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being a dear innocent female
Feb. 17th, 2008 09:38 pmI sort of randomly started translating Horace satire 1.2 tonight with a vague idea of submitting it to the campus translation magazine. And of course I found quickly that I can't actually translate those words (the italics indicate scariness). Even in the privacy of my own laptop, I can't bring myself to type them. And, obviously, I would freak out the entire department/circle of acquaintances (ironic how they're mostly the same, those two categories) if I did submit it, since at least some of them have demonstrated that they think that I Don't Know About That Kind of Thing at all.
I don't think I've every used the really taboo sexual obscenities, actually. I have a rather weird relationship to swear words, in fact. I clearly remember pondering the importance of "saying the big big D" in HMS Pinafore when I was little, investigating the significance, and realizing that since we didn't believe any of that stuff in my family, saying "damn it", or even "God damn it" couldn't really be very bad. I mostly confine myself to "drat" and "shoot" and the like around other people, although I've developed a strange habit of saying 'fuck' when I'm practicing and miss a shift. And that's about my limit. I've never had a reason or opportunity, I guess, for using non-expletive obscenities.
More information than anyone wanted about my verbal habits aside, though, I don't like being labeled the "good girl." So when I prove it, that bothers me. I have a feeling that only a guy could get away with translating 1.2, still, and that bothers me, too. It brings up everything I suspect about classical literature historically being an exclusive space for men to joke about sex apart from women. And I think that this liberal and progressive college would be the ideal place to start breaking down that exclusivity, and I wish I could get over my self-imposed St. Nicholas socialization and be part of it. Sort of.
I don't think I've every used the really taboo sexual obscenities, actually. I have a rather weird relationship to swear words, in fact. I clearly remember pondering the importance of "saying the big big D" in HMS Pinafore when I was little, investigating the significance, and realizing that since we didn't believe any of that stuff in my family, saying "damn it", or even "God damn it" couldn't really be very bad. I mostly confine myself to "drat" and "shoot" and the like around other people, although I've developed a strange habit of saying 'fuck' when I'm practicing and miss a shift. And that's about my limit. I've never had a reason or opportunity, I guess, for using non-expletive obscenities.
More information than anyone wanted about my verbal habits aside, though, I don't like being labeled the "good girl." So when I prove it, that bothers me. I have a feeling that only a guy could get away with translating 1.2, still, and that bothers me, too. It brings up everything I suspect about classical literature historically being an exclusive space for men to joke about sex apart from women. And I think that this liberal and progressive college would be the ideal place to start breaking down that exclusivity, and I wish I could get over my self-imposed St. Nicholas socialization and be part of it. Sort of.
