Avatar, James ­Cameron's blockbusting 3D film, is both profoundly silly and profound. It's ­profound because, like most films about aliens, it is a metaphor for contact between different human ...

The etymology of “mawkish” really opens up a can of worms—or, more properly, maggots. The “mawk” of “mawkish” derives from Middle English “mawke,” which means “maggot.” “Mawke,” in its turn, developed ...