A daily blog commenting on words that we use in everyday speech.

There are some words that carry deeper meanings.  You can look them up in a dictionary and find their literal meanings.  But these words have an attached “edge” to them.  Obsequious is one of them.

It is one thing to be polite and respectful of someone.  That’s to be expected in a civilized society.   But when one is obsequious it means something else.  There is a sickening, nauseating element added, in which the person is groveling before someone, almost literally crawling on (his) belly in front of them.  Granted, it is more a metaphorical term than a literal one, but when someone is obsequious, it is hard to hold back the nausea.

Monarchies have traditions which require a slight bow or curtsy before the monarch, such as before the Queen of England.  It is expected that when meeting the Queen one makes such a gesture and waits for her to extend her hand before assuming that a handshake is in order.   It’s just a tradition, and no one would be beheaded if they failed to comply.  They just might never be invited back again.  And the British press would howl for 24 hours or so.

But to be obsequious is to grovel, in the sense of fawning over someone, saying all the right things to make it sound like the person is divine, or, in contemporary language, just plain “sucking up” to them.   So many times the obsequious moment feels as if it has something attached to it.  The person doing the groveling has an agenda, and is seeking to curry favor with the exalted one.

You don’t have to be dealing with monarchs to experience obsequious behavior.   In the last presidential election there was a period when Republicans were obsequious in their commentary and behavior around Paul Ryan, the candidate for Vice President.   Everything he said was treated as Gospel, and repeated with gushing praise by those who wanted to “be on his team.”   The fact is that sometimes the things Ryan said were trite, incorrect, and condescending.   Any thinking person around him should have been wary of him.    But it became the norm for his followers to fawn over him and proclaim him to be the best thing to happen to America in a long, long time.

To be fair, there are people on the other side of the aisle who are guilty of the same thing.  They see President Obama as some kind of God, who can do no wrong.  The reality is that he is human and he makes mistakes.   Those who are obsequious about him are delusional.   He would be the first to say so.  And Michelle Obama would agree. It’s fun sometimes to see her roll her eyes a little when he says something that is near or over the top.

There is no reward for obsequious behavior beyond the moment.  Smart people in important places soon learn about the shallowness of such commentary and behavior.   Those who are fawning over them are soon overlooked and seldom rewarded with a job in the administration.  It’s a dangerous personal behavior.

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Cartoon Credit:  Garfield, by Jim Davis

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