Bridging the Gaps
Jul. 25th, 2011 09:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
foolish_m0rtalMy Slang Is Sneakier Than Your Slang by Rhiannon Paige
See those bridges? Somehow they’ve joined, and slang is sneaking across them from the US to the UK.
For example, there was once a divide between people who say “you guys” and people who don’t. This divide consisted of a large-ish body of water called the Atlantic Ocean.
When I was in Liverpool in the late 1970s, studying for a graduate degree, I naturally said “you guys” all the time, frequently in connection with some food-related activity. “Hey, you guys!” I would shout. “Wanna go get some pizza?”
My English friends would respond as follows:
(1) “guys” are things you set fire to on Guy Fawke’s night;
(2) women should not be referred to as guys;
(3) it’s not lunch time.
This flummoxed me. If you’re hanging out with a bunch of men (I kept trying to do this, with indifferent success), you can address them as “you lot” or “eh, lads” or even, “right, you tossers.” But when you’re chillin’ with the Jills, your terms of address are limited. “Girls”? Insufficiently feminist. “Hey, lasses! Wanna go get some pizza?” No.
More at the article "My Slang is Sneakier Than Your Slang" at Rhiannon Paine's website.
See those bridges? Somehow they’ve joined, and slang is sneaking across them from the US to the UK.
For example, there was once a divide between people who say “you guys” and people who don’t. This divide consisted of a large-ish body of water called the Atlantic Ocean.
When I was in Liverpool in the late 1970s, studying for a graduate degree, I naturally said “you guys” all the time, frequently in connection with some food-related activity. “Hey, you guys!” I would shout. “Wanna go get some pizza?”
My English friends would respond as follows:
(1) “guys” are things you set fire to on Guy Fawke’s night;
(2) women should not be referred to as guys;
(3) it’s not lunch time.
This flummoxed me. If you’re hanging out with a bunch of men (I kept trying to do this, with indifferent success), you can address them as “you lot” or “eh, lads” or even, “right, you tossers.” But when you’re chillin’ with the Jills, your terms of address are limited. “Girls”? Insufficiently feminist. “Hey, lasses! Wanna go get some pizza?” No.
More at the article "My Slang is Sneakier Than Your Slang" at Rhiannon Paine's website.
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no subject
Date: 2011-08-01 08:25 am (UTC)Me... My brother calls me "Dude". lol And I just roll with it. Whatever...
But this made me laugh. THE DILEEEEMMMAAA! Chillax, bros, 'tis all good.