Dame Pat embodied the phrases "force of nature" and "larger than life".
The renowned Queen’s High School principal once told Civis how vital school was for her girls from troubled backgrounds, the one place in their lives offering stability and a measure of security.
She swept through her school, and the waters parted. She paused to greet, encourage and inspire.
As noted on the ODT’s front page last Monday, if you were one of her pupils, one thing was certain: she believed you "could be and would be successful" in life.
Dame Pat, you departed this life having left an inspirational legacy.
★★★
Should phrases like "larger than life" and "force of nature" be considered cliches? The Oxford Dictionary defines a cliche as "a phrase or opinion that is overused and betrays a lack of original thought".
If so, paragraph two stands condemned as familiar, well-worn and uninspiring. Or are these phrases vivid, compact metaphors that carry emotional weight and cultural resonance?
They are widely used, especially in tributes and obituaries and can feel formulaic.
Yet they convey complex traits in just a few words, anchored by the specifics that follow.
Apparently, the first popular use of "larger than life" in its present sense of describing someone with extraordinary charisma or presence is as recent as the middle of last century. The New Yorker used it in reference to Winston Churchill and his imposing persona during World War 2.
"Force of nature’s" literal use is obvious. It seems the figurative meaning to describe people emerged in the 20th century, although specific origins are vague.
★★★
A few weeks back, Civis used "a plague on all their houses" to express frustrations at politicians. It was used again in a subsequent column.
Meanwhile, the question of which character uttered the line (more accurately, "a plague on both your houses") came up on an episode of the popular The Chase on TVNZ 1.
Both the contestant and the Chaser, the Dark Destroyer, got it wrong. Civis, though aware the line came from Romeo and Juliet, would likely have floundered too.
It wasn’t Romeo, Juliet, Friar Laurence, or the Prince, but Mercutio, after he was fatally wounded in the clash between members of the feuding Montague and Capulet families. He repeated the curse three times.
The play was written about 1592, a time when the plague itself haunted Elizabethan England.
★★★
An email in June responded to proposed changes to the English curriculum and Civis’ comment that Shakespeare must be taught well. Since Early Modern English is hard to understand, it’s wise to start with a well-acted video.
Nic Norman wrote that it was a big old world out there, and it was good for the curriculum not to be entirely New Zealand-centric. It was also good to have some historical English in the mix to help understand where many New Zealanders had come from.
Indeed. And Shakespeare’s brilliance in portraying human nature and politics transcends cultures and generations.
His perceptive turns of phrase are scattered throughout modern English. But are some so overused that they verge on cliche? Occasionally, yes.
