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"Can't speak for Nina but the insult brings to my mind not physical stature but emotional and mental limitations."
If you reread her post, you'll see that she said that she uses the term because she thought mythical trolls were short, so apparantly it is a reference to height, in this case.
"However the use of the word 'little' does probably originate from stigmatising people affected by dwarfism and growth disorders and so as a text insult could be easily taken the wrong way."
Short people (not just people with dwarfism and growth disorders, but also people who are just a bit shorter than average, like men who are 5'4" and such) are still stigmatized (and I can back this assertion up with links and such, if you'd like), and the word little is used as a discriptive term for short people. Do you see how the situation of using "little" as an insult is somewhat analogous to the word "gay" as an insult? If you hear someone use the word gay in this way ("dude, you're so gay for supporting Bush"), and call them on it, they'll often tell you that they're not homophobic, and that the word, in that context, does not mean homosexual. Regardless, people are offended by the derogatory use of the word "gay".
And how do you think people with developmental disabilities feel when they hear the word "retard" used as an insult? I can't say that I know, as I've never asked someone with a developmental disability about the term, but I suspect that at least some folks would find it hurtful. Mere speculation. The word "retard" has been used both to refer to developmentally disabled people and to call someone stupid for a long time, and I still think it's inappropriate to use it in a derogatory way. Am I too sensitive? I don't know, but it pisses me off to hear discriptive words for minority groups used as insults. |
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