More than Words
Sticks and stones may break my body, but words can tear me apart. (thanks Mr Hannon)
How many times have you heard someone say it's political correctness gone mad? I've heard it more times than I'd care to mention, and I rarely think it's justified. The way people use the words that available to them disappoints me more than I'd care to think about. Glasgow slang can be a great thing, with the inventive use of rhyming slang developing in parallel with that of Cockney. However, I'm referring to the constantly bigoted and divisive language used without a second thought every day by people of all ages, colours and creeds.
OK, here's an example. There's a theft, a minor item has been stolen - what's the response to this by the man on the street? Thieving gypsy bastards. Now why would someone say that? Gypsy, which in itself is a derogatory term, refers to a particular ethnic group, doesn't it? Would it be acceptable to say Thieving black bastards? I don't think Mr Bloggs on the street would say that unless he was a racist and lived in an area renowned for crime. But somehow, it is acceptable to use the word gypsy. Gets on my goat. Likewise, Paki. I'm going to the Paki's. Change that to I'm going to the Black's. Doesn't sound so innocent now, does it?
And then there's the underhand insults of hun and fenian, so often heard on the streets of Glasgow. Friends will rib each other using these words, aware of the meanings and perpetuating the division the words accentuate. People are often heard to say that they don't mean anything by these words, but how can a word with such resonance end up devoid of meaning? Glasgow, unfortunately suffers from similar levels of catholic-protestant bigotry to those found in Northern Ireland, and this is continued by the school system.
But that's another blog entry for another day.
sisterphonetica
in musings, language
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11 Comments
Reader Comments (11)
i get particularly annoyed by the use of the word 'cunt' in a derogatory fashion
i get even more annoyed when people justify it as scottish/glaswegian vernacular
i have a cunt and can therefore refer to it as such whenever i please, it belongs to me and this is sometimes the name i choose to use
*genna steps down from her feminist soapbox after reclaiming the word cunt*
Using words that also denote ethnicity or some other division as negatives, while sometimes unfortunate, is in my opinion perfectly acceptable so long as those involved know exactly the intention of those using said word. In Glasgow, among many groups, Paki is not derogatory. In that context, why not use it? Always use the simplest construct understood (meaning and intention) by the audience.
The fenian and hun remarks are different, used almost exclusively as bigoted words with no second meaning.
One thought: the word Gay used to purely mean "happy" but now can no longer be used for that purely positive meaning since it almost exclusively means "homosexual". I'm not saying that that is in any way derogatory, but the original meaning has been skewed. Is that a bad thing? I think not, just the natural progress of language.
I don't want language to stand still, and I love slang and dialectal differences more than most. Using words with care and attention can't be that hard, can it?
p.s.
Call miss badger a *cunt* and she'll have a go at you!
P.S. I call my friends (including several of the GUFFers) cunts on a daily basis. They know in our circle that it is a term of endearment (and derogatory, depending on occassion). I wouldn't call anyone else it because I know how pissed off it gets people.
but then I pride myself on having sophisticated friends*
Also, interesting that you're anti-cunt, badgergirl - I'd've thought, given your art practice, that you might have liked the word, because, while it's taboo-ness comes out of negative attitudes to female genatalia, it's strength when compared to other taboo words is an interesting reversal of your usual phallocentricism, and therefore, maybe, its strength is a positive thing. To put it another way, cock, prick, etc. are comic deflations of the penis - you use those words to ridicule someone by comparison to male genitalia, by extension recognising the penis as ridiculous; but if you use cunt, your insult includes the implication that the person insulted is, in some way or another, cunt-like, as in powerful (cf. the Celtic gargoyles you get on churches, showing their cunts to ward off the devil!).
So, maybe, calling someone a cunt could be seen as analagous with the way your paintings and stuff deal with cuntness and power and male gazes and all that jazz. Or maybe not...
See also: A cultural history of 'cunt' by Matthew 'Thank God my name isn't Mike!' Hunt: http://www.matthewhunt.com/cunt.html
feminist artists judy chicago, miriam shapiro, linda benglis and others held workshops to 're-claim' the word cunt as a positive - i have always followed their lead and always use it as a positive
i guess it will always be a case of who says it, the manner in which it is said and its implied meaning but aint that the case with all words?
Hun is merely used as a *mildly* derogatory term for Rangers supporters. There is nothing wrong with using such terms as long as it's purely to do with football (and not religion).
Most other teams have equivalent description for fans of rival clubs so to specifically describe a word used by Celtic fans as bigotted is total ignorance.
However "fenian" is different. It is a term used to describe Catholics, therefore that is a sectarian word. I'd say the equivalent word among Celtic supporters to fenian is "orange" e.g. "fenian bastard", "orange bastard".