Linguistic engineering
July 19th, 2009 by ftobiaOver the past few years I have come to realize the importance of language. Language not only expresses thought: it shapes thought. So what does it say when a popular term used as a jocular disparagement is also a synonym for “homosexual”? The vernacular shouldn’t be a place to perpetuate hatefulness.
My design sense kicked in, against my better judgment: I need a new word, usable in the same context, which doesn’t have any bigoted overtones. Wait — better — a word which specifically flips the nuance to be disparaging toward heterosexuals. Then we get satire and linguistic engineering for the price of one.
And so, friends, let us henceforth banish the terms “gay” and “fag” from our discourse, and replace them with “het” (a term derived, for those of you keeping score, from “heterosexual”).
Bring it back. Fight heteronormativity.
End note: my friends and I tried this back at RPI. Needless to say, it did not catch on, which is for the best. From now on I’m leaving language to natural selection.
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