Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Buxom
Words mean things.
When I was a teenager I was introduced to the writing of some of the great pulp writers of the thirties and forties. Writers of the stories of Conan, John Carter of Mars and King Kull of Atlantis.
One of the neat things about those writers was their way with words. They used words in a way that may or (Probably) not be suffered, much less condoned today in these politically correct times. The problem with that is that the language has lost some many colorful terms that still apply today.
It wasn't unusual for Conan to call someone a son of a cur, which I learned when I went to a dictionary meant a female dog of less then reputable lineage, aka bitch, or for him to call a son of an unmarried mother a bastard. A barbarian from the steppes of Cimmeria used more flowerful language than many of today's politicians do because it fit.
It annoys me that some of the phrases that wove through the language of the pulps are now so "offensive" that they can't be used anymore. As I was walking home from the bar this evening, I happened to look at a car on the square. Inside was a young woman of significant mammary proportions. I thought to myself, "That is a buxom wench." As I walked away enjoying the mental image of a female of ample proportions, I started to think about how those words, which may have once been a compliment could now get me sued for sexual harassment. It just doesn't seem fair.
The Miss America contest was this past weekend. In it were 50+ young women, all strutting their stuff, in hopes of a year of fame and lots of money. But should I happen to see them outside of that venue and comment about the Buxomness of them, it would be wrong.
No, not wrong, improper. It would be right in that the young woman would likely be buxom. And wearing a swimsuit with a push-up bra to accent the fact.
While wench has some connotations to it that may or may not be significant, BUXOM does not. I think that I am going to have to use it more often in polite society, if only to annoy those it may offend. Then I can tell them that it is only a word and in the PC world we live in that we may be able to parse the meaning of "is" but Buxom means what it does.
When I was a teenager I was introduced to the writing of some of the great pulp writers of the thirties and forties. Writers of the stories of Conan, John Carter of Mars and King Kull of Atlantis.
One of the neat things about those writers was their way with words. They used words in a way that may or (Probably) not be suffered, much less condoned today in these politically correct times. The problem with that is that the language has lost some many colorful terms that still apply today.
It wasn't unusual for Conan to call someone a son of a cur, which I learned when I went to a dictionary meant a female dog of less then reputable lineage, aka bitch, or for him to call a son of an unmarried mother a bastard. A barbarian from the steppes of Cimmeria used more flowerful language than many of today's politicians do because it fit.
It annoys me that some of the phrases that wove through the language of the pulps are now so "offensive" that they can't be used anymore. As I was walking home from the bar this evening, I happened to look at a car on the square. Inside was a young woman of significant mammary proportions. I thought to myself, "That is a buxom wench." As I walked away enjoying the mental image of a female of ample proportions, I started to think about how those words, which may have once been a compliment could now get me sued for sexual harassment. It just doesn't seem fair.
The Miss America contest was this past weekend. In it were 50+ young women, all strutting their stuff, in hopes of a year of fame and lots of money. But should I happen to see them outside of that venue and comment about the Buxomness of them, it would be wrong.
No, not wrong, improper. It would be right in that the young woman would likely be buxom. And wearing a swimsuit with a push-up bra to accent the fact.
While wench has some connotations to it that may or may not be significant, BUXOM does not. I think that I am going to have to use it more often in polite society, if only to annoy those it may offend. Then I can tell them that it is only a word and in the PC world we live in that we may be able to parse the meaning of "is" but Buxom means what it does.
