1. “To Eat at Another’s Table”
The evolution and fluidity of a word
Ryan Leckel, Applied Social Science: Sociology and Anthropology
Advised by Dr. Tina Lee; University of Wisconsin-Stout
Briseis Phoinix Louvre, Brygos painter, c. 490 C.E.
Introduction
Ethnolinguistics of Parasite
Historical Usage
Parasite, from the Ancient Greek parasiti, was used to describe an individual who would invite themselves to another’s table to be fed in exchange for “exhilaration of the guests, adulation, maintenance art, and humiliation” (Haasl, A. 2005). This was socially, if not happily, accepted at the time.
Questions
Can the historical roots of a word or phrase allow us a greater understanding of context?
Are terms confined to specific definitions, or can those words be polymorphic?
Does context derive mainly from personal experience or an awareness of a social consciousness (distributed language)?
“To Eat at Another’s Table”: The evolution and fluidity of a word examines the fluid nature of linguistics, specifically the Greek term parasiti, or the English parasite, and its origination in Proto-Indo-European, or P-IE, isoglosses (Fig. 1). In order to understand how we utilize language, we need to understand the origin of the words we are using and how those words have changed over time. The derivation of parasite from P-IE, the Ancient Greek parasiti, and its subsequent iterations through history can show us much about our own evolution as a species, defining our cultural mores in a social sense and the natural world in a biological sense. I have explored how the example term has evolved in each lingual iteration, why we confine words to rigid conventions and whether those words remain polymorphic once defined, why the phylogeny of our words allow us a greater understanding of context, and where we derive that context, whether from personal experience or distributed cognition. The constant progression of language allows us a unique vision into the past and can determine our future interactions as global citizens.
Russia and the Soviet Union
Parasite was adapted through history to different meanings and disciplines, but one of the latest examples outside of biology comes from Russia’s adaptation of the French anthem, “L'Internationale”, maintaining the first three stanzas, which ends in “Вся власть народу трудовому! А дармоедов всех долой!” or, “All the power to the people of labour! And away with all the parasites!” (Brintlinger, A., 2007)
Language and the Individual
Individualism plays an important role in the structure of language and context.
When we discuss language and the individual, we are assuming that constructivism plays a significant role in the language we use.
Personal experience defines meaning and context in our individual lives. (Faber, J. H., 1914)
Satem
Baltic
Latvian
Lithuanian
Prussian
Slavic
Eastern
Ukrainian
Russian
Byelorussian
Southern
Bulgarian
Slovenian
Serbo-Croatian
Western
Wendish
Slovak
Polish
Czech
Albanian
Armenian
Indo-Iranian
Iranic
Avestan
Old Persian
Modern
Indic
Sanskrit
Hindustani
Bengali
Romany
Hindi
Centum
Proto-Celtic
Goidelic
Irish Gaelic
Manx
Brythonic
Breton
Cornish
Germanic
Gothic
Northern
Danish
Swedish
Old Norse
Norwegian
Icelandic
Low German
Old Dutch
High German
Yiddish
Anglo-
English
Latin
Sabellian
Catalan
French
Italian
Portuguese
Hittite
Anatolian
Tokharian
Hellenic Greek
Ancient
Proto-Indo-
European
The cover of a German magazine, “Der Untermensch” c (Holocaust Education and Archive)
Joseph Brodsky, arrested in Soviet Russia in 1963 under the charge of “social parasitism” (Dutch National Archives)
Nazi Germany
A popular term, untermensch, was used to describe what the Nazi Party believed were “parasitic races”, including the Jewish and Romani peoples.
Patrick Otema, age 15, learning his first words in sign language (Patrick Speaks, Channel 4)
Conclusions
Historical roots are evident in many words we use in some form and are defined similarly in many cultures
In Nationalist groups, communal experience more greatly defines context and individuals have a difficult time affecting changes in language. Democratic societies allow the individual to affect change in context and modify language.
Context is derived from a combination of personal experience (constructivism) and communal experience (distributed language) and the importance of these two ideas stem from the history and mores of each cultural group.
Language and the Community
Community has an enormous impact on definitions, as evidenced in academia, where specific words are confined to specific disciplines.
When we discuss language and the community, we are assuming that distributed language is the primary contributor to the definitions of our words.
Communal experience defines meaning and context in our interpersonal relationships. (Brown W. M., 1920)
Fig. 1: Basic lingual phylogeny stemming from P-IE
Selected literature cited
Brintlinger, A., & Vinitsky, I. (2007). Madness and the mad in Russian culture. In A. Brintlinger, & I. Vinitsky, Madness and the mad in Russian culture. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
Brown, W. M. (1920). Communism and Christianism. In W. M. Brown, Communism: The naturalistic this-worldly gospel for the coming age of classless equality and economic freedom. Ohio: Charles H. Kerr.
Faber, J. H. (1914 (republished 2001)). The Theory of Parasitism. In J. H. Faber, The Mason-Bees. Toronto: Project Gutenberg Consortium.
Haasl, A. (2005). The classical parasite: from appreciative partners of the gods to serving as jesters. Wien Klin Wochenschr.
Acknowledgements
Images sourced from the following locations:
Bammeville Collection, Louvre
Dutch National Archives
Holocaust Education and Archive
Channel 4 Unreported World
“For last year's words belong to last year's language
And next year's words await another voice.” –T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets