Ramen King
Smash Cadet
Link to original post: [drupal=5369]Everything you need to know about the N-word, by an N-word.[/drupal]
Part 1: Saying Vs Using
This is something I learned from my philosophy teacher about two years ago. There is a difference between saying a word and using a word. Saying a word does not necessarily mean you're using the idea or concept that that word transcribes. I can describe to you what the word "pretty" means. It's something that looks nice. I just said the word pretty, but I did not use the meaning behind it. Now if I said this pencil is pretty. I am USING the word. That is, I'm expressing the idea that the word is meant to portray. Word's are simply mediums, tools for us to communicate ideas and feelings. There are other mediums in which we communicate ideas and feelings as well such as facial expressions and gestures. You can tell by someone's facial expression if they are sad, happy, ,mad, etc. If someone looks at you in a disgusted way, that could be just as offensive as someone saying "ew" when you walk by. They both express the same idea through different mediums.
So then what does that have to do with the N word? Well look, all mediums can be used in different ways. It's context that is important. For example looking at someone with a disgusted look may hurt their feelings. Does that mean that making a disgusted look is a bad thing that should be banned from humanity? No. In a different context it is perfectly fine for me to make that look. Like if I just ate something horrible. Making the disgusted face is just a face. It's the context and the idea it implies that transcribes whether it's good or bad. Facial expressions are simply facial expressions. Words are simply words. The word pretty has a meaning, but that meaning is not used simply by me saying the word pretty, it must be applied through context such as "this pencil is pretty".
Now then similarly the word ****** is a word. It's meaning is very negative, just as having a disgusted look is negative. But just saying the word does not put use to it's meaning. Using the word is different than saying the word. Many people are offended when someone simply says the word as if it is some taboo that will unleash all hell, but it's not. Right now I am describing the word to you. There are those who will get offended by me saying the word even in this context. Even though I'm not using the word, simply saying the word.
There was a controversy a couple of years ago about Dr. Laura Schlessinger saying the N word multiple times on her radio show. People were outraged and the caller she was speaking with was so hurt by her saying the word. The things is all she did was, once again, Say the word. She wasn't USING it. She wasn't calling the caller a ****** or black people ******s she was simply making the point that black people say the word ****** so why is it not ok for white people to say it. Yes the meaning behind the word is very offensive and very negative, and that's why people take offense to it even when it's just simply said without being used. I'm sure there are those who have felt offense even to me just saying the word in this video. That is completely understandable. I believe, however, that once people become more aware of this, there will be less issues with the matter. We need to understand "that taking offense to anything without context is just reactionism".
To go a bit further into the idea of context and the difference between "saying" and "using" , one can still use a word while trying to pass it off as simply saying the word. Don't get me wrong on that. That's again why context is the key factor here and one of the most important factors in communication. I was once visiting in a rural mountain town with my family in which the black population was near non-existent. During our visit we saw one other black couple who were foreigners on vacation that hardly even spoke English. Everyone else in the town was white and you could tell they weren't very used to seeing black people around very often. This one guy comes up to me and my family and tells us hey you guys know where you gotta go. There's this mountain here it's called NIIIGERRR mountain. Alright you got that. Now listen I'm being genuine here you gotta go there it's called Niggeerr mountain. He framed it in a way as if he were just saying the word, naming the name of the mountain. But clearly in the context, he was in fact using the word even though he did not directly call us ******s. He was still using the word in attempt to offend us. As I stated earlier, words are just mediums to express ideas. Similarly phrases, tone of voice, and etcetera are also used as mediums to communicate ideas. Even though he did not say "you are ******s" the idea that he was communicating by his statements was the very same. It's not the word or medium that particularly matters, but the idea.
Part 2: We are individuals
Generalizing is one of homo sapiens greatest mind tools, yet one of our most limiting barriers as well. Many of us attempt to practice the idea of understanding our biases and generalizations, but they still happen to come through, likely more often than not. It is not as if every black person feels the same way about the N-word, nor it likely that every white person or every individual of any other ethnicity feels the same about the N-word. We are all individuals and each have our own thoughts, feelings, philosophies, and understandings.
While it is true that merely saying the N-word (with no intention of offending anyone) should not be taken as offensive and should not be taboo, it is still important to understand that not every person has come to this conclusion in their life. I have heard on multiple occasions that question "why do black people get offended from someone just saying the N-word?" It is not that black people get offended, it is that the individuals in which you experienced their getting offended, get offended. Each person has their own background, experiences in their perceptions and interpretations. A person who has lived through a generation in which African Americans had been very much oppressed and in which the N-word had been a common term of degradation, will much more likely take offense to the saying or using of the N-word today. Where as a person who was born, say, in the 90s is more likely not to take as much offense to it. I believe that people of the current generation are more perceptible to the understanding that it merely is a word. Again, each person is an individual, not a representation of every person with physical similarities.
The generations of extreme oppression, segregation, and discrimination of blacks within the United States really was not very long ago. My dad is only 48 and it was just 4 years after he was born that Mr. Luther King had been killed and 9 years before that the very first school in the US was desegregated. Rosa Parks had just died about 7 years ago in 2005. I have known people who knew her personally, including the principle of my elementary school. With that in mind, it's no surprise then why there are many people who do still take much offense to even just the saying of the N-word. And that's something we all need to understand. Dr. Laura Schlessinger wasn't in the wrong for the comments she made on her radio show; however, she should have recognized that the caller would have likely taken offense. She, the caller, had already shown that she was hypersensitive to racial matters. It was the very reason she had called in. To say "****** ****** ******" to someone who was already in concern over being racially insulted wasn't the best way to go about things.
Links:
Dr Laura video
Part 1: Saying Vs Using
This is something I learned from my philosophy teacher about two years ago. There is a difference between saying a word and using a word. Saying a word does not necessarily mean you're using the idea or concept that that word transcribes. I can describe to you what the word "pretty" means. It's something that looks nice. I just said the word pretty, but I did not use the meaning behind it. Now if I said this pencil is pretty. I am USING the word. That is, I'm expressing the idea that the word is meant to portray. Word's are simply mediums, tools for us to communicate ideas and feelings. There are other mediums in which we communicate ideas and feelings as well such as facial expressions and gestures. You can tell by someone's facial expression if they are sad, happy, ,mad, etc. If someone looks at you in a disgusted way, that could be just as offensive as someone saying "ew" when you walk by. They both express the same idea through different mediums.
So then what does that have to do with the N word? Well look, all mediums can be used in different ways. It's context that is important. For example looking at someone with a disgusted look may hurt their feelings. Does that mean that making a disgusted look is a bad thing that should be banned from humanity? No. In a different context it is perfectly fine for me to make that look. Like if I just ate something horrible. Making the disgusted face is just a face. It's the context and the idea it implies that transcribes whether it's good or bad. Facial expressions are simply facial expressions. Words are simply words. The word pretty has a meaning, but that meaning is not used simply by me saying the word pretty, it must be applied through context such as "this pencil is pretty".
Now then similarly the word ****** is a word. It's meaning is very negative, just as having a disgusted look is negative. But just saying the word does not put use to it's meaning. Using the word is different than saying the word. Many people are offended when someone simply says the word as if it is some taboo that will unleash all hell, but it's not. Right now I am describing the word to you. There are those who will get offended by me saying the word even in this context. Even though I'm not using the word, simply saying the word.
There was a controversy a couple of years ago about Dr. Laura Schlessinger saying the N word multiple times on her radio show. People were outraged and the caller she was speaking with was so hurt by her saying the word. The things is all she did was, once again, Say the word. She wasn't USING it. She wasn't calling the caller a ****** or black people ******s she was simply making the point that black people say the word ****** so why is it not ok for white people to say it. Yes the meaning behind the word is very offensive and very negative, and that's why people take offense to it even when it's just simply said without being used. I'm sure there are those who have felt offense even to me just saying the word in this video. That is completely understandable. I believe, however, that once people become more aware of this, there will be less issues with the matter. We need to understand "that taking offense to anything without context is just reactionism".
To go a bit further into the idea of context and the difference between "saying" and "using" , one can still use a word while trying to pass it off as simply saying the word. Don't get me wrong on that. That's again why context is the key factor here and one of the most important factors in communication. I was once visiting in a rural mountain town with my family in which the black population was near non-existent. During our visit we saw one other black couple who were foreigners on vacation that hardly even spoke English. Everyone else in the town was white and you could tell they weren't very used to seeing black people around very often. This one guy comes up to me and my family and tells us hey you guys know where you gotta go. There's this mountain here it's called NIIIGERRR mountain. Alright you got that. Now listen I'm being genuine here you gotta go there it's called Niggeerr mountain. He framed it in a way as if he were just saying the word, naming the name of the mountain. But clearly in the context, he was in fact using the word even though he did not directly call us ******s. He was still using the word in attempt to offend us. As I stated earlier, words are just mediums to express ideas. Similarly phrases, tone of voice, and etcetera are also used as mediums to communicate ideas. Even though he did not say "you are ******s" the idea that he was communicating by his statements was the very same. It's not the word or medium that particularly matters, but the idea.
Part 2: We are individuals
Generalizing is one of homo sapiens greatest mind tools, yet one of our most limiting barriers as well. Many of us attempt to practice the idea of understanding our biases and generalizations, but they still happen to come through, likely more often than not. It is not as if every black person feels the same way about the N-word, nor it likely that every white person or every individual of any other ethnicity feels the same about the N-word. We are all individuals and each have our own thoughts, feelings, philosophies, and understandings.
While it is true that merely saying the N-word (with no intention of offending anyone) should not be taken as offensive and should not be taboo, it is still important to understand that not every person has come to this conclusion in their life. I have heard on multiple occasions that question "why do black people get offended from someone just saying the N-word?" It is not that black people get offended, it is that the individuals in which you experienced their getting offended, get offended. Each person has their own background, experiences in their perceptions and interpretations. A person who has lived through a generation in which African Americans had been very much oppressed and in which the N-word had been a common term of degradation, will much more likely take offense to the saying or using of the N-word today. Where as a person who was born, say, in the 90s is more likely not to take as much offense to it. I believe that people of the current generation are more perceptible to the understanding that it merely is a word. Again, each person is an individual, not a representation of every person with physical similarities.
The generations of extreme oppression, segregation, and discrimination of blacks within the United States really was not very long ago. My dad is only 48 and it was just 4 years after he was born that Mr. Luther King had been killed and 9 years before that the very first school in the US was desegregated. Rosa Parks had just died about 7 years ago in 2005. I have known people who knew her personally, including the principle of my elementary school. With that in mind, it's no surprise then why there are many people who do still take much offense to even just the saying of the N-word. And that's something we all need to understand. Dr. Laura Schlessinger wasn't in the wrong for the comments she made on her radio show; however, she should have recognized that the caller would have likely taken offense. She, the caller, had already shown that she was hypersensitive to racial matters. It was the very reason she had called in. To say "****** ****** ******" to someone who was already in concern over being racially insulted wasn't the best way to go about things.
Links:
Dr Laura video
