*NOTICE TO MY BLOG READERS:
this is a weekly blog about words
that I find are indicative of the 21st century use of words as
subjective and often used to obliquely as well as violently to express opinion, but for the next 3
months I will not be blogging on that weekly schedule—instead I will post 12
blog weeks at the same time, though the posts will be separate and should be read
on that basis.
In an unfortunate way, I was
included in what I believe was another person's misunderstanding about this
word, "cracker," which I have realized was an emotional and
judgmental use of the word "Cracker" applied to posting a negative review
about the Kindle E-book version of recently published novel.
The negative review for my novel was rife with an
accusation, racist, and the entire review was prominently displayed on my book's Amazon site as one of the
3 reviews readers have posted about my book.
Though I am planning a trip do read my travel related blog for more information , I was not focused on checking my book sale site for new
review posts. But this weekend I was
shocked when a friend e-mailed me with the news about a negative review of my
book that I soon realized was associated with locale of my story. The locale is set in an area of northwest
central Florida known as "Cracker country," and as well, in my cast
of characters are some "Cracker" descendants.
Yet I never dreamed or thought that anyone could take offense from the word,
"Cracker," and apply the word, "racist," to my book to make
conclusions that my novel is racist.
It happens that I did research about
this genuine Americana folkloric culture, and found nothing that related to my conception of plot or theme that would prompt racist accusations. Instead I found that these were hard working settlers
of the Florida swamp lands that cultivated a citrus industry which thrived, grew
and expanded throughout Florida. They
also planted ancient oak trees with large overreaching branches that my heroine
found were sheltering and protective against a world that had been hostile and unforgiving. Additionally, the "Crackers" were
avid church goers who were suspicious of strangers and could be zealots when it
came to accessing the moral standards of those they called "sinners."
All of this was applied to a plot that
featured a "big city" gal who is pink slipped out of a reporting career. She lands serendipitously in an
alien culture, then finds that women are relegated to inferior jobs in this
patriarchal town called Citrusville where men ruled the roost, a subplot theme
for my book.
This critique of "racist"
stung me, but then I understood that my blog about words was very appropriate
for a discussion about the dictionary meaning of this word,
"cracker," and what a word means, versus the emotional and obviously
gut wrenching reaction to the word, "Cracker" even when capitalized.
This the meaning of "cracker,"
according to the Merrium Webster Online
Dictionary, is a crackling or snapping noise, a dry crispy baked product,
and also a usually disparaging: a poor Southern white, and if capitalized (as I
used the Cracker word in my book) a native or resident of Florida or Georgia, a
nickname—yet the benign meaning and those that may have another emotional
reaction, says volumes about the 21st century aversion to certain
words with the depth of an emotional reaction that can be accusatory and even
hurtful to all concerned.
I urged the writer of the review of
my book, which referred to the book as "racist" and in which the reviewer
(purchaser of the E-book Kindle) wondered how such a book could be published,
to please read my blog about words. I
hope she will make a comment about her gut wrenching reaction to the use of a
word which was as defined by the dictionary "capitalized" and applied
as a reference to the locale of the story and some of the cast of characters,
especially those who congregated at Ed's Diner. I also encouraged this reviewer to give my
book a reread. The reviewer did note
that the book was interesting, that is until that word, Cracker," was used in my book, and I am sure that this reviewer will be interested in my subplot about women who want equality not only in the workplace.
My novel's heroine, Clarissa Max discovered
how to survive as a hack freelance writer, and tells the story of a haunting by
the ghostly Max who refuses to be dead and seeks to find her destiny lost by
playing mind games that bring about a change in direction for the heroine, who
tells her story about finding one door closed and discovering another door open to another
kind of life.
