General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: On the evolution of language and the "W" word [View all]Prism
(5,815 posts)Oddly enough, in a thread about this word, Cleita dropped some knowledge about the evolution of English slang and social propriety of usage in regards to the Norman conquest and the English common tongue. Really interesting concept that I hadn't heard before.
It's actually a strange two-tiered system of language we're working with in this country. You bring up the Style guide. Ok, so the media don't want to use words, but regular folks will continue to. So we have a kind of "pretend" language that is used officially, and then we have word usage everyone else uses in daily conversation.
And people get really worked up about that pretend language. They need it to exist. And, hey, I'm willing to indulge them. I don't use whore on this board because the drama it will cause is hardly worth it. I'll engage in the Pretend Language. We all do to some degree. We do at work, we do in certain social situations. But Official Pretend always engenders this fury and passion.
But there's no real application. Ok. So on DU, I suppose we will play Official Pretend. Still doesn't affect how I speak offline, or my friends and family, or anyone really. Just as long as we're here. It's Pretend time.
Humans are funny creatures.