Dudgeon

Are you, like me, getting a little tired of outrage? No, not of the emotion -- that's still righteously burning -- but of the word? We keep hearing it, on the radio, on TV, how outraged we all are at reckless financial firms and their toxic assets. President Obama shares our outrage at AIG executives getting million-dollar, taxpayer funded bonuses. Members of Congress trumpet their outrage on behalf of their constituents on the House and Senate floors. Our top economic leaders, Bernacke and Geithner, understand our outrage. Financial experts warn of the peril of letting our collective outrage derail the measured responses needed to get the financial sector working again.

Say any word enough times and it starts to lose its impact. Watch a Tarantino movie and afterward the "f-word" will sound about as commonplace and innocuous as "darn" or "shucks." I'm thinking it's time for policymakers and the media to get a new word.

How about dudgeon? Now there's a word for our times, despite its archaic sound. Contained within its meaning are indignation and resentment as well as anger. That sure sums up my feelings about the firms and policies that got us into this financial mess.

However, the word is now almost always used in the phrase, "in high dudgeon," as in, "Her platinum card rejected, the shopaholic socialite stormed away from the register in high dudgeon." That probably makes its usage a little clunky for a Congressional floor speech or snappy news brief. Though I'd be impressed by any cable TV pundit who declared into the camera, "We are a nation in high dudgeon!"

Ok, so how about instead furious anger, a la Jules in Pulp Fiction? Now that's some serious dudgeon! (Well, no, that's an example of wrath, not dudgeon, but it sure is fun to listen to, no?)

Dictionary Definition
Pronounced: də-jən
Root: Origin unknown; conjectural derivation is Welsh dygen meaning malice, resentment
1. a feeling of anger, resentment, or offense; intense indignation.