RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (Full Version)

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Mercnbeth -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 7:39:44 AM)

Dad was always after us regarding proper pronunciation and grammar, however, he had fun with it as well.

We used to poke fun at brother for being Mom's favorite...somehow, we got around to inserting the words "capital h", right after use of the words "he" or "him" when talking about him. over time the joke broke down even further and we just started referring to him, between the two of us, as Capital H.

those fun times and inside jokes with Dad are what this slave misses the most about him, especially on days like today, when folks are celebrating their Dad's & Grand-Dad's.

Thanks for stirring up some of those great memories with your post, SocNot!!![:)]

as for the OP:

Master sets the rules as to how this slave presents herself to Him and others...including communication style. Any deviation from or similarity to common or accepted standards and protocols of Webster, Gor, Oxford, Roman culture, etc. are purely coincidental.

thanks, Level!



porcelaine -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 7:41:30 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: SocratesNot

I have noticed recently that, being influenced by the customs on this site and other BDSM sites,
I started using certain capitalization rules that are actually not prescribed by English grammar.
So I capitalize nouns (and sometimes even pronouns) referring to Dominants and I don't capitalize those that refer to submissives or slaves.


I see no justification for it. But my Lady wants it. If it were up to me she'd never get it. Not as a sign of disrespect or disregard for her feelings, but a change in case is not a demonstration of what I feel for her or the position she holds. I don't make those distinctions in my mind. And as much as I love her dearly, I have always felt it was a manifestation of ego. Now obviously I'm not going to trod upon hers, but I'm unwilling to lie as well.

If someone asks me to do it I'm appeasing them. Nothing more or less. I don't get swoony feelings or shifts in consciousness, because my submission isn't manifested on the screen. I view the act as compliance because my mindset on the subject has never changed.

~porcelaine



Level -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 8:06:06 AM)

You're welcome, beth [:D]



LadyPact -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 8:11:33 AM)

I wanted to add My appreciation as well.  Thank you, Level.



Level -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 8:23:08 AM)

You're quite welcome, my friend.



Rochsub2009 -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 8:39:09 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: porcelaine

I see no justification for it. But my Lady wants it. If it were up to me she'd never get it. Not as a sign of disrespect or disregard for her feelings, but a change in case is not a demonstration of what I feel for her or the position she holds. I don't make those distinctions in my mind. And as much as I love her dearly, I have always felt it was a manifestation of ego. Now obviously I'm not going to trod upon hers, but I'm unwilling to lie as well.

If someone asks me to do it I'm appeasing them. Nothing more or less. I don't get swoony feelings or shifts in consciousness, because my submission isn't manifested on the screen. I view the act as compliance because my mindset on the subject has never changed.



Thanks Porcelain.  You captured my thoughts completely. 

i think that "slashy speak" is rather silly, but i do it because so many Dommes on here get upset and chastise me when they see that i am NOT doing it.  Rather than continue to get corrected constantly, i have just chosen to follow what seems to be an expected protocol here on-line.

Like you, i don't feel that capitalization (or the lack thereof) necessarily reflects what is going on in my head.  i don't think any more of my Domme because i have capitalized her title, nor do i think any less of myself because i have made my own lower case.

i think it's one of those silly things that on-line people focus on.  Anyone who i have served in real life has never had to worry about such silly distinctions.  My actions are all the proof that they need of my submission.



leadership527 -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 8:55:28 AM)

*laughs* I started doing this long ago when I was online only. Since I went real life, the concept annoys me so I don't anymore. The net result is that if you look at my posts, you'll see it all over the map... M/s... M/S... m/s... etc. Overall, I find it silly that someone can type..

"I think my Master is full of shit"

and I'm supposed to believe they respect the person because of the capital M. I'm also none-too-happy about the idea that somehow the dominant person in a partnership is more respect-worthy than the submissive. I can tell you who I respect on these boards. By and large it is those unions... dom and sub alike.... who have made it work over the long haul. I'm big on demonstrated success rather than theory. I would hope they know I respect them because I say things like, "Wow, that was a really good post. Thank you for that" or even more directly "I really respect you".



LadyPact -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 9:16:36 AM)

Now that My head isn't quite so far up in the clouds (but damn it was fun).......

I find the easiest thing to do is to follow whatever a person has done for themselves via their screen name and their posts.  The site doesn't automatically assign lower case for submissives and capitals for Dominants.  People chose their personal style when they signed up.  I follow suit.  Though I will admit, sometimes, I do make mistakes.  There are also situations where someone on the s-side actually does have their name in upper case, but through our talks on the other side (c-mail, etc) they sign their name in lower case.  I'll transfer this habit to the boards, because I see no need for a 'forum' persona and a 'mail' persona when it comes to a screen name.



Ishtarr -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 9:35:48 AM)

I personally prefer mostly correct punctuation rules.

I greatly dislike slash speak like U/us or W/we because it makes texts much harder to read, but I don't mind the capitalization on D/s or M/s. I'm used to them that way, and it almost reads awkward when the caps are missing.

When it comes to capitalizing terms like "Master" and "Dominant" I tend to try to stick to standard English grammar rules, meaning that when the word is used as a tittle, or a form of address, it becomes a proper noun and is thus capped, while if it's used as a general descriptive term, it doesn't get capped.

I don't mind people using a cap on "Me" as long as they don't expect me to refer to them as "You" and I equally don't mind submissives using "i" although I would equally refuse to use the same convention for them (where that possible in English) when I address them.
Exceptions are nicks and names, and I will generally always use a name the way the person themselves presents it.

The only thing that I really really HATE when it comes to grammar is the use of "xhe" and so on to basically say "he or she".
Not only are these terms absolutely whimsically made up in recent years, they are also hard to read, disrupt the flow of a text AND... English already has proper terms to say "he or she"... it's "they" or "their".

In formalized writing you're never supposed to use 3rd person singular, which is something that my college professors have tried to hammer in me when it comes to papers. Likewise, one would use "one" to replace first person singular and so on.
With these rules already well established, I find it terrible annoying that people felt the need to come up with some other cool and ambiguous way to say "he or she".
If it bothers you so much to use the general general neutral implied "he" then use the proper formalized form and say "they" because the "xhe" stuff just makes post impossible to read, at least in my opinion...







Rochsub2009 -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 9:47:42 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: LadyPact

There are also situations where someone on the s-side actually does have their name in upper case, but through our talks on the other side (c-mail, etc) they sign their name in lower case.  I'll transfer this habit to the boards, because I see no need for a 'forum' persona and a 'mail' persona when it comes to a screen name.



Okay, i must admit that i am a bit schizophrenic when it comes to "slashy speak".  i tend to use it all the time here, because that is what is expected.  However, in c-mail, i don't use it.  I use the normal rules of grammar in my one-on-one communications in c-mail.  My reasoning for this is that the person that i am communicating with understands that i am not THEIR sub, and therefore, there is no reason for me to capitalize their name, or put my own in lower case.

However, i will switch to "slashy speak" in my private communication for either of two reasons;

1)  i am communicating with someone that i have gained enough respect for that i choose to acknowledge that respect by capitalizing their name and placing my own in lower case.  It is my own way of showing that while i am not THEIR sub, i have enough respect for them that i still acknowledge their dominance.

2)  W/we have been communicating for a while, and i feel both an attraction and a D/s dynamic developing.  When that happens, i begin to capitalize their name, and place mine in lower case.  It serves as my written acknowledgment of the change in our dynamic that is occurring.  It's both a show of respect and a written flirt.  Most Dommes tend to notice the change immediately.



TheLadyIsADomme -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 10:03:10 AM)

I tend to use standard rules of grammar/punctuation in communcations on a forum or message board. In one on one communications, however, I do have a preference and capitalize references to myself.

On a funny side note, when I am at work, I have noticed that I sometimes slip into using that capitalization format in email, and have to go back and change it. LOL.



PeonForHer -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 10:16:06 AM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: LadyPact
 I'll transfer this habit to the boards, because I see no need for a 'forum' persona and a 'mail' persona when it comes to a screen name.



I'll tend to do different things in private to the things I'll do in public. [;)]

To SN:

My belief is that many people do these things with language because they're a turn-on.  They have symbolic erotic power.  If I call a woman 'Ma'am' - and she takes it the right way (vitally important, that latter) - then it gets me right to the core. If I were to bow to her - even more so.  Whew! 

With that second example, we've already moved from symbolic acts in language to symbolic acts in deeds.  I'd push it even further than that, though.  I think a lot of what are labelled physical kinks (ones that we vaguely assume draw their erotic power from somewhere deep and unexplained in the psyche) have symbolic erotic power, too.  If bowing has symbolic erotic power, then so might 'foot worship'.  Or 'worship' of any other part of the body.  It's a symbol of her being dominant to me and my being submissive to her.  The symbol acts as a short cut to all the feelings associated with that dynamic. 

As for grammar - I'll respect it to quite a large extent - but it doesn't have absolute authority.  I've only limited interest in preserving 'correct grammar' for grammar's sake alone. All the best writers in history have made grammar their servant, rather than their master.  That was famously true of Shakespeare, for instance - and what was a good enough policy for the Bard is a good enough policy for me.  [;)]



TheLadyIsADomme -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 11:03:48 AM)


quote:

ORIGINAL: PeonForHer

All the best writers in history have made grammar their servant, rather than their master.  That was famously true of Shakespeare, for instance - and what was a good enough policy for the Bard is a good enough policy for me.  [;)]


This is a great point, Peon. I agree.



nevergrowdup -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 11:45:05 AM)

I have to admit that there is a certain practicality to using lower case. For example, I can quickly ascertain that the author is a bottom. But if they capitalize, the reader doesn't know if they are a top or being grammatically correct. I fall into the latter category.

One thing that rubs me the wrong way: When tops use capitalization to refer to self at every opportunity. (For example, My brother thinks that My house is too big considering My family size.) I've always thought that the real leaders don't need to be announced. I have respect for people with a quiet confidence. I work at a place with lots of PhDs, but very few of them have their degrees hanging on the wall or asked to be referred to as "Dr. So-and-so." Those that demand respect have a harder time earning it from me, IMO.

Just got an email today from a friend in the scene who referred to me as "mary." I didn't say anything (and won't) ... but I find it a bit odd since we don't have that kind of relationship. I could see using capitalization in correspondence between a D/s couple; it's a reminder of the power dynamics of that relationship. But between friends and strangers, it seems odd because we are on equal footing.



Andalusite -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 1:10:50 PM)

I capitalize Dom/me, Dominant, Master, Mistress, and abbreviations of them since it seems to be the general convention here. If someone uses all small letters in their screen name, I feel it is respectful to do likewise, unless their name is at the beginning of a sentence. I generally dislike s/Slashy S/speak and Weird Capitalization of Pronouns, but I don't have any strong objections to other people using them. I refer to talking of oneself in the third person as "Bob Doleing." The only person I've seen do it without it being awkward is beth. If I dated a Master or a Dominant who wanted me to use slashy speak or odd capitalization, I would probably comply, since I don't consider it to be a hard limit. I would want to make sure that they weren't fantasy-oriented in their general approach to D/s or M/s.



porcelaine -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 1:51:30 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: Rochsub2009

i think that "slashy speak" is rather silly, but i do it because so many Dommes on here get upset and chastise me when they see that i am NOT doing it.  Rather than continue to get corrected constantly, i have just chosen to follow what seems to be an expected protocol here on-line.


I utilize standard writing principles because they work well for me. The only thing I've altered is abstaining from writing purely in lowercase for reasons attributed to laziness. I adhere to a few abbreviations to alleviate spelling the full acronym out, but aside from that I'm not changing case at all. The exception made is in deference to a long standing situation, had that not been the case I would have been firmer in my stance.

As for personalities on the Internet, I'm unwilling to bend. If we cannot communicate without unnecessary characters we're probably not compatible.

~porcelaine



PeonForHer -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 3:28:48 PM)

quote:


Okay, i must admit that i am a bit schizophrenic when it comes to "slashy speak".  i tend to use it all the time here, because that is what is expected. 


I didn't pick up on that earlier.  That's quite a surprise, Rochsub - I don't think anyone's ever told me to use such 'slashy speak', nor even given any hint that she wants me to use it.



leadership527 -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 3:42:09 PM)

quote:

ORIGINAL: PeonForHer
I didn't pick up on that earlier.  That's quite a surprise, Rochsub - I don't think anyone's ever told me to use such 'slashy speak', nor even given any hint that she wants me to use it.
Please use slahey speak whenever posting here.

There ya go. Now someone has told you to do it :)



PeonForHer -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 4:04:29 PM)

B/bollocks!



leadership527 -> RE: Capitalization and other grammar quirks (6/20/2010 4:05:35 PM)

Thank you. I feel much more respected now.



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