bibliograf(ter)

English translation: bibliographer/grafter

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:bibliograf(ter)
Selected answer:bibliographer/grafter
Entered by: Yvonne Gallagher

09:56 Jul 22, 2015
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Social Sciences - Poetry & Literature / article on psychoanalysis
English term or phrase: bibliograf(ter)
In a letter to Loewald on September 30, 1956, Wexler complained, “That old bibliograf(ter) David R. [Rapaport]
contributed little (when he could have a great deal) beyond the raising of ‘questions’ and
appealing to the next generation to answer them.”

Is there a play on words? Can you explain?
Danila Moro
Italy
Local time: 12:52
yes, a play on words
Explanation:
saying he's not just a bibliographer but a grafter of words

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Note added at 11 mins (2015-07-22 10:08:06 GMT)
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grafter being someone who works very hard but can also mean someone who gafts away (works hard) to churn out stuff by the bucketload...

in some contexts it can also mean "swindler" so there are several layers of meaning here...

of course "graft" aldo means to add on in planting terms where one plant is added to another rootstock

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Note added at 11 mins (2015-07-22 10:08:24 GMT)
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not "aldo" but also!

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 17 mins (2015-07-22 10:14:06 GMT)
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That old bibliograf(ter)...contributed little (when he could have a great deal)...

as a bibliographer he grafted away (churned out a lot of stuff) but in fact contributed very little of importance/help in the end...

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Note added at 1 day6 hrs (2015-07-23 16:09:33 GMT) Post-grading
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Glad to have helped!
Selected response from:

Yvonne Gallagher
Ireland
Local time: 11:52
Grading comment
thanks :)
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +4yes, a play on words
Yvonne Gallagher
4A disreputable sort of bibliographer
B D Finch


  

Answers


14 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
A disreputable sort of bibliographer


Explanation:
http://www.word-detective.com/2008/08/grifter/comment-page-1...
'“Grafter,” ... comes from the noun “graft,” meaning, as the Oxford English Dictionary defines it, “the obtaining of profit or advantage by dishonest or shady means; the means by which such gains are made, especially bribery, blackmail, or the abuse of a position of power or influence.” If “graft” sounds familiar, it’s probably because you’ve seen it in the all-too-common phrase “graft and corruption” applied to crooked politicians. The roots of “graft” in this sense are uncertain, but it may be based on an old British slang use of “graft” to mean “dig” or “work,” based on the same root that gave us “grave.”'

B D Finch
France
Local time: 12:52
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 84

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  danya: I like your version better. cf The Gentle Grafter
2 hrs
  -> Thanks danya

disagree  Yvonne Gallagher: doesn't fit in the context at all and is also overextrapolation//"disreputable" is far too strong and text doesn't say that
22 hrs
  -> I think you are wrong. The author is criticising Rapaport as having "contributed little" and it is a remark rather like calling someone an "old rogue", when you don't really mean they're a rogue.
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)

6 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
yes, a play on words


Explanation:
saying he's not just a bibliographer but a grafter of words

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 11 mins (2015-07-22 10:08:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

grafter being someone who works very hard but can also mean someone who gafts away (works hard) to churn out stuff by the bucketload...

in some contexts it can also mean "swindler" so there are several layers of meaning here...

of course "graft" aldo means to add on in planting terms where one plant is added to another rootstock

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 11 mins (2015-07-22 10:08:24 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

not "aldo" but also!

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 17 mins (2015-07-22 10:14:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

That old bibliograf(ter)...contributed little (when he could have a great deal)...

as a bibliographer he grafted away (churned out a lot of stuff) but in fact contributed very little of importance/help in the end...

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 1 day6 hrs (2015-07-23 16:09:33 GMT) Post-grading
--------------------------------------------------

Glad to have helped!

Yvonne Gallagher
Ireland
Local time: 11:52
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 317
Grading comment
thanks :)

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Shera Lyn Parpia
18 mins
  -> Many thanks:-)

agree  Jack Doughty
25 mins
  -> Many thanks:-)

agree  Henry Schroeder: In my grandfather's college yearbook (US, Pennsylvania, 1920s), he was congratulated for a number of things including "graft"...
1 hr
  -> Many thanks:-) yes, it's often used as a form of praise for being a hard worker

agree  Jean-Claude Gouin
13 hrs
  -> Many thanks:-)
Login to enter a peer comment (or grade)



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