Ersatz or real?The unimpeachable Jams O'Donnell draws our attention to:
Of course this is referring to the dispute on the island of Lesvos where locals wish to reclaim the hijacked name for the island itself, just as the worldwide movement to reclaim the terms "gay' and "rainbow" are moving into gear. On Sappho:
[Incidentally, good to see the usage of the "AD" in that paragraph.]
The daughter is disputed, some saying that "daughter" could have referred to any of her circle of admirers. Interesting that seeming lesbians actually turn out often to be quite partial to the company of men.
“We are Lesbians and we are proud” said Mr Lambrou “All we want to do is to look anyone in the eye and say we are lesbians without them sniggering.”
Of course this is referring to the dispute on the island of Lesvos where locals wish to reclaim the hijacked name for the island itself, just as the worldwide movement to reclaim the terms "gay' and "rainbow" are moving into gear. On Sappho:
An Oxyrhynchus papyrus from around 200 AD and the Suda agree that Sappho had a mother called Cleïs and a daughter by the same name. Two preserved fragments of Sappho's poetry refer to a Cleïs. In fragment 98, Sappho addresses Cleïs, saying that she has no way of obtaining a decorated headband for her. Fragment 132 reads in full: "I have a beautiful child [pais] who looks like golden flowers, my darling Cleis, from whom I would not (take) all Lydia or lovely..."
[Incidentally, good to see the usage of the "AD" in that paragraph.]
The daughter is disputed, some saying that "daughter" could have referred to any of her circle of admirers. Interesting that seeming lesbians actually turn out often to be quite partial to the company of men.
Think I'll run a poll here to see what you think on the intellectual property rights issue:
Why no option for 'both' in your poll, James? After all, language, and a language's lexicon, change over time, and efforts like this to 'reclaim' words strike me as at best an attempt to preserve a language in amber - which in my view is linguistic suicide - or at worst an attempt to roll back the lexical clock and pretend that the last few decades of linguistic change never happened.
ReplyDeleteTake 'gay', for instance. It started out as 'happy'; then it became used to mean 'homosexual'; it's now being used by teenagers to mean 'useless, rubbish, bad' (as in, "I can't find my shoes - how gay is that?". Now the latter change dismays me slightly - I prefer to be associated with being happy than being crap - but I have to admit, it does make me snigger.
But here's the thing - you can still get 'gay' used in all three contexts. So the word 'Lesbian' is big enough to have two meanings.
I certainly thought about it but then felt it would produce a more polarized result this way and those who felt as you would leave a comment to the effect. So I ran the two options.
ReplyDeleteI can't comment on poll for I think they both can use it.
ReplyDelete"on the island of Lesvos"
ReplyDeletetypo :)
the point isn't how many people can use it, it is who has the 'right' to use it (heh)
Not at all, m'lord - check for yourself. Lesvos intended.
ReplyDelete1st time I've seen that spelling of it.
ReplyDeleteThen they can have lesvians and the lesbians can keep their words... problem solved (heh)
To be honest I'm not really worried either way. I'd be more worried if cannibals started calling themselves humanitarians!
ReplyDeleteI love the new av lil' Jimmy- you should show your fun side more often. :)
ReplyDeleteJams, That is a fabulous quote!
ReplyDeleteI am with the who has the rights with the word Gay?
ReplyDeleteand who has the rights on the 'Red Rose'!!!
Ok, if you're from Goole?
ReplyDeleteI didn't vote because I want the third option too. However it's a very interesting situation that you and Jams have highlighted.
ReplyDeleteLil Jimmy? Am I supposed to know the reference?
Firstly, Jeremy - good one, ha ha.
ReplyDeleteWill, Nazh, Jams, Cherie and JMB - thanks.
Uber - my fun side? Little matter of being in depression right now.
"Who has the right to the Lesbian name?"
ReplyDeleteNo "right" exists unless one wants to trademark the name. One can call oneself anything one wants. Anyone protesting is just a poseur. :/
James sad to hear things aren't going well- as always sympathy!
ReplyDeleteOn the Lesbos matter- I'm with both can use it- afterall plenty of words have a dual meaning which is unrelated or tangentially (Lesbos is related actually- the reason why its Lesbian is because the Greek love poet Sappho wrote her odes, the first western love poetry, to girls)- this kind of thing is just a quirk that reminds us that language is a historical artefact.