A few things to put out there.
Recently to clear an issue, I posted the meaning of the word atheist. The other person made a snarky remark that I didn't post the entire meaning from the Dictionary.com as if I was trying to pull something by using an online dictionary altho the definition was evident in origin. Usually, I put quotes around any part of the article or intro I've posted as well as the accompanying link. Now I guess live and learn, even to the extent of what dictionary I pulled a meaning from.
The other bit that I've found is that people rocket off when it is apparent not what the article was about. For example, I was accused of being a theist troll or worse when the link explained the quote. People don't read and they should before posting.
10
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
7 comments
Feel free to reply to any comment by clicking the "Reply" button.@Admin On a couple of other forums where I used to post, quoted text would appear in a differently coloured box within the post. This made it clear that the text was a quote from somewhere else. Quote marks at the start and end of something quoted are sometimes missed by those reading it.
El-loco
Level 7
Apr 5, 2018
0
I was taught to always put quote marks around a quotation and to always leave a link or a footnote if you will. How would you know where and how to display the quotes you used?
We are a diverse bunch, separated by a common language.
Dictionaries try to define words by their common usage - the difficulty with this is that 'common usage' is different for the same words in different communities and changes over time too.
I tend to clarify what I mean when I use words that I know will be used differently - many English words are used differently in the UK, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Sometimes the differences are small and sometimes the same word can mean completely different things in different times (gay) or countries (hood).
As others have said 'To me...' is a great way to clarify your position.
Uncorrugated
Level 7
Apr 5, 2018
0
We are a diverse freethinker community. I agree we need to slow down and read entire post before answering. I saved this chart which has been posted before. We also have definitions in "about."
sassygirl3869
Level 9
Apr 5, 2018
2
Thanks, I saved it!
@bingst I agree, that chart is as bad ss Dogma.
I've had my fair share of agnostic.com problems. Certain keywords you must stay away from-agnostic ,atheist ,promiscuity ,morality sexual deviant, fat, ugly and the word normal. This is by no means a complete list. It has been my experience that the use of any of these words can cause people to go off like a Roman candle
Kojaksmom
Level 8
Apr 5, 2018
1
As a writer, I play with words... a lot. One thing I’ve noticed is that words have two meanings: There’s the denotative, and connotative. I use the pneumonic: “de-notes” and “co-notes.” The denotative meaning of a word is just that, the dictionary meaning. The connotative meaning of a word, on the other hand, is the “emotional” meaning of the word. The images, pictures, feelings brought up when that word is mentioned.
And I’ve observed—especially on this site—a huge attachment to the conative meaning of a word despite a weird “insistence” on the denotative meaning. So much so that some people can’t even handle particular words. They just freak out.
Atheist is one of the words that evokes powerful emotion—for everybody. And because of that, I see people going off on each other all the time. I see some weird reaction to the word.
Benthoven
Level 8
Apr 5, 2018
4
Yes !exactly what he said!
I'm not the best communicator but I love words, to me they're verbal photography.
I try (not always successfully) to use denotations because we're an international community.
Connotations vary even within the Anglosphere. "Liberal" being a case in point.
So I may gall some with a word the connotation of which is very different between countries.
"Atheist" is both very personal and a profoundly loaded term.The lived experience (I know, but it's the term that fits best) of atheists in the US appears much more fraught than that of their Australian counterparts. In part because the two nations have a very different experience of religion.
Trying to pin down the meaning of any word here will offend many "experts" of the English language. You can't let it bother you; just let your common sense guide your own path. The safe way to initiate an etymological discussion is to start your sentence with "To me..."
Hominid
Level 7
Apr 5, 2018
5
That wasn't what the poster was doing altho I have seen that response often enough. Thanks for a good suggestion. She was attempting to "show me up by proving I had copied something" rather than I suppose using my own words and not making a lot of sense, not that the exchange did either.
@MrLizard - More musings on this: I can think I have a certain word definition down pat (...or close), but then will get "corrected". So to avoid sounding dogmatic, I'll defer to being a bit self deprecating with "Ahem, well, to ME..." so I don't come off as an authority.
As soon as you say anything definitive, particularly when discussing meanings of words like "atheist", there's a bazillion opinions, as well as people who honestly know more than me (say, an English scholar). That's the difference between discussing anything in the arts, humanities, philosophy, etc, as opposed to - say - mathematical logic where 2 + 2 = 4.
Enjoy being online again!
Welcome to the community of good people who base their values on evidence and appreciate civil discourse - the social network you will enjoy.Create your free account
Share this post
Categories
Agnostic does not evaluate or guarantee the accuracy of any content. Read full disclaimer.