retinitis pigmentosum

chained_bear Apparently it's acceptable in some circles, somewhere, because it got printed. (Surely Ms. Gabaldon has a team of pretty good editors, considering all the weird stuff in her mammoth books.) Jan 21, 2010

reesetee Okay, mollusque, you win. I'm merely reporting my observations. Jan 21, 2010

mollusque "Valid variation"? Not in Latin or medical English. Words ending in -itis are feminine, so the adjective should be in feminine form. Compare *itis *osa and *itis *osum* on Onelook. Words ending in -derma are neuter, hence the -um ending with "xeroderma pigmentosum". Jan 21, 2010

chained_bear I don't know about that, sionnach. This whole series, as I said, takes place mostly in the Highlands or among Highlanders in the 1700s. Where Glaswegians, French, or people of other groups/accents appear, these "flavor" words are sprinkled throughout their speech. I find it helpful to identify who's talking at any given time, in addition to helping me hear the "music" of the accents.

I'd also argue this author isn't that lazy, as she uses Scots Gaelic words and phrases all over the place too. What exactly do you mean by "Highland cred"? Does one have to be brought up in the accent in order to write a character who speaks with it? That hardly seems fair.

Moreover, the list isn't a valid representation of her writing, since these bits I've been adding are the ones (naturally) that contain weird words, Scots slang, etc. Jan 20, 2010

sionnach "I canna make out objects at all. Still, the light of the sun causes me pain, so I must shield my eyes when venturing out...."

Hoots mon, och aye! There needs should be a moratorium on the use of cliches like "canna" by lazy authors trying to establish their Highland cred. Jan 20, 2010

reesetee Why, everyone's eyeballs need editing, bilby. Haven't you had yours done?

Chained: Aha! That explains my confusion over some of the excerpts you've posted. Jan 20, 2010

chained_bear Oh. Yet again I'm reminded to explain that this series involves people (well, one person really) time-traveling from 1940s Britain to 1740s Scotland and France to 1940s-50s-60s Boston to 1760s Scotland, Indies, and Carolina backcountry.... That might explain some of the weirdnesses of language. Or maybe not. Jan 20, 2010

bilby Whose eyeballs needed editing? Jan 20, 2010

reesetee As I recall from my eyeball editing days, this is a valid variation of retinitis pigmentosa--although not used frequently these days. Jan 20, 2010

chained_bear Dunno. I prefer to think it's because the character is a physician but not an ophthalmologist. Jan 19, 2010

mollusque Should be "retinitis pigmentosa". Maybe Gabaldon confused the spelling with "xeroderma pigmentosum"? Jan 19, 2010

chained_bear "'I can see nothing but light,' she explained. 'I canna make out objects at all. Still, the light of the sun causes me pain, so I must shield my eyes when venturing out....'

That answered some of my speculations concerning her blindness, though didn't entirely assuage them. Retinitis pigmentosum? I wondered with interest, as I followed her...."
—Diana Gabaldon, Drums of Autumn (NY: Dell, 1997), 182 Jan 19, 2010