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*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century 14th Century]
==Definitions==
*1a : the [[act]] or [[practice]] of flattering
:b (1) : something that flatters (2) : insincere or excessive praise
*2: obsolete : a pleasing [[self]]-[[deception]]
==Description==
'''Flattery''' (also called adulation or blandishment) is the [[act]] of giving excessive compliments, generally for the [[purpose]] of ingratiating oneself with the subject.
Historically, flattery has been used as a [[standard]] form of [[discourse]] when addressing a [[king]] or queen. In the [[Renaissance]], it was a common practice among [[writers]] to flatter the reigning monarch, as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Spenser Edmund Spenser] flattered [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Elizabeth_I Queen Elizabeth I] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Faerie_Queene The Faerie Queene], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare William Shakespeare] flattered [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_I_of_England King James I] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macbeth Macbeth] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli Niccolò Machiavelli] flattered [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenzo_II_di_Piero_de%27_Medici Lorenzo II di Piero de' Medici], ruler of Florence and Duke of Urbino, in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prince The Prince].
Flattery is also used in pick-up lines used to attempt to initiate [[romantic]] [[courtship]].
Most associations with flattery, however, are [[negative]]. Negative descriptions of flattery range at least as far back in [[history]] as The [[Bible]]. In the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Comedy Divine Comedy], Dante depicts flatterers wading in human excrement, stating that their [[words]] were the equivalent of excrement, in the 8th Circle of Hell.
An insincere flatterer is a stock character in many [[literary]] works. Examples include [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gr%C3%ADma_Wormtongue Wormtongue] from J. R. R. Tolkien's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings The Lord of the Rings], Goneril and Regan from King Lear, and Iago from Othello.
"To flatter" is also used to refer to artwork or clothing that makes the subject or wearer [[appear]] more [[attractive]].
[[Category: General Reference]]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/14th_century 14th Century]
==Definitions==
*1a : the [[act]] or [[practice]] of flattering
:b (1) : something that flatters (2) : insincere or excessive praise
*2: obsolete : a pleasing [[self]]-[[deception]]
==Description==
'''Flattery''' (also called adulation or blandishment) is the [[act]] of giving excessive compliments, generally for the [[purpose]] of ingratiating oneself with the subject.
Historically, flattery has been used as a [[standard]] form of [[discourse]] when addressing a [[king]] or queen. In the [[Renaissance]], it was a common practice among [[writers]] to flatter the reigning monarch, as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edmund_Spenser Edmund Spenser] flattered [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Elizabeth_I Queen Elizabeth I] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Faerie_Queene The Faerie Queene], [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare William Shakespeare] flattered [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_I_of_England King James I] in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macbeth Macbeth] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niccol%C3%B2_Machiavelli Niccolò Machiavelli] flattered [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lorenzo_II_di_Piero_de%27_Medici Lorenzo II di Piero de' Medici], ruler of Florence and Duke of Urbino, in [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prince The Prince].
Flattery is also used in pick-up lines used to attempt to initiate [[romantic]] [[courtship]].
Most associations with flattery, however, are [[negative]]. Negative descriptions of flattery range at least as far back in [[history]] as The [[Bible]]. In the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Comedy Divine Comedy], Dante depicts flatterers wading in human excrement, stating that their [[words]] were the equivalent of excrement, in the 8th Circle of Hell.
An insincere flatterer is a stock character in many [[literary]] works. Examples include [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gr%C3%ADma_Wormtongue Wormtongue] from J. R. R. Tolkien's [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lord_of_the_Rings The Lord of the Rings], Goneril and Regan from King Lear, and Iago from Othello.
"To flatter" is also used to refer to artwork or clothing that makes the subject or wearer [[appear]] more [[attractive]].
[[Category: General Reference]]
