Filthy English by Peter Silverton

Author:Peter Silverton
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

There is a rich English-speaking tradition of using homosexuality as a heterosexual-male-to-heterosexual-male insult – or perhaps that should be apparently-heterosexual-male-to-supposedly-not-heterosexual-male insult. There are violently graphic descriptions of the homosexual act. Bender, bum bandit, shirt-lifter, knob jockey, uphill gardener and pillow-biter – a phrase which is supposedly Australian but which was quite probably invented by Dame Edna Everage’s creator, Barry Humphries. Not necessarily, though. Hebrew’s noshech kariot is the exact same metaphor – though that could be a direct translation of the English. These violent, aggressive words and phrases are reserved for actual homosexual men, though. The heterosexual-male homosexual insult is far more likely to be something simple like ‘poof’.

Yet, rich as the English tradition is, the homosexual insult is nowhere near as central as it is in other cultures, particularly Latinate ones. For one Englishman to call another a screaming poofter would rarely be a grievous attack. It’s the kind of thing that might be said to a male friend who declined to go out in the rain. If malice were intended, an Englishman would be far more likely to tell his friend that he was a vagina or even a vagina that was having sex.

To Spaniards, Italians and most kinds of South Americans, though, homosexuals are worse than vaginas. Rather a coño than a maricon. Far rather. No Castilian or Galician would dare to call his heterosexual best friend the local equivalent of a stupid poof. The Spanish maricon is friendly between homosexuals but poisonous if aimed at them or at a heterosexual. Atletico Madrid’s ultras are among the world’s most perniciously racist football fans. Their behaviour at a 2008 Champions League match resulted in FIFA threatening the club with having to play future matches away from not just its home ground but from Madrid. One of these ultras’ favourite chants is, to the tune of the Spanish national anthem, ‘Fuera, fuera, maricones, negros, Vascos, Catalanes’. Note the order in which death (fuera) is wished on the Atletico ultras’ enemies. Homosexuals come before people of colour and inhabitants of the Basque region, even before citizens of Barcelona and its hinterland.

So what exactly is the accusation in the word maricon? It’s odd. It translates as Maria-like, i.e. it’s a shielded reference to Jesus’ mother. What’s going on here? Well, leaving aside the possibility that she was just lying, there are two possible views of the Virgin Mary’s immaculate conception. One, that she really was impregnated by an angel – via the ear, if I remember my catechism right. Two, that the virginity of HolyMaryMotherOfGod – as the same catechism taught me to refer to her – was conceptual and symbolic. The immaculacy of her conception was a way of desexualising maternity, of taking the fucking out of motherhood. Who has most interest in doing this? Sons. Generally speaking, sons go to their graves believing in their mother’s virginity. The Virgin Mary is every Catholic boy’s imaginary mother – one that hasn’t even had sex with his father. So maricon is a shield for unacceptable, unmentionable desire.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.