word strike

English translation: boycotting, ignoring, or substituting certain words in conversation

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)

English term or phrase:	word strike
Selected answer:	boycotting, ignoring, or substituting certain words in conversation
Entered by:	Mikhail Kropotov

11:27 Jul 2, 2004

English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Art/Literary - Poetry & Literature

English term or phrase: word strike

...Alsana needed a tactic of her own. She'd done silence, and word strikes, and food consumption(the opposite of a hunger silence; one gets bigger in order to intimidate the enemy), and now she was attempting a sit-down protest.

Word strike = talk a lot, or not talk at all, or else?

Zhoudan KudoZ activity Questions: 337 (none open) (1 without valid answers) (2 closed without grading) Answers: 299
Local time: 05:15

total silence

Explanation:
Yup.

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Note added at 11 mins (2004-07-02 11:38:48 GMT)
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On second thought, it makes little sense, because it reads \"silence\" just before \"word strike\". But how can one go on a strike just spouting words endlessly? I cannot imagine anything that.
The other idea is boycotting certain words or substituting certain words for others. I\'m not very sure, really.

US artist Mark Bloch has suggested a Word Strike (1991-1994), during which we are supposed to follow the motto \"Don\'t say \'art\' unless you mean \'money\'\"; Bloch sees this as a way of answering the requirements of the strikers without stooping to ineffectual and possibly harmful tactics.
http://www.thing.de/projekte/7:9#/y_What_Makes_AS_Bad_Idea.h...

Selected response from:

Mikhail Kropotov
Germany
Local time: 23:15

Grading comment

Thank you all. I think SirReal's added explanation has a point.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer

SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED

4 +11

total silence

Mikhail Kropotov

sulking

Paul Dixon

striking blows with words

jerrie

Answers

0 min confidence:

peer agreement (net): +11

total silence

Mikhail Kropotov
Germany
Local time: 23:15
Works in field
Native speaker of: Russian
PRO pts in category: 64

Grading comment

Thank you all. I think SirReal's added explanation has a point.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)

agree

Carmen Loren

5 mins

-> thanx!

agree

Cilian O'Tuama: can be a luxury instead of the intended punishment :-) / I see what you mean - maybe only certain words are not used any more??

6 mins

-> HAHAHAHAHA! thanx, although I'm not so sure of my answer anymore. ADDED: right - perhaps boycotting particular words. or ignoring certain words addressed to her

agree

Vicky Papaprodromou

12 mins

-> thanx!

agree

Ray Luo

1 hr

-> thanx!

agree

RHELLER: 2nd point is correct - boycott/substitute certain words

1 hr

-> thank you! always a good idea to check oneself

agree

Galatea Laudouar: Either on strike against certain words, such as "Thank you" or "No!" or respond only with certain words, such as "No." That tactic has been seen in books already.

2 hrs

-> thanx! with Cilian and Rita and you agreeing, this could be the correct way to understand "word strike"

agree

Rajan Chopra

2 hrs

-> thanx!

agree

Tahir

2 hrs

-> thanx!

agree

Eva Karpouzi

17 hrs

-> thanx!

agree

Nanny Wintjens

1 day 14 hrs

-> thanx!

agree

Alfa Trans (X)

3 days 3 hrs

-> thanx!

25 mins confidence:

striking blows with words

Explanation:
using words as a weapon.
Choosing your words carefully (designed to hurt etc) then striking?

As mentioned above by SirReal, you already have silence (going on strike with your words, laying down your word tools).

So maybe, she's tried silence, taking the offensive with words and (over) eating to intimidate the enemy, now she's going for a 'sit down/we shall not be moved' protest.

Just a thought

jerrie
United Kingdom
Local time: 22:15
Specializes in field
Native speaker of:

English
PRO pts in category: 96

5 hrs confidence:

sulking

Explanation:
Better than "silence' as suliking is often done as a protest or to make one's views heard (especially by children), while silence could occur for other reasons, such as during a championship chess match, where you can hear a pin drop!

Paul Dixon
Brazil
Local time: 18:15
Native speaker of:

English,

Portuguese
PRO pts in category: 4

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