Any POSEURs About?

[Dr. Goodword]

• poseur •

Pronunciation: po-sêr • Hear it!

Part of Speech: Noun

Meaning: A person who pretends to be what he or she is not.

Notes: A charlatan or con artist pretends to be someone he or she is not in order to deceive. A poseur usually pretends to be someone better than he or she is in order to impress. Notice that, as opposed to the pronunciation of poser, someone who simply assumes a pose, the accent on today's word always falls on the final syllable. If you and your coconversationalists are good at French, you may pronounce the vowel in this syllable [œr] (the [e] of bet but with the lips rounded as if pronouncing O or U). We recommend against using the French feminine of this word, poseuse, no matter how good your French is.

In Play: Wherever you find pretense, you will find at least one poseur: "Mary Annette spoke of wine less as a connoisseur than as a poseur repeating phrases from a sommelier at a French restaurant." The good ones are difficult to spot: "It crossed my mind during my first year after graduation that I might have been taught by poseurs pretending to be professors rather than by real ones."

Word History: Today's Good Word is French poseur unadorned or modified. It is based on the verb poser "to pose, position something". This sense led to the sense of being in a composed, unnatural position (as to pose for a picture), which led to the sense of pretending to be something that we aren't. The French verb poser is the descendant of Late Latin pausare "to stop, rest", created from pausa "pause", another word English borrowed. But then Latin borrowed it from Greek pausis, so the former has no basis for complaint. (It is time for us to pause to thank the real David Ross for suggesting today's Good Word.)

[Stargzer]

Mary Prankster on Posers:

Punk Rock Heaven

Baby, you’re a poseur
Honey, I should know
You ask me where the shows are
But then you never go

Poseur purgatory
Awaits you at the end
But that’s not my story
I’ll tell you why, my friend

Got my Martens on with steely toes
Spike my hair and pierce my nose
I’m goin’ up to Punk Rock Heaven

Hippie Hell awaits you, Jack
Unless you take that tie-dye off your back
And jump the track to Punk Rock Heaven

The smack up there is pearly white
There’s always time to pick a fight
The leather pants are nice and tight
The Pistols play there every night

Got my guitar and my drum
Hey Johnny Thunders — here I come!
Comin’ up to Punk Rock Heaven

If I was you I tell you, son
I’d pierce my nipples with a staple gun
And make a run for Punk Rock Heaven

The smack up there is white as snow
Pack my bags, man — here I go!
Maybe in an hour or so
I’ll catch a G.G. Allin show

Hey every junky, punk and freak
If Manic Panic makes you weak
Then follow me and catch that train
Pleased to meet you, Kurt Cobain

I need a mohawked, tattooed, flannel-clad
Combat-booted lovely lad
To take me up to Punk Rock Heaven

While not a fan of a lot of Punk, Stargzer misses Our Lady of the Barflies, who has a magic way with lyrics, even if many of hers would make Lenny Bruce blush ...