The Loaded Word Nigger - Essay Example

Here Your Here Your Info Here Here Nigger: The Loaded Word Ever since the days of early slave trades where black men and women were violently removed from their African homeland, the term nigger has plagued both the African-American population as well as non-black citizens in the United States. The loaded word nigger originated from the Latin adjective word niger, meaning black, and has been utilized in slanderous and derogatory methodology when referring to slaves of color. This term has obviously carried through the centuries and is still used today, however the connotation of its usage varies depending on the specific individual who is touting the word nigger. African slaves were deemed largely uneducated by their Caucasian slave traders in Europe due to the substantial differences between Western culture and the culture of Africa during the period in which slaves were transported overseas to perform hard labor. It is a likely assessment that throughout the years, the application of the word nigger had developed to represent malice and hatred toward the black slaves as a method to undermine their social position and ensure that they remained profitable workers in their owners’ properties. In contemporary society, however, the word nigger is often misused by the media and general society and is often quite misunderstood as to its original definition. A series of telephone interviews were conducted utilizing a sample population of six individuals, all consisting of different ages and genders. The majority of interview respondents indicated that the term nigger maintained significant negative stereotypes, suggesting personal viewpoints of niggers representing thieves, rapists, thuggish black persons, lazy, unproductive, worthless and generally no good (Personal interview). All of these participant responses tend to illustrate how negatively this term has been incorporated into the modern social consciousness, suggesting that the word no longer maintains any significance as a term with positive repercussions. None of the interviewed sample group proposed a positive connotation with the term in any fashion whatsoever. Perhaps it is the aforementioned social misconceptions that continue to enrage many members of the African-American community, who appear to wait silently for the word to be misused in some form of public forum so as to defend the rights of the modern black individuals in America. A fairly recent example of this occurred during a stand-up comedy routine led by Michael Richards, most largely known for his role as Kramer in the hit television series “Seinfeld”. During his stand-up act, Richards began to chastise a black man who had made a rather humorous commentary about Richards’ performance. The comedian screamed nigger to a large group of black men, creating a firestorm of ethnic controversy (Porter, 2007). Richards’ outbursts clearly indicate that even celebrities misuse the term during multi-ethnic social events, suggesting that a large majority of today’s society (even the wealthy and influential) will continue to use the loaded word in an attempt to spark aggression or controversy. Perhaps in the situation involving Michael Richards, using the word nigger at a time when his career was faltering after the end of the hit show was done to create media attention for himself at the expense of a protected group of American citizens. This misconstrued term also may have likely gotten its modern connotation due to how children were raised in relation to respecting the right of ethnic minorities. Consider the following age-old nursery rhyme created to chastise misbehaving children: “Billy go to sleep. If you don’t, the old nigger will carry you off; don’t you cry! Hark! The old nigger’s coming – How ugly you are, you are worse than a little nigger” (Easton, Price & Stewart, 21). This nursery rhyme suggests that the only negative outcome of refusing to sleep as instructed will be the emergence of a terrifying nigger who will steal them away from their families. In addition, this rhyme would incorporate the notion that ugliness is associated with the word nigger, which may have a significant influence on why the term has such a tremendously negative connotation in today’s society. If parents are actively teaching their children that a mysterious nigger will elicit some form of vengeance or malicious kidnapping, it is a likely assessment that the child will continue to connect black individuals with the terminology, making them afraid of black people or simply afraid of the frightening term nigger. Historical literature, also, has grossly abused the word. Mark Twain’s famous work Pudd’nhead Wilson contains a reference to a specific book character’s poor moral values in which the character is chastised with “it’s the nigger in you” in reference to his personal meekness and inaction (Boeckmann, 38). In this rendition, the word nigger is synonymous with immorality and lack of personal strength, suggesting that negative personality attributes can be closely associated with being or becoming a nigger. Though there is certainly no justifiable basis for this determination, it does illustrate how this term has been inappropriately (and somewhat irrationally) utilized to represent anything either malicious or otherwise inappropriate. Deborah Gray White, a professor at Rutgers University in New Jersey, suggests that contemporary black children have been taught to believe that the word nigger is both acceptable and unacceptable at the same time, creating conflicting belief systems (Porter, 34). Because the black culture often uses this word to express affection for similar ethnicities, it is common practice to bellow the word in social situations. However, when a person who is not of black descent uses this word toward a person of color, the word takes on an offensive meaning and sparks continued controversy. Hence, even the black culture misunderstands the term and only finds the word acceptable if it is stemming from a mouth that is of similar ethnic origin. This represents a conflicting set of values regarding the term’s importance and power over others to promote negative emotional responses. It is clear that the term nigger has not maintained its original meaning throughout the centuries and has been horribly abused and misinterpreted to the point where the term creates virtually nothing but negative animosity. The word should not be associated with only negative human attributes, but should be recognized as a word that has merely shifted from its true origin. Only when society recognizes that this word no longer has importance or authority over others will it maintain the opportunity to be a term that is valued simply for its historical significance and the controversy can end. Bibliography Boeckmann, Cathy. A Question of Character: Scientific Racism and the Genres of American Fiction, 1892-1912: Studies in American Literary Realism and Naturalism. Tuscaloosa University of Alabama Press, 2000. Easton, H., Price, George R., and James B. Stewart. To Heal the Scourge of Prejudice: The Life and Writings of Hosea Easton. Amherst University of Massachusetts Press, 1999. Personal Telephone Interviews. February 19 2008. Porter, Brenda. “N Word Means Divide and Conquer”. Black Enterprise. New York. May 2007. Vol. 37, Iss. 10. Read More