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Excerpt

Excerpt from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary (2nd 100 Pages), by Noah Webster

Atterbury.
µ In this sense the word is applied to the smaller affairs of life, or occasional calls which summon a person to leave his ordinary or principal business. Avocation (in the singular) for vocation is usually avoided by good writers.
3. pl. Pursuits; duties; affairs which occupy one's time; usual employment; vocation.
There are professions, among the men, no more favorable to these studies than the common avocations of women.
Richardson.
In a few hours, above thirty thousand men left his standard, and returned to their ordinary avocations.
Macaulay.

<-- p. 106 -->

An irregularity and instability of purpose, which makes them choose the wandering avocations of a shepherd, rather than the more fixed pursuits of agriculture.
Buckle.
AÏvo¶caÏtive (?), a. Calling off. [Obs.]
AÏvo¶caÏtive, n. That which calls aside; a dissuasive.
Av¶oÏcet, Av¶oÏset (?), n. [F. avocette: cf. It. avosetta, Sp. avoceta.] (Zo”l.) A grallatorial bird, of the genus Recurvirostra; the scooper. The bill is long and bend upward toward the tip. The American species is R. Americana. [Written also avocette.] AÏvoid¶ (?), v. t. [imp. & p. p. Avoided; p. pr. & vb. n. Avoiding.] [OF. esvuidier, es (L. ex) + vuidier, voidier, to empty. See Void, a.] 1. To empty. [Obs.]
Wyclif.
2. To emit or throw out; to void; as, to avoid excretions. [Obs.]
Sir T. Browne.
3. To quit or evacuate; to withdraw from. [Obs.]
Six of us only stayed, and the rest avoided
the room.
Bacon.
4. To make void; to annul or vacate; to refute.
How can these grants of the king's be avoided?
Spenser.
5. To keep away from; to keep clear of; to endeavor no to meet; to shun; to abstain from; as, to avoid the company of gamesters.
What need a man forestall his date of grief.
And run to meet what he would most avoid ?
Milton.
He carefully avoided every act which could goad them into open hostility.
Macaulay.
6. To get rid of. [Obs.]
Shak.
7. (Pleading) To defeat or evade; to invalidate. Thus, in a replication, the plaintiff may deny the defendant's plea, or confess it, and avoid it by stating new matter.
Blackstone.
Syn. - To escape; elude; evade; eschew. Ð To Avoid, Shun. Avoid in its commonest sense means, to keep clear of, an extension of the meaning, to withdraw one's self from. It denotes care taken not to come near or in contact; as, to avoid certain persons or places. Shun is a stronger term, implying more prominently the idea of intention. The words may, however, in many cases be interchanged.
No man can pray from his heart to be kept from temptation, if the take no care of himself to avoid it.
Mason.
So Chanticleer, who never saw a fox,
Yet shunned him as a sailor shuns the rocks.
Dryden.

Explanation

This excerpt from Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary (2nd Edition, 1828) by Noah Webster is a lexicographical entry for the words "avocation" and "avoid," along with related terms. While it may seem like a dry dictionary definition, the passage is rich with historical, linguistic, and cultural significance. Below is a detailed breakdown of the text, its themes, literary devices, and broader implications—with a focus on the excerpt itself.

1. Context of the Source

Noah Webster’s An American Dictionary of the English Language (1828) was a landmark work in American lexicography, aiming to standardize American English and distinguish it from British usage. Webster was deeply influenced by:

The Enlightenment (emphasis on reason, education, and moral improvement).
American nationalism (post-Revolutionary War desire for cultural independence).
Religious and moral didacticism (Webster saw language as a tool for virtue and order).

This dictionary was not just a reference book but a cultural artifact—it preserved archaic usages, included literary quotations (from Milton, Shakespeare, Macaulay, etc.), and reflected Webster’s prescriptive approach to grammar and vocabulary.

2. Breakdown of the Excerpt

The entry begins with definitions of "avocation" (a secondary occupation) and its variants (avocative, avocet). Key observations:

Semantic Evolution & Usage
- The primary definition contrasts "avocation" (a diversion from one’s main work) with "vocation" (one’s primary calling).
  - "Avocation (in the singular) for vocation is usually avoided by good writers." → Webster is prescriptive, warning against misusage. This reflects his belief in linguistic precision as a moral duty.
- The plural form ("avocations") broadens to mean "pursuits, duties, or affairs"—showing how words expand in meaning over time.
Cultural & Gendered Implications
- Richardson’s quote: "There are professions, among the men, no more favorable to these studies than the common avocations of women."
  - Context: Samuel Richardson (18th-c. novelist) suggests that women’s domestic duties ("avocations") are as intellectually engaging as men’s professions.
  - Significance: This challenges the separation of spheres (men = public/work; women = private/home) while still framing women’s roles as secondary ("avocations" vs. "professions").
- Macaulay’s quote: "In a few hours, above thirty thousand men left his standard, and returned to their ordinary avocations."
  - Context: Thomas Babington Macaulay (historian) describes soldiers abandoning a military campaign to resume civilian life.
  - Theme: The transience of collective action—people revert to personal concerns over grand causes.
Social Critique in Buckle’s Quote
- "An irregularity and instability of purpose, which makes them choose the wandering avocations of a shepherd, rather than the more fixed pursuits of agriculture."
  - Context: Henry Thomas Buckle (historian) critiques nomadic societies for preferring unstable livelihoods (shepherding) over settled ones (farming).
  - Themes:
    - Progress vs. Tradition: Webster’s dictionary often reflects Enlightenment bias—favoring "fixed" (civilized) pursuits over "wandering" (primitive) ones.
    - Economic Determinism: Implies that societal stability depends on occupation type.
Obsolete & Scientific Terms
- "Avocative" (obs.): "Calling off" or "dissuasive"—shows how words fade from use.
- "Avocet": A bird with an upward-curving bill. The inclusion of zoological terms reflects Webster’s encyclopedic approach, blending language with natural history.

The entry for "avoid" traces its etymology (Old French esvuidier = "to empty") and lists seven definitions, showing semantic shifts:

Obsolete Meanings (1–3, 6)
- Originally meant "to empty" (Wyclif, 14th c.) or "to emit" (Sir Thomas Browne, 17th c.).
- "To evacuate" (Bacon) and "to get rid of" (Shakespeare) show how physical actions (emptying) metaphorically extend to abstractions (avoiding people/situations).
Legal & Moral Meanings (4, 7)
- "To annul" (Spenser): Legal context—voiding contracts or grants.
- "To invalidate a plea" (Blackstone): Shows how law shapes language (and vice versa).
- Synonyms: "To Avoid, Shun"—Webster distinguishes:
  - Avoid = passive ("keep clear of").
  - Shun = active ("intentionally evade").
  - Example: "So Chanticleer... shunned him as a sailor shuns the rocks." (Dryden) → The animal fable (Chanticleer the rooster) reinforces the idea of instinctive avoidance.
Psychological & Ethical Dimensions (5)
- "To keep away from" (Milton, Macaulay):
  - Milton: "What need a man forestall his date of grief, / And run to meet what he would most avoid?" → Paradox: Humans often seek out what they fear (self-sabotage).
  - Macaulay: "He carefully avoided every act which could goad them into open hostility." → Political prudence: Avoidance as a strategy to prevent conflict.

3. Literary Devices & Stylistic Features

While a dictionary entry may seem devoid of "literary" techniques, Webster employs several:

Etymological Storytelling
- Tracing "avoid" from Latin (ex + void) to Old French to English shows how language evolves like a living organism.
Juxtaposition of Quotations
- Placing Milton (epic poetry) next to Macaulay (history) and Dryden (fable) creates a collage of voices, showing how a word operates across genres.
Prescriptive vs. Descriptive Tension
- Webster judges usage ("avoided by good writers") but also documents obsolete meanings—balancing authority with historical record.
Metaphor & Extension
- "Avoid" moves from physical (empty a room) to abstract (avoid grief) to legal (invalidate a claim)—demonstrating semantic flexibility.

4. Themes & Significance

Language as Power & Control
- Webster’s dictionary was a nation-building tool, standardizing American English to unify a young country.
- His moralizing tone (e.g., warning against misusing "avocation") reflects Puritan influences—language should serve virtue.
Work, Duty, and Human Nature
- "Avocation" vs. "vocation" explores the hierarchy of labor—what society values as "primary" vs. "secondary" work.
- The shepherd vs. farmer contrast (Buckle) critiques instability, a common Enlightenment concern.
Avoidance as a Human Strategy
- The "avoid" entry reveals psychological and social dynamics:
  - Fear (Milton’s grief).
  - Conflict prevention (Macaulay’s hostility).
  - Legal maneuvering (Blackstone’s pleas).
- The synonyms section shows how nuance matters—"shun" is stronger than "avoid."
Historical & Cultural Artifact
- The obsolete terms ("avocative," "to empty") are linguistic fossils, showing how meanings die.
- The quotations serve as miniature time capsules, preserving the voices of Shakespeare, Milton, etc.

5. Why This Matters Today

Lexicography as Cultural History: Dictionaries aren’t neutral—they reflect biases (e.g., gender roles in "avocation").
Language Evolution: Words like "avoid" show how metaphors shape thought (e.g., "emptying" → "evading").
Power of Definition: Webster’s prescriptive approach influences how we think about correctness in language today.

Final Thought

This excerpt is more than a dry definition—it’s a microcosm of how language encodes history, morality, and power. Webster doesn’t just define words; he curates a vision of order, where precise language leads to a virtuous society. The tensions between obsolete and modern usages, prescription and description, and individual avocations vs. collective vocations make this passage a fascinating window into 19th-century American thought.

Would you like a deeper dive into any specific aspect (e.g., the legal uses of "avoid," or the gender implications in "avocation")?

Questions

Question 1

The passage’s treatment of "avocation" and "avoid" collectively suggests that Webster’s lexicographical project is fundamentally concerned with:

A. cataloguing the full historical range of a word’s usage, regardless of its contemporary relevance or moral implications.
B. demonstrating the inherent superiority of American English over British English through prescriptive grammatical rules.
C. imposing an Enlightenment-inflected moral and social order onto language, where precision in usage reflects broader virtues of stability and reason.
D. exposing the arbitrary nature of linguistic evolution by highlighting how words like "avoid" shift from concrete to abstract meanings without logical pattern.
E. advocating for the abolition of gendered distinctions in labor, as seen in Richardson’s comparison of men’s professions to women’s avocations.

Question 2

In the context of Buckle’s statement about "the wandering avocations of a shepherd" versus "the more fixed pursuits of agriculture," the passage most strongly implies that Webster’s dictionary:

A. uncritically endorses Buckle’s Enlightenment bias by framing nomadic livelihoods as inherently inferior to sedentary ones.
B. includes Buckle’s quote primarily to illustrate the word "avocation" without engaging with its ideological subtext about societal progress.
C. uses Buckle’s distinction to subtly reinforce a hierarchical view of labor, where stability and permanence are implicitly linked to moral and civilizational advancement.
D. contrasts Buckle’s perspective with Macaulay’s quote about soldiers returning to their avocations, thereby undermining the idea that fixed pursuits are inherently superior.
E. presents Buckle’s observation as an outdated relic, signaled by the inclusion of obsolete terms like "avocative" immediately afterward.

Question 3

The progression of definitions for "avoid"—from physical actions (e.g., "to empty") to abstract or legal concepts (e.g., "to invalidate a plea")—primarily serves to illustrate:

A. the inevitable decline of linguistic precision, as words lose their original concrete meanings over time.
B. the arbitrary nature of semantic change, where a word’s evolution is disconnected from its etymological roots.
C. the superiority of legal and moral applications of language, as evidenced by the prominence of Blackstone and Milton in the entry.
D. Webster’s preference for archaic usages, as he prioritizes historical depth over contemporary relevance.
E. how metaphorical extension allows a word to accumulate layers of meaning that reflect shifting human priorities, from bodily functions to social and psychological strategies.

Question 4

The distinction Webster draws between "avoid" and "shun" in the synonyms section is most analogous to the difference between:

A. a diplomat’s strategic silence and a protester’s outright refusal to engage with an oppressive regime.
B. a scholar’s disinterested analysis of a text and a critic’s passionate rejection of its ideological underpinnings.
C. a lawyer’s technical objection to a procedural error and a judge’s moral condemnation of the same error.
D. a parent’s gentle redirection of a child’s behavior and a teacher’s explicit prohibition of the same behavior.
E. a scientist’s empirical observation of a phenomenon and a philosopher’s speculative interpretation of its significance.

Question 5

The inclusion of Milton’s line—"What need a man forestall his date of grief, / And run to meet what he would most avoid?"—in the entry for "avoid" primarily functions to:

A. expose a paradox in human behavior, where the impulse to avoid suffering often manifests as its opposite, thereby complicating Webster’s otherwise prescriptive treatment of language.
B. provide a literary example of correct usage, reinforcing Webster’s argument that "avoid" should not be confused with "shun" in poetic contexts.
C. illustrate the psychological depth of the word "avoid," which Webster believes is best captured by canonical poets rather than historians or legal scholars.
D. contrast the spiritual dimensions of avoidance (as in Milton) with the mundane legal dimensions (as in Blackstone), thereby broadening the word’s applicability.
E. underscore the futility of avoidance as a strategy, a theme that Webster implicitly critiques in his insistence on linguistic and moral discipline.

Solutions and Explanations

1) Correct answer: C

Why C is most correct: The passage repeatedly ties linguistic precision to broader Enlightenment values. Webster’s prescriptive warnings (e.g., avoiding misusage of "avocation"), his inclusion of quotes that reinforce stability (Macaulay’s soldiers returning to "ordinary avocations"), and the moralizing tone of the synonyms section ("no man can pray... if he take no care to avoid it") all suggest that language, for Webster, is a tool for imposing order. This aligns with Enlightenment ideals of reason, progress, and social harmony, where even lexicography serves a didactic, almost disciplinary purpose.