Theiling Online    Sitemap    Conlang Mailing List HQ   

Re: Láadan

From:Peter Clark <peter-clark@...>
Date:Thursday, November 28, 2002, 4:21
On Wednesday 27 November 2002 07:12 pm, Doug Dee wrote:
> Which features of Laadan gave you the impression of mean-spiritedness?
I'm not answering for Ian, but perhaps he found the "despised" pronouns disturbing. In reality, these would rarely be used to someone's face, but more probably behind someone's back. See, for instance, Russian diminutives for names--if a woman's name is Anna, don't call her Anka if you want to stay friends. Elgin, in one of the short stories she wrote in Láadan, had the main character use the "despised thou" to her mother's face--something that, while expressive of one's opinions, is best left unsaid. Sometimes it is a Good Thing (TM) to not be as expressive in language as one might wish, feminist theory aside. ;> :Peter