Hi folks, Please help me with the usage of the language in the following. Thanks. "When the "Jazz History of the World." was over, girls were putting their heads on men's shoulders in a puppyish, convivial way, girls were swooning backward playfully into men's arms, even into groups, knowing that someone would arrest their falls but no one swooned backward on Gatsby, and no French bob touched Gatsby's shoulder, and no singing quartets were formed with Gatsby's head for one link." "I think he hardly knew what he was saying, for when I asked him what business he was in he answered, 'That's my affair,' before he realized that it wasn't the appropriate reply." "In this heat every extra gesture was an affront to the common store of life." Do people use them in these ways nowadays? I am more familiar with the terms like "heart-arresting moment" and "That's my business." "My affair" sounds odd to me when I think in the context of someone having an affair. I need clarification on "the common store of life." Could it be the accumulation of energy or the common value of life as in "lay or set store by?" http://dialectblog.com/2013/06/11/youre-causing-a-row/ The continuity of the English language is well worth exploring, and I am particularly fascinated by the transformation and adaptation of English semantics over time in the modern era. Compared with Elizabethan English, does a more significant readership impact Victorian English's readability besides a closer timeframe to the modern era? Do you have any recommendations for reading besides the introductory linguistics books?