breaking dawn

[Xavier da Silva]

Hello everyone,


1. I already know the definition of "dawn" according to Longman Dictionary: ''the time at the beginning of the day when light first appears.''

2. There is also the expression "dawn breaks", which I think means "the first light of the day appears."


3. My question: I think the meaning of "breaking dawn" is "dawn" that is "starting", in other words, "breaking" is an adjective which implies that "dawn" is "starting". Could you confirm that?


Thank you in advance!

 

[Hau Ruck]

It's a somewhat 'poetic' way to say "dawn is breaking" (dawn breaks).

 

[Myridon]

It's not a standard phrasing in English but an invention of the author. From the Wikipedia page on the book

The title, Breaking Dawn, is a reference to the beginning of Bella's life as a newborn vampire. Originally, Meyer wanted to title the book Forever Dawn, but she thought the name was very "cheesy". Wanting to add a "sense of disaster" to the title to match the novel's mood, she called it Breaking Dawn. Another reason for giving the book this particular title is that it matches the book's plot, which centers around "a new awakening and a new day and there's also a lot of problems inherent in it".

 

[Hau Ruck]

It's not a standard phrasing in English but an invention of the author. From the Wikipedia page on the book

I wouldn't say it's so much of an invention as just her word play.

There are other examples of doing such a thing.

Breaking Bad
Breaking Benjamin

I'm sure there are other examples that I can't think of off the top of my head. It's not so much an 'invention' as it's just a liberty taken by a poet/artist/writer. That's quite common in title and even in the content of works.

 

[Myridon]

You're interpreting my use of "invention" rather strictly as if I mean she invented the word "breaking" followed by another word. I certainly didn't mean that.

There are other examples of doing such a thing.

Breaking Bad
Breaking Benjamin

Very nice examples, except I have no idea what the name of that TV show (I have watched it) or that rock band (I have listened to their music) actually mean.
Dawn breaks in an instant so we don't often talk about the "breaking dawn" (or "the breaking egg" etc.) but I suppose we could - The breaking vase made a terrible noise.

 

[Hau Ruck]

Breaking bad (habits or 'ways') I would assume.
and Breaking the boy named Benjamin (I'd assume physically)

Of course, they are both assumptions on my part. Isn't art great?

 

[clydekant]

I wouldn't say it's so much of an invention as just her word play.

There are other examples of doing such a thing.

Breaking Bad
Breaking Benjamin

I'm sure there are other examples that I can't think of off the top of my head. It's not so much an 'invention' as it's just a liberty taken by a poet/artist/writer. That's quite common in title and even in the content of works.

Excuse me but these are wrong examples.
As found in Urban Dictionary Breaking Bad has a different meaning.
- Break bad
Comes from the American Southwest slang phrase "to break bad," meaning to challenge conventions, to defy authority and to skirt the edges of the law.
eg "What, you just decided to break bad one day?"

in another case, it could mean even "go crazy".
This is perfectly in line with the broad meaning of the tv show, where there is a guy who actually both go crazy and challenge conventions, defying authority and skirting the edges of the law.