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March 02, 2004
How Verbal Self-Defense Works
Which is a good thing to know, either so you can defend yourself, or so you can recognize when you're putting someone else in a sitch where they feel compelled to defend themselves. Oddly enough, boys tend to have a problem with this more than women do -- the not realizing that they're attacking people thing. I think the clinical term for this is, "testosterone poisoning."
Any road up, here's How Verbal Self-Defense Works:
It has undoubtedly happened to you. There you are, in the middle of a fierce argument with someone, and suddenly you realize that you not only don't particularly care about the subject of the argument but you can't understand how you got into the altercation in the first place!This isn't trivial. Hostile language is dangerous to your health and well-being; it's toxic stuff. People who are frequently exposed to hostile language get sick more often, are injured more often, take longer to recover from illness and injury, and suffer more complications during recovery. As an obvious result, they tend to die sooner than those not so exposed. What's more, hostile language is just as dangerous to the person dishing it out (and to innocent bystanders who can't leave the scene) as it is to the person on the receiving end.
Or rather, the introductory paragraphs to the first page (of five) at How Stuff Works on the subject, written by Suzette Haden Elgin herself. Previous link to the "About the Author" section, which lists a number of her books which'll let you Read More About It.
The article is a good start, though.
And if, as you're reading it, you begin to have a better understanding of why so many 'net discussions are, um, really fucking stupid, well. . . that's why Suzette makes the Big Bucks.
Posted by Aaron at March 2, 2004 12:15 PM
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