Re: The Science Fiction That Wasn't

In article <o28uv1hi87pud3tqgtmgd0csbel0q43l3a@xxxxxxx>,
Bateau <Bateau-is-a@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

"Jordan" <JSBassior2001@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Bateau said:

Being a sci fi fan does not entitle you to your own dialect.

Why not? Every other group of fans (sports, racing, etc.) have their
own specialized jargons ...

For their own good reasons. They don't make up alternatives to words for
no reason other than to feel special.

Well, OK, then. So if sf fans had reasons to make up jargon, they'd
be justified, if you mean what you're saying here.

Well, one important purpose for jargon is abbreviation. Fan lingo
has a bunch of words that are abbreviations: "fanac", "gafiate",
"SMOF", "con" (though this has spread well beyond SF fandom).

Another important purpose for jargon is to provide words for things
specific to the subject. Arguably, "fanac" and "SMOF" fit in here
too, but this is, I suspect, a tougher way to justify most such
words. (I mean, fundamentally what fandom has as its core topics
are holding conventions and printing magazines, and neither is
exclusive to it.)

"Fen" as the plural of "fan" is about the only example springing to
my mind as widely recognised *and* "for no reason other than to feel
special". I've known individual groups more or less involved in
fandom who had other such words, but they were specific to those
groups.

Joe Bernstein

--
Joe Bernstein, writer joe@xxxxxxxxxxx
<http://www.panix.com/~josephb/> "She suited my mood, Sarah Mondleigh
did - it was like having a kitten in the room, like a vote for unreason."
<Glass Mountain>, Cynthia Voigt
.

Relevant Pages

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    ... Contumaciously untutored idiot. ... > so far looks like jargon and soundbites. ... > with the work done by the person who invented information theory. ... > work isn't relevant to the reason I suggested that textbook. ...
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  • Re: The Science Fiction That Wasnt
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