Tuesday, August 18, 2009

To Buy Someone Off

"In every argument with her mother, Susan had in point of reason the advantage, and never was there any maternal tenderness to buy her off." --Mansfield Park (Jane Austen, 1814), Chapter 40

Many thanks to Shayne Parkinson, of New Zealand, for this entry!

1 comment:

Shayne Parkinson said...

Another contribution, if you're thinking of reviving this blog (and just for personal interest if you're not :-) ). I came across a usage recently while re-reading Northanger Abbey that struck me as surprisingly modern-sounding: "fishing for compliments." (Isabella says it in Chapter 18)