American Color, October 2nd, 2024.

Somewhere in CS Lewis, he was writing about how colorful the Elizabethans were, and he said that this was a gift that the English should apparently bequeathed to their American cousins.

I think there's something to this, and perhaps it will help us to understand shoot-cussing, slang, and other related

what's the plural of flamboyance. There's a long American tradition of this probably

beginning with Benjamin Franklin, often called the first American. I'm speaking of a cultural and literary

tradition here and not about morals or regeneration which would be quite

distinct matters. From Franklin to Twain to Mancon you can plainly detect a

certain breezy approach to serious matters and which

does not cease holding to the seriousness of it.

Franklin, in his poor Richard's almanac, likely invented the one-liner.

Over time, this developed into Our Hero,

Wisecracking his way through various adventures, or better yet,

Our Hero being accompanied by a sidekick who would provide the Wisecracks. Franklin also

probably coined the phrase smart

Alec and a certain attitude was born. This is not to say that all Americans are like

this, of course not, but it is to say that enough of them are like this or are

appreciative of this style and form to be able to sustain

it as a long American literary tradition.

I'm not here talking about jesters or humorous because every culture has had their jokes and

jokers. I'm talking about a particular kind of

humor. I once had an interaction with a woman who objected to a certain element in my preaching,

which was the fact that I felt free to use what she considered to be quote unquote slang.

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