eggcorn: "profound" (profane) words

[Laurence Horn]

At 4:03 PM -0400 7/31/07, Charles Doyle wrote:
>My female students have informed me, with seeming unanimity, that
>the the C word (as a synecdoche) is the MOST offensive epithet that
>can be bestowed on a woman--the genderly counterpart of the N word
>racially, several have insisted.
>
>In contrast, a casual "What a bitch!" is merely rude.
>
>--Charlie

Hey, no skewing the data.  Rather than "What a ____", you'd need to
control for the frame.  Something like "You goddam ____" would be a
possible context for the comparison.  The thing about synecdoche is
that coming from one's partner rather than a stranger it indicates
general misogyny (just as the N word would display general racism),
focusing on traits not under the insultee's control, while the B word
might potentially be taken more personally as singling out the target
for individualized opprobrium.  Reasonable insultees may differ, of
course.

LH

>_____________________________________________________________
>
>---- Original message ----
>>Date: Tue, 31 Jul 2007 15:31:46 -0400
>>From: Laurence Horn <laurence.horn at YALE.EDU>
>>
>>
>>>Isn't the B word significantly less profound than the C word?
>>
>>Well, mebbe so as profundity (profunation?) per se goes.  But as a
>>source of complaint, though, in this sort of context, I'd think the B
>>word is pretty much always grounds for complaint (barring reclaimed
>>uses by women or in literal reference among dog breeders, neither
>>which are at issue here), while the C word in literal uses can be
>>neutral, at least potentially.  A matter of personal taste, I presume.
>>
>>LH
>>
>>>But parallelism is a fast-fading skill in the culture at large.
>>>
>>>--Charlie
>
>------------------------------------------------------------
>The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org