Stan K-B: Midgets and midges are essentially “close” synonyms for small
entities[...] Common usage emerged to favor ‘midge’ for insects (in particular
the Chironomid) and ‘midget’ for dwarf humans and other species. Nevertheless,
BECAUSE LANGUAGES WORK THAT WAY*, ‘midget’ has evolved idiomatic usages as noun
and adjective for anything tiny or insignificant.[...] Imagine my shock on
reading the word GENITAL only to discover the word was in fact
GENIAL... we are back to
those verbal coincidences and how much significance they hold.[...]
* There’s a strong
metaphorical force at work which is essentially playful and inventive even at
the everyday common-language-user level. Of course, we admire VN so much
because he magnifies that force in dazzling ways and unexpected
directions.
JM: When
we consider everyday language as "playful and inventive", or
depersonalize "verbal coincidences", we are neglecting the possibility
that what is then happening lies only in the eyes of the
beholder - not in any word per se.
I'm sure SKB is jesting when
suggesting a "strong metaphorical force at work" ( a trap for
the orthodox Freudian?).
After all, quite recently he advised
us to: "Recall Saussure’s key
notion that the mapping from signifier to signified is quite arbitrary...It’s
fine to indulge in puns and word games as long as you don’t start attaching
mystical significance to accidental resonances and anagrams..."