"Beat Back the Hun!” How an act of ‘Self’-construction was turned into an exemplary case of ‘Othering’

Musolff, Andreas (2014) "Beat Back the Hun!” How an act of ‘Self’-construction was turned into an exemplary case of ‘Othering’. Angermion, 7 (1). pp. 75-89. ISSN 1868-9426

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Abstract

To call Germans “Huns”, or collectively, “the Hun”, in Britain today counts as an offensive utterance, and the specific lexical item Hun in this meaning a dysphemism. In current usage, it only occasionally resurfaces in tongue-in- cheek statements, often related to football. The term Hun also features as a citation (and often as a good punning opportunity for headlines) in articles that discuss anti-German incidents and statements and relate them to lingering resentments from World Wars I and II. What gives the Hun nickname such an enduring appeal as an anti-German invective, even if it is used mainly mockingly these days? Should it be regarded as a metaphor, given that its nonfigurative reference to an ancient Asian people is transparent to most users?

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	intercultural communication,german history,world war i,dysphemism,metaphor
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > School of Politics, Philosophy, Language and Communication Studies
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Arts and Humanities > Research Groups > Language and Communication Studies Faculty of Social Sciences > Research Groups > Migration Research Network
Depositing User:	Pure Connector
Date Deposited:	24 Jul 2015 22:32
Last Modified:	21 Jul 2023 09:38
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/53593
DOI:	10.1515/anger-2014-0105

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