Word: softened
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Except for this overdone portrayal, the characterizations are penetrating. Mark Bramhall's movements and changes of tone demonstrate Dick Dudgeon's energetic honesty. His smile is perfect: it can soften into kindness, flash a satiric comment on his own words, or reveal a spirited man who impetuously offers to sacrifice his life. Micheal Ehrhardt plays General Burgoyne, a character whose ability to mock an absurd situation resembles Dick's; he is impressive in his dignity, biting in his wit. Even Pamela Harris's opening gesture foreshadows the careful details of her performance: she awakens, and consciously assumes her dour, self...
...Harvard Review's issue on consciousness-expanding drugs turned out to be a veritable gold mine, as the Review spread as far as the opium dens of Hong Kong. Anything following was bound to be something of an anti-climax, although the editors tried to soften the anticipated thud by focusing on Communist China, a topic fascinating in its own right. Yet the fall-winter edition of the Review is disappointing even by pre-drug issue standards...
...sees in his great pupil "a body of very beautiful and tender and expressive lines" and a soul of "great content." Beyond that, he has to struggle to praise her enough. "She is a lyric-dramatic dancer," he says, searching for words. "When I speak of lyric-dramatic, I soften the contours of lyric by adding dramatic and soften the contours of dramatic by adding lyric. But in this instance I wouldn't want them softened...
...popcorn on a hot stove. Many viewed De Gaulle's arbitrary action, undertaken without consulting his NATO allies, as simply a cheap way for France to demonstrate its independence in foreign affairs. Washington maintains that the French move is both mischievous and unwise because 1) it will not soften Red China's militancy or even necessarily help trade (the Dutch have formal trade relations with China, but sell less there than do the Belgians, who have none); 2) it upsets the "very fragile balance" in the Far East and can have incalculable repercussions around the Chinese perimeter...
Some Objections. Many union leaders feel that such plans tend to make workers feel like managers and soften labor's punch in collective bargaining (wage hikes and extra benefits, after all, come out of profits). The U.A.W. rank and file was disappointed that last week's American Motors payout was slightly less than last year, and Reuther, in negotiation with the Big Three, may be willing to trade off his profit-sharing demand if he can win shorter hours or higher wages. Some executives begrudge profit sharing to workers who (they think) do less to increase earnings than...