Wednesday 6 June 2001

So I did not link in a picture today. The topic is not easily illustrated and I worried that a picture would strike the wrong chord.

Bad bad language

"Fuck fuck fuck" said a cute young girl on IRC yesterday. The remote foreigner to the English language would be excused to think that she was overwhelmed by lust in my glorious online presence, much good that would have done her. But the prosaic truth was that her FTP program had crashed on her like a metric ton of bricks. Her desire was not for fornication but for revenge. For some reason the English (or at least the American) language seems to confuse the two.

Nor is this an entirely new mistake. The instincts for sexuality and agression lie virtually cheek to cheek in our brain, and that of other mammals. Virtually the entire branch of primates are influenced by this in one way or another.

***

The dark side of mixing sexuality and agression is certainly dark enough in our species. Various forms and degrees of rape plague human history. There is truly no need for me to go into details on this, nor am I an expert on the matter, thank the Light. But I notice that whenever there is war or other pervasive breakdown of civil law, forcing themselves on women seems to be near the top of many men's minds. Nor are adult women the only ones to be molested such.

For today, I shall not detail the problems of bondage / domination sexuality, which comes in addition to the outright crimes but is not really worthy of mention in the same context. Usually not. The border is not always as clear as it should be.

In light of this, it baffles me that it is considered socially acceptable to express agression by saying "fuck" or "fuck you". But such it is, and that even in a society where it sometimes seems less acceptable to make love than war. It must be a truly pervasive custom when even young women use that expression. I doubt they have reflected on it much. Then again, I doubt many humans reflect much.

***

Our primate friends (and relatives, so scientists say) have a different approach. In one way, it can seem nicer; in another way, not so, for it is more widespread. The nicest of the lot is probably the bonobo or pygmy chimp, who shares more genes with us than any other living creature. These little buggers seem at first glance to spend much of the day fornicating randomly. Such is not quite the case. They don't go all the way, but rather rub their genitals against each other's. (I understand that some religious young people in America have a similar approach, but at least they are quite a bit more selective.) The bonobo makes no fuss out of small details like gender or age, in their eagerness to make love rather than war. The make-believe make-love is the main glue in their social network from childhood onward. (Don't try this at home, kids.)

The other apes, and most monkeys too, have an even more ritual approach in which sexuality is substituted for aggression. Basically a dominant individual will terrorize a weaker one into submission, which the loser signals by offering his or her behind. (Apes are such butt boys!) The dominant individual is usually a male, but still is not stupid enough to actually go ahead with a coitus unless the behind happens to belong to a female in heat. At best there will be a rubbing of loins against the proffered backside, sometimes just a passing touch. The point has been made, one will assume.

I dare say the majority of employees appreciate the lack of a similar instinct in humans. Well, in most humans. Though the commonness of spanking indicates that some racial memory may still be retained ...

(Incidentally, humans can pacify a raging ape this way too, but the opposite does not work. Well, I guess some humans might spank the monkey, but that is pretty much it.)

***

In striking contrast to this, Norwegians don't fall back on bodily functions at all when irritated. Being of a more spiritual nature perhaps, my people tend to summon the Devil when angered. It may not be a coincidence that my little nation is renowned throughout Europe and perhaps further as a Mecca of satanic music and performance art.

But that is, as they say, another story ...