Rant

[bellinghman]

There's a meme currently going round - it's one of those multiple question interview ones. Among its questions are:

If you could bring back anyone that has passed, who would it be?

I'm sorry, but if I ever encounter the author of that question, I'll have to give her a real bitch slapping. 'has passed'? For fuck's sake, are you talking about someone going past you in the street? Yes? No? No, I thought not.

You're talking about death. There's a good, short word you could have used, one that takes less typing. It's 'died'. Don't pretend it doesn't occur - it does. To all of us - no-one gets out of this alive. This sort of milquetoast euphemism is an attempt to deny one of life's most basic features.

Aarrgghh!!

Comments

[bellinghman.livejournal.com]

Yes.

I'll admit that 'passed' jars just a little more, because it's more uncommon, and being unusual, stands out more.

I can also understand someone in the immediate first stage of the denial-grief-acceptance cycle wanting to use 'passed away'. But that's not the case here. This is not a meme about recent bereavement. This is a question asking about a potential pool of tens of billions of the differently metabolising.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

I guess as a meme it will be distributed to a large number of people - perhaps the original author didn't want to offend anyone?

[bellinghman.livejournal.com]

Oh, quite possibly. But though I'm not a fan of causing gratuitous offense, this type of avoidance just strips our language of any vitality. As a result, it offends me instead.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

And now I'm reminded of a cartoon which runs along the lines of "you being offended offends me" only I can't remember what cartoon.

[sbp.livejournal.com]

MIght be Bloom County. Yes, the "Offensitivity" strip.

[silly-swordsman.livejournal.com]

this type of avoidance just strips our language of any vitality

Ahahaha...

I've got to pass that on...

[aldabra]

But some of the people coming across it may be in the immediate first stage of the denial/grief/acceptance cycle. She (do we know it's a she?) doesn't know how far the meme's going to propagate and she's optimising for minimisation of upset.

It jars for me too, but not as much as bitch slapping does, and in an international cultural melee you have to make allowances for cultural difference.

[bellinghman.livejournal.com]

Do we know it's a she?

No. But in my experience (and I'll concede I haven't encountered everyone in the world) those that do use such language are all female. And called Sophie.

As for optimising for upset - consider this part of the feedback mechanism.

[djelibeybi.livejournal.com]

I'm with you on this. People die. They're dead.
Your rant is impressive and justified.

[bellinghman.livejournal.com]

Thank you.