The Pomp and Circumstance Marches are a set of orchestral music compositions by the English composer Sir Edward Elgar. “Each department has its own décor, ranging from the rain forest–themed to Elvis-themed, and employees are encouraged to decorate their work spaces. The 95 percent who turn down the $2,000 graduate in full ceremony to “Pomp andĬircumstance” in front of families and members of their new, nontraditional departments: Judging by the results of my inevitable Google search, pomp and ceremony continues to be the phrase of choice with writers of British English.New recruits offered shots of vodka during hiring interviews and offered $2,000 to quit after their first round of training (Chafkin, 2009). In the context of Othello’s speech, and therefore in the now frequently heard expression “pomp and circumstance,” circumstance has the meaning “formality that accompanies an important event.” The march we know as “Pomp and Circumstance” was used for the coronation of King Edward VII. He took his title for them– Pomp and Circumstance Military Marches–from Othello’s speech. In 1901, Sir Edward Elgar wrote some marches suitable for royal ceremonial occasions. Pride, pomp, and circumstance of glorious war! The spirit-stirring drum, th’ ear-piercing fife Othello, bemoaning the supposed infidelity of Desdemona, sees his world crumbling:įarewell the neighing steed, and the shrill trump, This is where the wheel of usage comes in.Ĭircumstance has an obsolete meaning of “formality about an important event.” This meaning was still current in Shakespeare’s day. The word circumstance comes from a Latin word meaning “surrounding condition.”Īccording to the common modern meaning, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to group “circumstance” with “pomp.” Circumstance is any condition or fact attending an event and having some bearing on it, while pomp is a “splendid display or celebration magnificent show or ceremony.” Pomp and ceremony is therefore an appropriate phrase to use in speaking about a coronation, a state funeral, or the launching of a battleship. It means “the performance of some solemn act according to prescribed form.” It derives from from Medieval Latin ceremonia, from Latin cærimonia “awe, reverent rite.” The word ceremony entered the language in the fourteenth century. The merging of the meaning of ceremony with circumstance in the expression pomp and circumstance is a curious case of “what goes around comes around”. I’ve seen many changes during my eighty years and frequently have trouble keeping up with it all. This makes no sense to me, unless they are referring to the Elgar marches that are often played. Nowadays I hear most commentators using “pomp and circumstance” even when talking about royal events. When I was growing up in England, the phrase “pomp and ceremony” was used when describing exciting pageantry and celebrations.
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