YOU!

When I was a child, it was inconceivable that a child would swear at an adult! When an unreasonable parent inflicted an unjust punishment and ignored or shouted down my or my sibling's pleas for justice or leniency, the unutterable frustration occasionally drove us (children) to say "YOU!"

This word was spat out with all the pent up fury that comes from being oppressed by the overwhelming power of those in control and the impotence of those being controlled. It oozed with frustration, hurt, anger and the futile contempt of the underdog.

This one little word, almost always, would result in a physical assault, usually a slap - a VERY hard slap, even though, up until that point, no physical chastisement had been threatened.
Even knowing that such a blow would follow "YOU!" we would spit it out.

Why? because it was the one small way we had to 'prove' that we were not totally oppressed. That, although powerless, insignificant and, unimportant in an unjust situation, we had not been crushed and would not be silenced.

There we times when the anger so overtook us that we would repeat "YOU!" and receive a harder slap, and again... and again... Of course, the adults always prevailed (although a whispered 'you!' enabled a shred of false triumph), and the child would lay on the bed sobbing and plotting the adult's downfall or imagining our own funeral ("then they'll be sorry!").
But, we would also have some sense of dignity, we had not backed down. Metaphorically, at least, we could hold our heads high.

And the strange thing is the power of that one, ostensibly innocuous little word!
That it could trigger aggression, physical assault, and violent retaliation in the power holders; and a semblance of dignity in the relatively powerless.

How come? Because, whatever definitions might be found in a dictionary or personal history or cultural heritage, meaning 'happens' in each individual's head.

We attribute meaning, individually, personally, subjectively. Of course we will be influenced by our culture and conditions, by the dictionary and the thesaurus, but books can seldom give us the emotional overlay, or the intent, real or imagined, as we perceive it, in the speaker or author - as in "YOU!" spat out at adults by us kids.

If we feel attracted or demeaned by the use of words, and if we believe that people INTENDED us to feel that way, and of we believe that other people or their views are The Cause of our feelings and emotions, it 'makes sense' to defend ourselves, perhaps by attacking the other person - who then retaliates.

And so we take a stance, defend a position, demand 'respect', accuse each other of ... well, each doing what the other is doing!

If the adults in my childhood had been willing to hear us out and then said, for example, "Well, yes, and the punishment still stands!" It would still have been unjust, I / we would still have been upset and we would certainly have pouted and stomped a little and talked about them behind their back. And I believe that, even if we had said "YOU!" it would have merely been an expression of frustration, not contempt.

go well