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Discussion Groups / English Usage / November 2008BrE: He had done for himself
Hello: The "he had ... done for himself" does it mean "he really served/pleased himself [perhaps ironical]" or "he really did a great damage for himself, i.e. he's finished" here? ------ "Jolyon, he will have his own way. He's got no children"--and stopped, recollecting the continued existence of old Jolyon's son, young Jolyon, June's father, who had made such a mess of it, and done for himself by deserting his wife and child and running away with that foreign governess. Forsyte Saga 1: Man of Property, p. 11 by John Galsworthy http://www.dailylit.com/books/forsyte-saga-1-man-of-property/4 ------- Thanks. Marius Hancu >Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >"he really did a great damage for himself, i.e. he's finished" >here? The second. do, v. 38. do for b. To ruin, damage, or injure fatally, destroy, wear out entirely. colloq. Now freq. in pass. Also done-for adj. >------ >"Jolyon, he will have his own way. He's got no children"--and stopped, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >Thanks. >Marius Hancu  SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.usage.english) On Nov 29, 6:50 pm, "Peter Duncanson (BrE)" <m...@peterduncanson.net> wrote: > >The "he had ... done for himself" > >does it mean [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > >June's father, who had made such a mess of it, and done for himself by > >deserting his wife and child and running away with that foreign governess. Thank you all. Marius Hancu In message <d3b5f126-7640-4029-b70f-31c8b0e47a54@l42g2000yqe.googlegroups.com>, Marius Hancu <Marius.Hancu@gmail.com> writes >On Nov 29, 6:50 pm, "Peter Duncanson (BrE)" <m...@peterduncanson.net> >wrote: [quoted text clipped - 22 lines] >Thank you all. >Marius Hancu In this passage, maybe you could say 'ruined/damaged/destroyed his reputation'? SignatureIan >Hello: > >The "he had ... done for himself" >does it mean >"he really did a great damage for himself, i.e. he's finished" >here? Yep. >------ >"Jolyon, he will have his own way. He's got no children"--and stopped, [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] >Thanks. >Marius Hancu SignatureTony Cooper - Orlando, Florida >>Hello: >> [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > >Yep. According to the OED, "yep" is an American word that goes back to 1891, first found in "Harper's Magazine" of all places. "Yup", a variation, goes back to 1906. <snip> SignatureRegards, Chuck Riggs Near Dublin, Ireland > The "he had ... done for himself" does it mean > "he really served/pleased himself [perhaps ironical]" or > "he really did a great damage for himself, i.e. he's finished" here? The second. He had ruined himself. The phrase can mean "killed himself", but not here. > ------ > "Jolyon, he will have his own way. He's got no children"--and [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > by John Galsworthy > http://www.dailylit.com/books/forsyte-saga-1-man-of-property/4 |
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