In Chapter 1, Scout describes her hometown of Maycomb, Alabama. She says that Maycomb was a small, old town where people moved slowly. Scout says that in the summer the weather could become extremely hot to the point that men's stiff collars would wilt by nine in the morning. The ladies of Maycomb were gentle Southern Belles who would bathe at noon and fan themselves on their porches after they took their naps. People were in no hurry because there was nothing to do in Maycomb. Scout also mentions that people had little to no money to spend because of the economic crisis. No much in Maycomb had changed since the Civil War and most of the businesses were situated around the town center. Maycomb is also a rather melancholy town which is a common element of Southern Gothic literature. Since nothing goes on in the small town, most of the attention is focused on the controversial trial of Tom Robinson.
Does anybody know the etymology of the phrase "sweet dreams"? I tried googling but did not find anything satisfying. Is this a relatively new phrase of the modern world or has this been in use for some time? I think it's the latter one. Answer The OED has the interjection as "a farewell to someone going to bed" from the 20th century: 1908 Sears Roebuck Catal. 198/1 Tenor Solos..Good Bye, Sweet Dreams, Good Bye. But it goes back until at least the 19th and possibly 18th centuries. John Wolcot, writing under the pseudonym of Peter Pindar, used it in his poem "Orson and Ellen; A Legendary Tale" published in 1801: Also from 1801 in The infernal Quixote (Page 287) by Charles Lucas: In the March 1776 of The Universal Magazine was published "The Serenade. A Pastoral Tale. From the German of Gesner" , where the shepherd Daphnis watches over his beloved as she sleeps and sings: The same tale appears in 1776's as Idyl XI, " Daphnis ...
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