literary nerd discourse about "not all" usage Show more
this just hit me.
i think white people are still on this "but not me!!!!!" thing when someone says "white people".
this happens on here a lot. a POC says something that's meant in the abstract (while still being relevant and valid) about "white people", and in rush the explainers.
it's pretty obvious what this is, in terms of privilege (or should be imo) -- but i want to talk about language here for a minute.
literary nerd discourse about "not all" usage Show more
i think this comes down to not understanding, for whatever reason, what a metonym is.
definition of a metonymy:
"A figure of speech in which one word or phrase is substituted for another with which it is closely associated, as in the use of Washington for the United States government or of the sword for military power."
that what "white people" means. it doesn't mean "every single caucasian who has ever graced, or not graced, tvym, the earth".
literary nerd discourse about "not all" usage Show more
It's also offensive as heck -- there's a large percentage of white people and men alike, who map to the abstracted example. Just like a lot of politicians, lobbyists, etc. in DC map to "Washington."
literary nerd discourse about "not all" usage Show more
I wonder sometimes when white people, or men, who do this sort of thing (and who aren't just trolling or being toxic on purpose), understand any of this.
One possibility: when otherwise sort-of-well-intentioned people say "not me!", they look at "white people" or "men" as a form of synecdoche, with them as the "target".
literary nerd discourse about "not all" usage Show more
As in:
"A figure of speech in which a part is used for the whole or the whole for a part, the special for the general or the general for the special, as in ten sail for ten ships or a Croesus for a rich man."
literary nerd discourse about "not all" usage Show more
I wonder sometimes when white people, or men, who do this sort of thing (and who aren't just trolling or being toxic on purpose), understand any of this.
One possibility: when otherwise sort-of-well-intentioned people say "not me!", they look at "white people" or "men" as a form of synecdoche, with them as the "target".