Trey Smith
In last night's post, Political Calculus 101-A, I felt compelled to change a clause in the final paragraph. In the first run through, I used a common phrase to express a sentiment: to call a spade a spade. This phrase was first used in 1542 and it refers to a type of shovel. (Spade meaning a shovel is far older than that.) In common parlance, it means to speak clearly and frankly.
Here's how the sentence appeared in my post before editing:
Barack Obama is not the first president to utilize this ploy and he certainly won't be the last, but that doesn't mean we should shy away from calling a spade a spade!As many of you are well aware, originating here in the United States, spade has another meaning: it's a derogatory term used against people of color. The term wasn't coined until the 20th Century.
In a manner of speaking, the word, spade, was hijacked by a bunch of racists who took an ordinary word and turned it into something altogether different. It's not that much unlike Richard Dawkin's claim that religious zealots have miscast the term "intelligent design" to turn it on its head (look for the video in the Afternoon Matinee on the 14th of this month).
When groups hijack words and phrases, it puts the rest of us on guard. It can make it more difficult to speak and write fluidly. In the case of my post cited above, I decided to change the sentence simply because I did not want readers to infer that I was calling the president a spade (the derogatory use of the word)! If I let the phrase stand as it was, I would have opened myself up to charges that I unconsciously chose THAT phrase in THAT spot because Barack Obama is black.
Mind you, I utilize that specific phrase frequently, particularly when speaking. On every occasion, I am thinking of a spade as it was utilized originally -- a shovel. While it definitely fit into the sentence and sentiment I was trying to convey in the aforementioned post, it necessitated being recast in order that I didn't appear to be suggesting other than what I wanted to say.
Initially, I was going to leave it as is and include a note at the end of the post. On further reflection, I decided to change the wording and to address the issue in this post. I am more than a bit peeved that I felt the need to change it due to these word hijackers. I am peeved that they took an ordinary word that refers to a garden implement and have transformed it into an ethnic slur.
Spades (shovels) need to be liberated from this bondage!
I assume the black spade is the one in the game of cards.
ReplyDeleteI made the mistake of using nail (finger) in a place that most people would infer nail (into wood) as I was already talking about hammering. This mistake got me in trouble though unlike your innocent mistake. Its the same point though.
In the tonal languages of Asia there are many words that seem the same but have a differing tone to give the differing meaning. Of course its to late to adopt that into English but isn't it a pity as this language spreads over the world it has such flaws.
Oops I spelt too wrong. Its odd we have so many spellings for two to too to keep things clear but not spayde and spade nale and nail.
ReplyDeleteStill, in a good way the ambiguity shows for some great plays on words and jokes too.
When i read about calling a spade a spade I knew that it referred to speaking clearly and that with the word spade you meant a type of shovel. in The Netherlands a type of shovel still is called a spade.
ReplyDeleteI was not aware of the other meaning of spade as referring to a person of color. You learn something new all the time.
What I do know is that people 'frame' words in such a way that rational discussion becomes almost imposiible. In the Netherlands we have a politician called Geert Wilders who is an expert of framing discussions and thereby avoiding discussions at all.