CHAPDISC HBP 15, The Unbreakable Vow -Bloody Seven

[Steve]

No: HPFGUIDX 152092

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "justcarol67" <justcarol67 at ...>
wrote:
>
> Discussion Questions (Carol):
> > > 
> > > 7) ... Just for fun, why do you think JKR included the Vampire
> Sanguini as a party guest?
> > > 
> > 
> Steve/bboyminn responded:
> > 
> > I'm afraid I'm just stating the obvious and a side note at best,
> > but did everyone catch the subliminal reference to 'blood' in 
> > the vampires name 'Sanguini'? 
> > 
> > 'Sanguine' means the color of blood, and comes from the latin root
> > /sanguis/ which means blood and /sanguineus/ which means bloody.
> 
> 
> Carol again:
> Yes, I was hoping someone would catch that. But "sanguine" also 
> means cheerful, or as Merriam-Webster Online puts it, "having 
> blood as the predominating bodily humor; also: having the bodily 
> conformation and temperament held characteristic of such 
> predominance and marked by sturdiness, high color, and 
> cheerfulness." If we need a character who fits this description,
> I'd vote for Ludo Bagman in his Quidditch-star days.
> 
> ...edited...
> 
> Carol, apologizing to the List Elves for a fourth post and wondering
> whether Sanguini likes blood-flavored lollipops
>


bboyminn:

Yet, the relationship between sanguine as cheerful and blood is still
there because 'cheerfullness' was related to an abundance of
blood-humor. Humor in this case represents one of the four medievel
'essenses' that defind a person's physiology. 

Here is an extended definition from my American Heritage CD-ROM-

"WORD HISTORY: Perhaps one has wondered what the connection between
sanguinary, "bloodthirsty," and sanguine, "cheerfully optimistic,"
could be. The connection can be found in medieval physiology with its
notion of the four humors (blood, bile, phlegm, and black bile). These
four body fluids were thought to determine a person's temperament, or
distinguishing mental and physical characteristics. Thus, if blood was
the predominant humor, one had a ruddy face and a disposition marked
by courage, hope, and a readiness to fall in love. Such a temperament
was called sanguine, the Middle English ancestor of our word sanguine.
..."

So sanguine is related to cheerful because 'cheerful' is related to
blood-humor. But note that other variations of that word lose the
'cheerful' context.

san·gui·nar·y - adj. 1. Accompanied by bloodshed. See Synonyms at 
bloody. 2. Eager for bloodshed; bloodthirsty. 3. Consisting of blood.

san·guin·e·ous - adj. 1. Relating to or involving blood or bloodshed.
See Synonyms at  bloody. 2. Color. Having the color of blood; blood-red.

san·guin·o·lent - adj. Mixed or tinged with blood.

In my dictionary the reference to Sanguine as cheerful is third and
follows the archaic reference to Sanguine as a blood-humor in medievel
physiology. So, that aspect would seem to be minor, or at least, indirect.

Still it's nice to see that someone caught it.

Steve/bboyminn