Whitewash
Whitewashing means making a bad thing look better in terms of speech or text. A whitewater tries to present them in a favorable light that does not correspond to the truth.
Profession of the whitewashers
The term comes from the medieval professional language of dyers . The black dyers who knew how to achieve a deep black were special professional groups. It was the whitewashers who understood and who were entitled to do the beautiful red tones of the dyeing of valuable fabrics. So there were separate guilds of black and fairing dyers, who distinguished themselves from the “unclean” and simply working dyers. Other difficult shades were also part of the proper whitewashing. In addition, the whiteners succeeded in simulating less valuable fabrics with a more beautiful color and the impression of better quality. Sometimes the woad dyers belonged to the guilds of the fair dyers. The Waidhaus or dyer had knowledge from the vat of Färberwaids run the blue dyeing of fabrics.
Figurative meaning
In modern times, the term has been transferred to the euphemistic reshaping of unfavorable topics. A glossing over, whitewashing representation is not limited to a specific use of language or a single topic, but can be found everywhere in writing and language. One form of whitewash are euphemistic expressions , e.g. B. can be used in the public sector in politics and in business. This means that taboo topics are avoided in everyday life . Another area of application of whitewashing are descriptive representations in advertising and in sales talks , when undesirable effects are converted into a positive opinion through skillful formulation . Current whitewashing occurs in the form of bigotry or hypocrisy.
Green dyeing
A separate and new form of whitewashing in the figurative sense is green dyeing, a word formation in German based on the English term greenwashing . Such elaborations aim to give a company a particularly environmentally friendly image . This is done in particular when the company is in no way environmentally friendly. The word sustainable is also predominantly misused.
“The advertising scam of environmental sinners.
Deliberately misleading the public, which allows profit maximization while at the same time destroying the environment. The simple procedure is equally suitable for companies and politicians. "
Individual evidence
- ^ Knaur: The German dictionary. Lexigraphisches Institut München 1985, page 858.
- ↑ JG Krünitz et al: Economic Encyclopedia or General System of State, City, House and Agriculture, in alphabetical order. Volume 12.
- ↑ Duden 7, Mannheim 1963, page 156.
- ↑ Guild book of the black and fairer guild in Weida and Zeitz. German handwriting on paper. Weida / Zeitz 1693-1870.
- ↑ JHL Bergius: New Policey and Cameral magazine in alphabetical order.
- ↑ Duden: whitewashing.
- ↑ Monster Wave.
- ↑ Full throttle into the greenhouse.
- ↑ No more green dyeing. ( Memento of the original from December 1, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Green dyeing. ( Memento of the original from April 5, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
