personally, I doubt.  It's 
much more likely that it's bad journalism or...I don't know...was the 
article translated?

Laura (who can't muster the strength to post on anything theoretical or 
at *all* cerebral right now, but still likes to contribute every now 
and then)

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