Ordinarily, I very much enjoy these Britishized alternate spellings. I think they add a certain effete touch of class (or perhaps "classism" is the accurate term), to just about every word they grace with their arbitrary, superfluous vowel flourishes. Will you do me the honour of this dance? My ardour for you colours my cheeks. To say nothing of words like "aluminium," "foetus," and "faeces." Spellings like these can class up just about anything!
But therein, I think, lies the danger. A danger that a lot of us may be missing out on, here: some things simply should not be classed up with fancy spellings.
I'm referring specifically to the word "paedophilia."
Paedophilia.
If we spell it in this high-toned fashion, we risk glamorizing it. It sounds like it's happening in outer space or something - something dignified and scientific! Absolutely not acceptable. Spelled the proper way - "pedophilia" - it resumes its proper aspect: low, grubby and disgusting. To spell it paedophilia dignifies it out of all proportion - makes it sound like something the Ancient Greek Philosophers might have looked kindly upon!
A bad example, perhaps, but my point's clear I believe. When something is so completely disgusting, it needs to be spelled out as unglamorously as possible.
I don't know who to go to on this, honestly, but I think something can and should be done.
7 comments:
You say Britishized, I say Britishised ...
:-)
Seriously? You people s your z's as well...?
I don't understand how you can keep your head on straight down there, or across the pond and above the Northern Border and everywhere else that English speakers insist upon these whimsical "variant" spellings.
Happy Australia Day, by the way Mel! It's January 26th here, which is when we here in America celebrate Australia Day.
My spelling has been seriously finged(?) up ever since I learned me some French.
I know what you mean! I still have trouble spelling "medicine."
Because in french, the doctor is the guy they call "le medecin". Whereas in English, that's not the doctor! It's the stuff he prescribes. Sort of.
It's so confusing, and partly sexist because what - all doctors take the "le"? That's some assumption there François!
Note: I only lowercase the word "french" out of respect. Because that's how they do it in their language. They learned me that much dans mon lycée!
@limom - oh yes, I missed seeing the (?)
Never fear! I stand ready with usage notes on "fing"!
Essentially, what you're saying there is "seriously fuckinged up." Which I'd say is accurate!
You know, I'm not all that sold on "fing."
Seems to be a syllable short; not enough emphasis to go around there.
Finged sounds sort of girly, as fuckinged sounds like some sort of flightless fowl.
Maybe I just need to practice.
Better yet, maybe I should just use merde.
It's kind of tricky, I admit. I'm still getting the hang of it myself. It's like a compressed gerund. Not really, though, because it functions as an adjective! A gerund is what - a verb-derived noun.
So it's kind of a compressed reverse-sideways gerund.
Bottom line, it's fing complicated. I'm still fing getting used to it my fing self.
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