Nigger Definition Essay

The old idiom, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me,” has been used for decades, and although a good sentiment, can be disproven by any person with an basic understanding of their feelings. The power of the words one hears can greatly affect their self esteem and confidence. The fact that words hurt is an issue everyone faces, but some words hold too much power, power that can be used in not so ideal ways. Slurs, or words that are used to oppress minority groups, are used too casually in the modern world, with grave consequences on the minorities they are used against. The word faggot, a term used to describe gay men, has become popular in modern America between school boys as a way to either mock their peers or intentionally hurt an actual queer person. This word in particular moves farther away from offensive and can be categorized as oppressive due to its both psychological and social ramifications. The use of the word faggot is an act of oppression when one looks at both the social and psychological effects the word has on both the user and the recipient of the slur.

When some think about the word nigger they immediately think about negativity and some might even venture to say that it is a "bad" word. It takes you back to a time when blacks were oppressed and demoralized. When blacks were looked at as inferior and not worthy to obtain equal rights in America. But that was decades ago and it is now the 21st century. Not only have we changed the spelling of the word, by dropping the er and adding a, but the definition has changed also. According to Gloria Naylor, we have took our "past history of struggle and present survival against the odds" and transcended the word nigger into a "victorious statement of being". So a word that was used to depict

In the English language, the word "nigger" is an ethnic slur, usually directed at black people. The word originated as a neutral term referring to people with black skin, as a variation of the Spanish and Portuguese noun negro, a descendant of the Latin adjective niger . It was often used disparagingly, and by the mid-twentieth century, particularly in the United States, its usage became unambiguously pejorative, a racist insult. Accordingly, it began to disappear from popular culture, and its continued inclusion in classic works of literature has sparked controversy. In the contemporary United States and United Kingdom, using the word is taboo, and it is often replaced with the euphemism "the N-word". "Nigga" is sometimes used among African Americans in a non-derogatory sense or as a term of endearment. Etymology and history

The use of the term nigger can be used as a amicable greeting between two blacks, or as a “hideous pejorative” (Marriott 94) towards blacks. Marriott notes that the use of nigger is usually condoned and used by younger blacks as a “term of endearment” (98), in hopes to gradually alter the meaning of the word. Their goal is to normalize the usage of nigger between blacks to “dull its edge whenever whites use it” (Marriott 95). This has been proved somewhat efficient, as most whites dread the word and express feelings of disgust whenever it is heard from the mouth of whites. Many younger blacks believe their efforts are stimulating a progression in society, but older blacks and the majority of whites assert just the opposite- it illustrates “anything

People have words they use with their family that would be hurtful had they come from outsiders. Gloria Naylor makes a great point when she articulates, “So there must have been dozens of times that the word “nigger” was spoken in front of me before I reached the third grade. But I didn’t “hear” it until it was said by a small pair of lips that had already learned it could be a way to humiliate me” (483). Naylor grew up hearing “nigger” everywhere she went. It was used as a term of endearment. It was used to describe people with great achievement. Occasionally it was used to describe a small group in the community who were not great people (481). However,

This word became the noun, negro, describing a black person in English, and simply defining the color black in Spanish and Portuguese” (Niggers, a Brief History). No matter what meaning the word had before, it all changed in the 1800’s. The words nigger and negro suddenly transformed from a harmless connotation to a spiteful term used to tarnish the black community. It was now a new favorite among the vocabulary of racist whites, who held first place in thinking the absolute lowest of the African American race. In the United States, "nigger" was first regarded as pejorative in the early nineteenth century. In the era of enslavement, the words "nigger" or

A 1700 quote by judge Samuel Sewall uses the term in a denunciation of slavery. Gradually, however, polite discourse increasingly used the term negro (which dates to at least 1555) and nigger became relegated to the vulgar tongue, increasing in offensiveness over the centuries.

The word "nigger" has become a popular saying amongst our current population. The word appears to be used more each day by an assorted group of people. I've conducted a research in order to gather a better understanding as of to why the word "nigger" is so commonly used. I've collected responses from my fellow class mates and read a book called nigger to acquire addition information about the different opinions brought on by its usage. In these responses were patterns that helped me to get better acquainted with this idea. Most writes provided me with the same answer, that the reason why people call each other "nigger" is because it is used in a positive way. With this information given, the next question that came to mind was is it

Aside from your community, the issue goes more into depth when entering the household. As young children, blacks and whites played together but as they grew up, the whites were taught a life changing word, “nigger.” Slowly but surely, they grew up being presurred with the mind set that they were superior

From being used against African Americans, to being used by them, many believe this is a term of power, including Andre. He goes on to discuss the historical relevance with

Should Nigger be Used as a term of Endearment in the Black Community and Everywhere?

In Season 1, Episode 5 of the The Netflix Original Series: Dear White People released on April 28, 2017, Reggie, a black college student and the leader of Winchester University’s Black Student Union is seen at a fraternity party surrounded by mostly white students. All is well until Reggie’s white friend, Addison, repeatedly utters the N-word while singing along to a hip-hop song. Reggie asks him not to say it anymore however, Addison questions him and attempts to justify his use of the word which leads to a debate. The creator of Dear White People uses characterization and setting to convey how non-Black people-especially white people- who use the N-word regardless of whether or not they understand its historical context, reinforce the notion that Black people are inferior which helps to maintain white supremacy.

That's common.' ' 's what everybody at school says.' ' From now on it'll be everybody less one,” Scout said to Atticus the “n word”, for her its just one of those terms that don’t mean anything, for example, like snot-nose. Ignorant, trashy people use it when they think somebody’s favoring black people over and above themselves. It’s slipped into usage with some people like ourselves, when they want a common, ugly term to label somebody.

Make no mistake that slave owners came up with the word Nigger and it was only supposed to mean an individual, who is lazy, unwise, and good for nothing, but somewhere along the history lines of slavery the N word began to be used more as racial insult against the non-white Americans

The first viewpoint is non- black people should not be allowed to say nigga because it’s racist. Yes, black people do say it casually doesn’t mean everyone has that same privilege. For example, Sen. Ben Sasse appeared on HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher to promote his new book, he also invited Maher to visit Nebraska after they talked about how adults in California still dress up for Halloween. "We’d love to have you work in the fields with us,” the senator said to Maher. "Work in the fields? Senator, I am a house nigga” (Stern). There was a mixture of reactions but Ice Cube was quick to come onto the show to let his opinion be known.