The Jersey Shore paradox: A brief note on a linguistic curiosity
In New Jersey, “the Shore” exists, but it can never be observed
The above image, from the “Terrible Maps” Facebook page, celebrates or satirizes a curious bit of New Jersey culture: Where people in other areas talk about “the beach,” New Jerseyans speak of “the shore”—or possibly, in conversation with a person from somewhere else, “the Jersey Shore.”
This is true—up to a point. There’s an interesting sort of Heisenberg uncertainty or quantum indeterminacy about “the shore” in New Jersey, which can be expressed this way: The Jersey Shore exists, but it can never be observed.
People in New Jersey tell you they’re going “to the shore”—or “going down shore,” another curious Jersey idiom—and when they get back they confirm that they’ve been “at the shore.” However, all of this is from the perspective of not actually being there. Once you’re there, it’s “the beach.”
In principle, communicating via phone or text or email with someone not at the shore, one could even say, “I’m at the shore.” But this is because the person is addressing the perspective of someone who isn’t there. In order to exist, the Jersey Shore must be contemplated from far away.
(For what it’s worth, I’m told that in Maryland it is possible to “go down the ocean,” while in Oregon one may be “headed for the coast.”)
We talk about “the shore” because it’s a whole culture. My husband grew up in Southern California, where they only have “the beach.” He loves the idea of “the shore” in NJ because it is a different culture, a different way of life, especially on the barrier islands.
One is also put in mind, or at least I am put in mind, of "Way Down East."