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"unnecessary" quotation marks

UserPost

11:03AM
Sep-23-09


dilettante

Member

posts 267

12:00PM
Sep-23-09


Glenn

Admin

posts 1148

Post edited 5:35PM – Sep-23-09 by Glenn


Decades ago in my college cafeteria they were renovating the dish room equipment. For several weeks plastic bins were placed out to accept the plates and flatware. There were four bins, each with a one-word sign, all bearing unnecessary quotation marks: "DISHES"; "KNIVES"; "FORKS"; "SPOONS".

Someone (unknown to me) had the stroke of genius to attribute the quotes:
"DISHES" – Twain
"KNIVES" – Freud
"FORKS" – Goethe
"SPOONS" – Shakespeare

Now, whenever I see a sign entirely in unnecessary quotes, as is the "'May I help you?'" sign on the website, I exercise my mind to come up with the figure who might likely, or comically, have uttered the words.

For example:
"May I help you?" – Mother Theresa
"May I help you?" – Goebbels