What's In A Name?

There was a time when 'gay' usually referred to feelings of being 'carefree', 'happy', or 'bright and showy'. Although it had undergone changes in meaning well before the latter part of the twentieth century, it was during that period that what is now usually referred to as the LGBT community, embraced the term and made it their own, and in doing so, began to alter public perceptions of homosexual people.

In 2003, spurred by his dislike of the term 'godless', and inspired by the capture of the word 'gay' by homosexuals, Paul Geisert, working with co-founder Mynga Futrell, coined the term 'bright', for a person who defines her- or himself as an individual whose world-view is free of supernatural and mystical elements. The Brights' Net has a ton of information and is the place to register if you would like to declare yourself as a Bright with a capital B.



Nice logo!

It may be my 'English reserve', but I don't feel comfortable using the word 'bright' as a means to label myself. I understand the idea behind it (to use a positive word as a label, rather than the often negative alternatives) but it has the rather unfortunate side affect of easily being interpreted as arrogant, elitist and superior, something that has, unsurprisingly, given rise to derisory comments. The difficulty, for me, is what it silently says about people who are not Brights: Not a Bright = not bright = dull and unintelligent? I don't feel insulted being described as 'not gay', but 'not bright'? Language can be an expressive beast. but sometimes it's what isn't said which says more than what is said.

It often surprises me how careless people are in their use of language. Take, for example, the phrase 'I don't believe in God'. I often see it written, or hear it said, by people who declare themselves to be atheists. I can only assume they haven't thought very deeply, if at all, about what that short phrase really communicates. Are they unaware that it is the equivalent of saying 'I don't believe in David Cameron'? Not, I hasten to add, because David Cameron has any obvious god-like qualities, but because 'God' (with a capital G) is effectively a name.

As I understand it, atheists are of the opinion that gods do not exist. But just as saying 'I don't believe in David Cameron' carries with it the implication of his existence, so does.... well, you get the idea, right? So come on atheist people, time to buck your ideas up! Attention to detail. You know it makes sense.

So how am I going to squeeze in some music for this post? Hmmmm. How about a track from Bob Dylan's 1979 album, Slow Train Coming. It was controversial because of its evangelical nature, but here's a track which says nothing but the obvious: Man* gave names to all the animals. Well, duh! Who'd a thought it.

Man Gave Names To All The Animals by Bob Dylan

* We won't get into the issue of why women apparently weren't involved, and yes, I know it's a biblical reference - Genesis 2:20 to be precise.

 

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