The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #141301   Message #3251280
Posted By: GUEST,Eliza
06-Nov-11 - 07:21 AM
Thread Name: BS: Unwelcome diminutives/nicknames
Subject: RE: BS: Unwelcome diminutives/nicknames
I was called Skinny Lizzie as a child at school, because I was skeletally thin. I also got called The Galloping Hairpin when I began horseriding. I always laughed at these names, I was genuinely amused by them and not in the least upset. I think this cheerful response stopped any unpleasant teasing. But as an adult, I do feel overfamiliarity is a domination game, a way of putting someone down. If you suspect this, have a quiet word with the perpetrator and firmly insist on being addressed correctly. If they persist, you can refuse to respond to them. You have to make a stand or they will continue to dominate you.