Changing language is easier than changing society. It allows some people to feel better that they are "making a difference" without having to actually make any effort.

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Eyes Of The Dragon by King

There’s a random book by Aldous Huxley called Antic Hay, and I enjoyed it more than Brave New World…

When people talk about Toni Morrison, they usually talk about Beloved and Song of Solomon — or to a lesser extent, The Bluest Eye and Sula. Those are great books, but one of my favorites by her is Tar Baby. I feel like it is on par with her most famous four. I think it gets overshadowed because it came out right in between Song of Solomon and Beloved!

Sorry, old brain. I read that as a teenager

Not to be that guy, but it's "Welcome to the Monkey House."

Also, I agree it's great, but folks should know it is a collection of short stories.

Treason by OSC was one of my favorite sci-fi novels.

Out of the Silent Planet by C.S.Lewis.

Sci-fi, about exploring Mars. It's part of a trilogy. I meant to read the other books but haven't gotten around to it yet.

Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus by Orson Scott Card, who has written much more than the Ender’s Game books.

I was surprised how much I like Joyland by Stephen King. Made me nostalgic for a time I never lived in.

End of Eternity, Asimov, and The God Makers, Herbert.

> I think that most people

"most people". Not all people. So why are you responding to me as if I'm definitely one of those people, with no charity? I highly, highly doubt that banning words in, say, college classrooms will result in universal banning of entire topics or words etc. The first amendment in the US is pretty strong.

>are genuinely buying into a slippery slope fallacy

...the slippery slope isn't a fallacy, you know. It's either an effect which is happening, or isn't happening, in given societal context. I could very well envision a place in which a particular society becomes very repressive in speech because hte taboo against restricting speech has been slowly eroded. This is not saying that I believe this same thing will happen where I live, or where you live.

It does happen in places like certain "loony" liberal social organizations, but isn't likely to happen society wide in the US (where I live) just let, because there are very good constitutional lawyers to protect against things like that, and the people are generally for the first amendment (besides on reddit for some insane reason). I am a bit concerned about some restrictions on speech I've seen coming out of Germany and the UK and Canada, not because I disagree that the things they're restricting are indeed shitty (you're a huge fucking asshole if you deny the holocaust, for example), but because I'm worried that conservatives will take this weakening of standards to make it illegal to be openly, say, socialist.

This was a pretty generic leftist (not lib, leftist) take only ten years ago but now people are so uncharitable that they assume anyone arguing in defense of the first amendment defending even shitty speech means they must support the shitty speech as well, when it's usually hte opposite. It's why the ACLU has supported (legally) the KKK in the past. The hyperpoliticialization of our times.

In regards to these silly radlib groups who try to shame people for using the word "lame" or whatever...that shit is probably cyclical, and hopefully they'll realize that they're being counterproductive to their own causes soon enough.

Steinbeck has a lot of unerrated works.

Once There Was a War is his other major nonfiction work, it's a compendium of his columns as a war correspondent during WWII.

In Dubious Battle is my favorite of his novels. It's an early one, it's not as polished as his later works he's known for, but it's a solid story on it's own and fascinating to read in relation to the themes of The Grapes of Wrath. It's almost like a trial run for Grapes.

The Crocodile is a short story by Dostoevsky and it's absolutely hilarious.

Lost in the Monkey House by Kurt Vonnegut

The Road to Gandolfo by Robert Ludlu.m

“Icerigger” by Alan Dean Foster👍

I also loved Travels with Charley. It is ironic and witty. It makes me want to have a drink with Steinbeck. The eyewitness account of school desegregation is fascinating.

Steinbeck's Travels with Charley

I found it by accident at a book sale year ago, and had never heard of it.

I've always loved the cross country road trip books, so I picked it up.

became one of my favorite books of all time.

"The Eve of Saint Venus" by Anthony Burgess is absolutely hysterical but most people only know "A Clockwork Orange."

I actually don’t think that. I think that most people who bristle at style guides that suggest inclusive language are genuinely buying into a slippery slope fallacy: they think that making strong language suggestions in a professional setting will eventually lead to a complete loss of free speech. I’m disagreeing.

There’s always been expectations for language in organized settings, and those expectations have always changed as society has new values. We didn’t notice the ones we grew up with because, well, they were “normal” to us. But they started somewhere. So yeah, I don’t think style guides suggesting inclusive language is a sign of societal decline. I think it’s just another new way of thinking about how we speak.

> You also can’t say “fuck” while working in a church without being fired. No accusations of Orwell there though. People seem to understand that different places have different standards of acceptable speech when it comes to protecting their own traditions, yet when it comes to the new standards inevitably rising up as society values inclusion more, they balk. Recent generations are more offended by racial slurs than words like “fuck,” and I think that’s a positive thing. They find dehumanization of marginalized people more offensive than slang for sex. I agree with them.

I agree with literally every single word you said here. The problem is that you think someone saying "Sometimes words are banned sometimes" means they are over-the-top assholes who just want to shout out racial slurs whenever they feel like it.

It doesn't really make any sense. Indicates that people are itching for a fight that isn't there. Sometimes words are banned. Depending on the context, that's usually good. But it's just plain wrong to say that words aren't ever banned. That's all I was saying.

God Knows by Joseph Heller. I think it is far funnier than Catch 22.

If you want to delve into the lives of coal miners in England do I have an author for you!

I've enjoyed most of DH Lawrence so far- the Tresspasser and Lost Girl are both less regarded but good.

I mean do I find it obnoxious and immature sometimes? Sure. But that’s more youth being youth, and also I’m guessing it’s a way to try to make their very scary reality a bit less intimidating. My generation said “knocked up” to refer to somebody getting pregnant when we were young. Also immature and disrespectful which is like… what young people do best. They’ll grow up, and more confident, and most will experience enough life that they’ll want to use more serious language. You know when I stopped using “knocked up”? The first time I had friends that had fertility problems or unwanted pregnancies. Those experiences made me grow up and start being more respectful.