Colloquial exclamations can defuse a hostile cross-examination

Evidence

When Facher showed her a list of a hundred scientific studies and asked which ones she had reviewed, Byers said, “Holy Toledo!” When he asked how many different kinds of leukemia there were, she said, “Jeepers! There are many kinds. It depends whether you’re a splitter or a lumper.” Several times she exclaimed, “Bingo!” and “You betcha!” when she happened to agree with something Facher said. — , Harr Jonathan - A Civil Action, 1415

Categorization

• CANDY: A witness answering a hundred-study question with ‘Holy Toledo!’ is instantly retellable at a dinner table.
• SHARE: Worth sending to anyone who does litigation or expert-witness prep — the vernacular defense is a real tactic.
• XREF: connects to: Oral codifications with a few words can successfully drive thematic investigation — Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 389; One utterance can simultaneously produce adequation and distinction — Mary Bucholtz and Kira Hall, Identity and Interaction: A…, 81

Broader Connections

• One utterance can simultaneously produce adequation and distinction #epitomizes (1.00) — Mary Bucholtz and Kira Hall, Identity and Interaction, 81
• Oral codifications with a few words can successfully drive thematic investigation #expands (0.95) — Paulo Freire, Pedagogy of the Oppressed, 389