Summer 2022 Newsletter

Not long ago, I was walking home from a grocery run on a downtown street in Toronto when a construction truck cut me off, as I attempted to cross an intersection.  I was crossing on a light, I had the right of way, but the driver yelled at me nonetheless, blaming me for his own mistake.  Sadly, there is a surfeit of role models for that kind of behaviour.  Men in high positions around the world behave the same way, and I wasn’t going to fight a pointless battle to change his mind.  So, I ignored him and kept walking.  

Or tried to.    

Out of nowhere, another angry young man behind me on the sidewalk began shouting at me.  I stopped and turned around to face him.  C---!  he yelled.      

That, I would not ignore.  I never know how to respond in these situations.  I wish I could say I had a clever retort for him.  I did not.  I was shaking – internally and externally – and I shouted at him that I had done nothing wrong.  His response was to shout the c word again. And then again. It was pretty clear he did not want to hear my opinion, so I turned and went on my way.  He followed me for half a block yelling c--- repeatedly.  I felt I had been the victim of violent verbal abuse. 

I wonder if the users of this word realise – or care – how it is received.

I hear the word used in the odd movie or TV show.  A few friends and family members use this word occasionally as well, despite or maybe because of my objections. I assume the word is deployed in these instances as a badge of honour: proof the user won’t be cowed into using politically correct language. 

But this isn’t about political correctness.  It’s not about whether we should say “Merry Christmas” or not.  My dictionary labels c--- as “vulgar slang” and says it refers to either “a woman’s genitals” or, “an unpleasant or stupid person”.  I think c--- is part of the same plot line of laws, stereotypes, religious edicts, social norms etcetera devised throughout history and up to the present day to keep women and girls in their place, to shame and silence them.  It connotes a view of women and girls as lesser than, and we have all seen the outcomes of that.  Deny women and girls education.  Deny them the right to control their own bodies.  Assassinate female judges and politicians simply because they are female.  Treat women as sexual objects worthy only of a grope or a grab.  Deny women a seat with the men (quite literally in the case of Ursula von der Leyen). 

An Internet search tells me the word has ancient origins.  Chaucer used a version of the word, Kerouac and other writers have used it too.   

You can add me to that list now too.

The word c--- had not been in How the Invisible Woman Learned to Fly prior to my unwelcome meeting with the angry young man.  But then I processed the experience, and really thought about the impact of the word.  Now, in one particular scene, the father of one of my main characters calls his wife a c---, the word hurled at her in a fit of anger and depression. 

Every time I go back and read that revised scene now I feel like I’ve been struck with a blunt object, such is the power of that word.  When you read the scene, let me know what you think.

As for anyone who uses the word casually, know that I don’t see you as cool.  Or tough.  Or as someone who stands up to political correctness.  I see you as someone who stands up for violence and hatred.  Who thinks women are lesser than men.  And we already have enough darkness in the world these days, don’t we?