Changes

See also: microphone gaffe

See also: microphone gaffe

A gaffe is a verbal mistake, usually made in a social environment. The mistake may come from saying something that is true, but inappropriate. It may also be an erroneous attempt to [[reveal]] a [[truth]]. Finally, gaffes can be [[malapropisms]], grammatical errors or other verbal and gestural weaknesses or [[revelation]]s through [[body language]]. Actually revealing [[fact]]ual or social truth through words or body language, however, can commonly result in embarrassment or, when the gaffe has negative connotations, friction between people involved.

A gaffe is a verbal mistake, usually made in a social environment. The mistake may come from saying something that is true, but inappropriate. It may also be an erroneous attempt to [[Revelation|reveal]] a [[truth]]. Finally, gaffes can be [[malapropisms]], grammatical errors or other verbal and gestural weaknesses or [[revelation]]s through [[body language]]. Actually revealing [[fact]]ual or social truth through words or body language, however, can commonly result in embarrassment or, when the gaffe has negative connotations, friction between people involved.

A grammatical or literary error is more embarrassing in the company of [[intellectuals]], professors or serious students, just as errors of [[science]] can be embarrassing among scientists or doctors. The protagonist attorney in the film Liar Liar plays on the [[nature]] of [[truth]] [[revelation]], however, and its ambiguous or unexpected consequences.

A grammatical or literary error is more embarrassing in the company of [[intellectuals]], professors or serious students, just as errors of [[science]] can be embarrassing among scientists or doctors. The protagonist attorney in the film Liar Liar plays on the [[nature]] of [[truth]] [[revelation]], however, and its ambiguous or unexpected consequences.

As used by some journalists, particularly sportswriters, "gaffe" becomes an imagined synonym for any kind of mistake, e.g., a dropped ball by a player in a baseball game. Philosophers and psychologists interested in the nature of the gaffe include [[Freud]] and [[Gilles Deleuze]]. Deleuze, in his ''Logic of Sense'', places the gaffe in a developmental [[process]] that can culminate in stuttering.

As used by some journalists, particularly sportswriters, "gaffe" becomes an imagined synonym for any kind of mistake, e.g., a dropped ball by a player in a baseball game. Philosophers and psychologists interested in the nature of the gaffe include [[Freud]] and [[Gilles Deleuze]]. Deleuze, in his ''Logic of Sense'', places the gaffe in a developmental [[process]] that can culminate in stuttering.

==References==

==References==