Posts tagged words
Making Word: Ryan Trecartin as Poet
“Pronouns are a battlefield. “IT is not |You|„, IT IS WE!” NAK announces. “IT is not |em| and>/ Will not matter as Such.” On the next page she says: “The New Look for This Company, IS re-Thinking the Word |Humanity| as an Object with a (Goal).” Trecartin’s use of corporate jargon brings the concrete back to “corporation,” a word that abstracts the corporeal. Dialogue is propelled by confrontations between voices of a single entity (i.e., the Koreas) and others, whose names convey difference in terms of human-resource hierarchies. A Driver—listed in the dramatis personae as “Pay Role: (2): Driver, Wait”—offers unsolicited business advice: “[…] Focus on finding REAL Consumer Demand„/ For Cross-Over-Culture„„„ ?/ And Time-Shared-Ideologies ?” The suggestion is soundly rejected by Global Korea and her affiliates. He’s just a hireling, and his vision of crossovers and time-shares is too generous, too loose. There’s also an intern—“illegal outsider re-useable friend (prop)”—who goes by Jessica until USA Korea decides she’s Cindy. Either way, she’s no K. Interns are promiscuous, commingling with the corporate body for a limited time, unpaid. “Contemporary Slut!” Mexico Korea rages at Jessica/Cindy. “Every Body’s’ Got the Agenda!”
He Was Literally Kicking My Ass
“Young people today (and by “young”, I mean anyone who uses a cell phone) have as much verbal dexterity as your average goat. Not that I have anything against goats: they’re really cute and if they didn’t insist on shitting all over my living room floor, I’d adopt one. But I prefer goats that are…well, goats. Not humans. Human goats are a plague on our society that must be stopped. Which gets me back to my original point: banning words. Without further ado, then, here’s my list of three words that should be stricken from the English language.” Johnathan Kravetz on Three Bad Words.
Herbivorous Men
Herbivorous men [sōshoku danshi - 草食男子]: Coined in 2006 by author Maki Fukasawa, this term refers to an emerging breed of man whose passive nature stands in stark contrast to conventional notions of masculinity. Typically in his 20s or 30s, the herbivore doesn’t earn much money, spends little, takes a keen interest in fashion and his personal appearance, and does not aggressively pursue “flesh” (i.e. romance and sex). Friendly and home-oriented, he tends to favor cosmetics over deluxe cars and would rather eat sweets at home than treat his girlfriend to dinner at a fancy restaurant.
Hell Bent For Leather
“’Hell,’ of course, is the Bad Place, considered throughout human history to be located in either the Underworld or Paramus, New Jersey”. More on the derivation of the phrase from The Word Detective.
