ArisKatsaris comments on How to Not Lose an Argument - Less Wrong

109 Post author: Yvain 19 March 2009 01:07AM

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Comment author: ArisKatsaris 15 December 2011 02:26:20PM 2 points [-]

Bowdlerization is normally understood to be the idea of removing offensive content, but this offensiveness doesn't need to have anything to do with "vulgarity".

Comment author: thomblake 15 December 2011 03:20:15PM 1 point [-]

X is offensive. Vulgar is offensive. Therefore X is vulgar. Logic equals very yes?

Comment author: Boyi comment score below threshold [+] (6 children)

Comment author: ArisKatsaris 15 December 2011 03:49:30PM 0 points [-]

There exist things that are offensive against standards of propriety and taste (the things you call "vulgar"). Then again there exist things which offend against standards of e.g. morality.

You don't seem to understand that there can exist offensiveness which isn't about good manners, but about moral content.

Comment author: Boyi 15 December 2011 03:53:19PM -2 points [-]

??? Um no read sentence # 2.

Comment author: ArisKatsaris 15 December 2011 03:58:42PM * 0 points [-]

Please respond to these following two question, if you want me to understand the point of disagreement:

Do you understand/agree that I'm saying "offensive content" is a superset of "vulgar content"?
Therefore do you understand/agree that when I say something contains offensive content, I may be saying that it contains vulgar content, but I may also be saying it contains non-vulgar content that's offensive to particular moral standards?

Comment author: TimS 15 December 2011 03:58:37PM 0 points [-]

First, bowdlerizing has always implied removing content, not adding offensive content. Second, the word has evolved over time to mean any removal of content that changes the "moral/emotional" impact of the work, not simply removal of vulgarity.

Comment author: Boyi 15 December 2011 04:20:30PM 0 points [-]

I do not say it means adding content. It means to remove offensive content. Offensive content that is morally base is considered vulgar.

Comment author: TimS 15 December 2011 04:23:42PM 0 points [-]

All they see is you/people like you calling a part of them "vulgar." I don't believe I've done this
It is harder and/or worse to get people to part with these beliefs than to adopt a bowdlerized version of them".

Don't use words if you do not know what they mean.

The two statements you quoted are not inconsistent because a bowdlerized theory is not calling the original theory vulgar, in current usage. Based on the change in meaning that I identified.

ArisKatsaris comments on How to Not Lose an Argument - Less Wrong

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