Necessary Lies Glossary

Necessary Lies Glossary

eugenics

Discredited pseudo-science popular at the turn of the 20th century which advocated a policies of selective breeding as a means of genetically weeding out undesirable traits and which formed the basis of Nazi ideology regarding ideas about racial purity and superiority.

harried

Harassed and put-upon.

sterilization

Medical procedures that permanently render a man or woman incapable of producing offspring.

helter-skelter

Haphazardly; scattershot; in a completely random manner.

velveteen

A fabric that resembles velvet but is derived from cotton.

rheumatism

A painful condition caused by inflammation of fibrous connective tissue in the joints.

flustrated

Characterizing that specific feeling of being flustered and frustrated at the same time. Not a contemporary invented word to suit the author's whims, the etymology of flustrated dates back at least to the 1700s.

skeeter

Southern US patois for a member of the omnipresent flying pest "mosquito."

pediatrician

A doctor specializing in the medical care and treatment of children.

futile

Hopeless, pointless, useless or impractical.

orientation

An introductory tour offered to first time visitors to acclimate them to the geographical layout or floor plan of a location.

epilepsy

Neurological condition featuring sympoms ranging from convulsions to sudden loss of consciousness. r

smoldering

Relating to the effects of burning either literally as the result of a fire or metaphorically as the result of a fiery desire.

feebleminded

Derogatory term comprehensively covering a number of mental and neurological conditions affecting or seeming to affect cognitive functioning.

institution

The polite euphemism commonly used to describe any center where those deemed mentally defective were kept away from society under the pretense of offering treatment or humane care.

trifle

An insignificant triviality hardly worthy of serious concern or discourse.

superficial

Lacking depth and concerned only with the most basic elements or outward appearances.

spurious

Seemingly logical and valid, but on closer scrutiny illogical and invalid.

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