Re[3]: Semantics

[Joyce Flaherty <flahertj -at- SMTPGW -dot- LIEBERT -dot- COM>]

     Arlen's message appended, RE new words to replace
     words that are considered politically incorrect
     ===============================================

     I agree with Arlen again.  Boy oh boy, what next?  Twice now.

     About 212 years ago I had a philosophy prof who said, "We cannot
     experience something until we give it a label."  I didn't fully
     understand what he meant, which is probably why it stayed with
     me.  A bit later I filled a liberal arts humanities requirement
     with a Greek mythology course, in which I was introduced to the
     Greek word *aphros* which is the scum or foam that rides atop an
     ocean wave as it washes ashore.  Since I was young enough to
     introspect, ponder, meditate, I decided that until that time I
     did not experience "the scum or foam that rides atop an ocean wave
     as it washes ashore" because I never had an English label for it.

     Now, if my prof (who has surely died twice by now) was correct, then
     Arlen is also correct.  Once the attitude or concept has a label,
     eliminating the label will surely cause another label to surface.
     Only eliminating the attitude will cause the label to pass to the
     historical archives.

     Finally, if my prof was correct, and Arlen is correct, then political
     correctness is problematic at best and most certainly entropic.

     I don't know about anyone else listening in, but 212 years of entropy
     is enough for me.

     joyce
     (My thoughts are not my own.  I have no idea where they came from.)


______________________________ Reply Separator _________________________________
Subject: Re[2]: Semantics
Author:  Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- JCI -dot- COM at INTERNET
Date:    6/9/95 8:52 AM


      While eradicating the words does not change the attitudes, at least it
      helps prevent spreading of harmful attitudes.  As technical
      communicators, we have the power to lead the way.

I appreciate your agreeing with me. I wish I could return the favor. But if we
"outlaw" certain terms which express feelings or attitudes we don't like, other
words will acquire those meanings. Words exist because what they pertain to
exists, at least at the conceptual level. That will always be the case. When
currently allowed words cannot adequately express a concept, either new words
will be invented, or old ones will acquire new meanings (see "gay" for a
particularly striking example of that).


Have fun,
Arlen
Chief Managing Director In Charge, Department of Redundancy Department
DNRC 124

Arlen -dot- P -dot- Walker -at- JCI -dot- Com
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