ABSTRACT
The key relationship of John Ruskin's later life was his intimate domestic friendship with his cousin Joan Severn. Ruskin scholars have long been struck by his 'baby-talk', one of the terms he coined to describe his infantile idiolect. How his critics and editors have responded to and dealt with this language has differed markedly. The baby-talk letters are infused with Ruskin's delight in their complicity; when sharing in this private, linguistic adventure 'Donie' and 'Doanie' were being naughty but essentially harmless children together. The baby-talk evident in the letters to his cousin is jarring, even distasteful, when removed from its natural place, embedded within the dynamic, ever-evolving correspondence. This is one reason why many critics have expressed a sinister opinion on Ruskin's baby-talk. 'Mewy letters' was an alternate term for baby-talk. It was probably derived from Joan's earliest pet-name, 'Pussy', it was also a concrete device used overtly by Ruskin when he recognized that he was being particularly playfully petulant.
