"Dismissing one's critics as prissy pearl-clutchers is hardly new, as anyone who's gotten into online political fights is well aware. But lately it seems to have graduated to the top levels of government. And it's not just MAGA: Jasmine Crockett, John Fetterman, and other Democrats have also thrown around the term. The phrase resonates because it's both effective and evocative, making your opponent look foolish while conjuring a very specific, funny image of an upper-crust socialite type who's scandalized-or pretending to be-by some supposed transgression."
""This phrase is an easy way to dismiss any kind of criticism," says Deborah Tannen, a professor in Georgetown University's linguistics department and author of The Argument Culture: Stopping America's War of Words. It's about "undermining your critics rather than taking them head-on." Tannen notes the phrase's tinge of misogyny-negatively connecting the target "with women, and-even more dismissable-women's association with trivial, frivolous baubles like a pearl necklace.""
Political figures frequently label critics as "pearl-clutchers" to dismiss objections and deflate outrage. The phrase has spread across party lines and reached high levels of government, appearing in responses from both Republicans and Democrats. The wording evokes an upper-crust socialite image, framing critics as overly prissy or frivolous and making opponents look foolish. Linguists characterize the term as a tactic that undermines critics rather than addressing arguments directly. The phrase also carries a tinge of misogyny by associating criticism with women and trivial adornments. Researchers trace metaphorical uses back to a 1979 issue of Off Our Backs.
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