One thing I do know is that altering language does nothing to alter the concepts those words represent. It doesn't seem logical to me that there is a group of people who are afraid of homosexuals in the way other people are afraid of spiders. Therein, lies the diversity of 'phobia'.
Essentially, there's two meanings, which have been socially defined. The suffix [-phobic] means 1) An intense irrational fear of X, or 2) A strong dislike boardering on irrational fear of Y. In the same way [-aholic] has become a suffix meaning 'addicted to'. It doesn't have any greek base, it's just been taken off the end of alcoholic, and used to denote the addiction that word implies, even though it has no real base, it just sounds right. ('Sounds right', btw, is a perfectly acceptable reason.)
It's like xenophobia, or the newly termed Islamophobia. Most people with xenophobia aren't (necessarily) scared, per se, just a general discomfort with the idea of foreigners.
So, basically, yes. Your conclusion was correct. I just had these 2 cents sitting around in my pocket.
(Also, that drawing is fantastic. Really, really awesome.)
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Date: 2008-04-08 03:49 am (UTC)Essentially, there's two meanings, which have been socially defined. The suffix [-phobic] means 1) An intense irrational fear of X, or 2) A strong dislike boardering on irrational fear of Y.
In the same way [-aholic] has become a suffix meaning 'addicted to'. It doesn't have any greek base, it's just been taken off the end of alcoholic, and used to denote the addiction that word implies, even though it has no real base, it just sounds right. ('Sounds right', btw, is a perfectly acceptable reason.)
It's like xenophobia, or the newly termed Islamophobia. Most people with xenophobia aren't (necessarily) scared, per se, just a general discomfort with the idea of foreigners.
So, basically, yes. Your conclusion was correct. I just had these 2 cents sitting around in my pocket.
(Also, that drawing is fantastic. Really, really awesome.)