That Girl from Derwent dwells on the value of religion this Christmas.
That Girl from Derwent has learned a few more things about prejudice since moving up North.
That Girl From Derwent reckons if you're going to be offensive, you should find a better reason.
That Girl from Derwent considers why it is that some words have wider implications than others.
But it’s difficult, isn’t it?
Even with the tiny things in life it’s hard not to just accept your first impressions and leave it at that. As recently as the other day I was put off from reading a book because it had a quote from Cosmopolitan magazine on the front, instead of the Guardian. Or approached the other with skepticism toward my enjoyment because I had heard a bad review. Unsurprisingly, the first turned out to be highly enjoyable (thus proving my status as a bit of an intellectual snob) and the second none less than one of the most fascinating novels I have read in a long while – and I do an English degree.
Despite myself, I actually enjoy flicking through newspapers and magazines – especially those with pictures accompanying the bylines - and deciding what the writers are like. Sometimes, I’ll even have a bit of a laugh at a funny name – who doesn’t? After all, it’s basically a form of schadenfreude and everyone does it. Essentially though, isn’t judging someone by a name alone, “judging a book by its cover” in the worst sense of the word?
Well, yes.
But maybe that’s actually okay. You see, anyone who writes anything does it with an intention in mind. Instead of simply writing for the sake of it, they have a specific intention – and this comes across in many ways. But the most poignant meaning is to be found in the words that writers choose to utilise in their novels, articles, even a diary. Looking back on my diaries from five years ago, it’s cringe-ful to read the over exaggerated mysticism (or what my fifteen-year-old self thought sounded mystical) of some of my phrases – but at the same time, I can acknowledge that actually, I used those words because I was going through a bit of a “witch” phase and that was who I was trying to be at that time. Not just because I was a bit of an idiot. I wrote “book of shadows” on the inside cover, because that what I wanted the diary to be judged as (and yes, I can’t believe I just admitted to that so let’s just move swiftly on).
Writing, as is dressing, applying make-up, even talking, is a way of creating an image. It’s why authors pick pseudonyms and why singers and actors change their names. Writing allows us to be whoever we want to be – but it is almost certainly for a reason.
Therefore, when a name on Facebook includes all three (or four or five!) of a person’s name, it is that way because they have chosen it. Equally, a byline in a newspaper is never just a byline, it’s an act of self-expression (and I can’t help thinking of a few special examples from campus publications). And if that’s the way someone wants to present themselves, surely it’s kind of okay to judge them for it? Because, in fact, it does say something about them after all.
However, there’s a lot in name if we can be bothered to look for it. So yes, judge all you like – I know I will! - as long as we keep our minds open to the possibility that there are more layers going on than we can figure out with one glance.
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