Pendragon – Wordplay Wednesday™ 08/29/18

Flash in the Pan 

Let your imagination fire up with this week’s Wordplay word! Do you know anyone who is all flash and no flame? Your new secret word for them …

PENDRAGON (pen dragʹɘn) n. – supreme chief or leader; a title used in ancient Britain. [WW #179]

Interestingly, pendragon is not relegated to the archaic or obsolete bin in the dictionary. So, what we have here, is an amusing way to refer to oh-so-many faux leaders who, like dragons, love to flash their flames with little to show for it.

Its very reference to dragons makes one wonder why more isn’t offered in its definition, to denote a certain type of leader—at the very least, one to be respected for fierce, forbidding, or even cruel leadership.

On the other dragon wing, one might also envision a commanding yet benevolent ruler, if we’re to believe in legends and fairy tales. Could its origin have derived from “pensive dragon”? A fun and fanciful mashup.

Pendragon is a great word for fact or fiction, but of course, use it wisely, sparingly, and with tolerance, for with dragon in its origin, it still holds a certain enigmatic majesty.

Word Challenge: PENDRAGON.* Although you may want to apply this word with disrespect and derision, it would be sad to besmirch the reputation of the almighty ancient dragons. Perhaps playfully, or with grudging admiration is called for, as you fit pendragon into your week of powerful writings.

Learning knows no prejudices or boundaries, and it isn’t fattening! Expanding your mind is a no-cost, simple joy. Do you feel that way too? What’s your inspiration? Share your creative genius and Wordplay Wednesday comments below.

Write first for yourself … only then can you write for others. (L.Rochelle) 

'Til next time ... Cheers to a wonderful "wordful" week … 

                       

@PenchantForPen

@Irishwriter

* BTW, Pendragon can be a surname or reference any number of books and TV series titles, so do be solicitous of your usage. However, with Halloween on the moon’s horizon, you may be interested in a costume! 

LinDee Rochelle is a writer and editor by trade, and an author by way of Rock & Roll. She has published two books (of three) in her Blast from Your Past series, available on Amazon (eBook and print): Book 1 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The First Five Years 1954-1959; and Book 2 – Rock & Roll Radio DJs: The Swinging Sixties. Coming soon, … The Psychedelic Seventies!

E-N-Dzzzzzzzz

Wordplay Wednesday™ August 5, 2015 – Firedrake

Definitely NOT “Puff the Magic Dragon”

Engrossed in news of the California wildfires, I mourned the loss of so much beauty in my childhood stomping grounds.

Memories flooded my mind and thinking about the fires, its causes, and its fierceness, my imagination slid into overdrive … and into the fire … firedrakes that is … dragons!

FIREDRAKE (-drākʹ; Mythology) n. fire-breathing dragon.

I drifted back to my youth, when reading books meant sitting outside, surrounded by timeworn trees. California Black Oak, fir trees, and dense Manzanita brush on the hills in front of me, concealed fairies and leprechauns, princes and princesses, castles, dungeons, mermaids, all sorts of strange creatures from active imaginations. Always with a happy ending.

Absorbed in the pages of Grimms’ Fairy Tales with the maiden-eating dragon (“The Two Brothers,” 1812), and Lewis Carroll’s nonsensical poem that gave us a fierce Jabberwock, with "jaws that bite," "claws that catch," and "eyes of flame" (Through the Looking-Glass, 1871), my heart raced as I envisioned dangerous denizens and dragons.

The epic poem of Beowulf, who defeated the fire breathing dragon, appeared in my mind as I watched a newsclip of streaming flames. Wildfires are our modern day dragons and firefighters are our brave warriors who slay them.

Wordplay Wednesday™ July 15, 2015 – UNDINE: defines Ariel

Do you know that Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid” is about an UNDINE? It’s true! (Get your minds out of the gutter – not undies.) 

undine (un dēn) – n. coined by Paracelsus for a water spirit in his alchemical system; a wave; folklore: a female water spirit who can acquire a soul, by marrying and having a child by a mortal. [Human soul of course, as opposed to a fish-soul; do fish have souls?]

Mermaids, Nereids and *naiads, are all species of undines and enjoy the legends of nymphs *“… living in and giving life to springs, fountains, rivers, and lakes,” says Webster.

Apparently life underwater, swimming with Flipper isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, causing the undines to desire a human soul. But relinquishing those cool mermaid tails for legs – well, is that such a great idea? Consider ...