{"id":787,"date":"2023-03-03T20:56:28","date_gmt":"2023-03-03T20:56:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/floydsplace.us\/wpress\/?p=787"},"modified":"2023-03-10T06:18:22","modified_gmt":"2023-03-10T06:18:22","slug":"capital-controversy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/floydsplace.us\/wpress\/2023\/03\/03\/capital-controversy\/","title":{"rendered":"Capital Controversy"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Whether or not a word is capitalized in written English is standardized for the most part. In general, this is a silly arbitrary detail that we all quickly learn in elementary school and never think much about again. However, some cases are not as clear. What at first seems like the most boring topic possible quickly becomes charged with religion and racism. I came across this a couple of times recently in some different contexts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Let\u2019s start off with the least controversial word, moon. Is the Moon capitalized? I thought this was fairly straightforward. While the general idea of a moon as a generic object that orbits a planet is not capitalized, a moon versus the Moon. The Moon (the one that orbits around Earth) is a single object that is also a place, and Moon is its proper name, so Moon, in this sense, is capitalized … right? Somehow, there is disagreement about this. The Associated Press and the Merriam-Webster Dictionary do not capitalize the Moon (the one that orbits the Earth), while NASA does. Earth has a clearer dual system, Earth as a place, our planet, versus earth referring to rock and soil. It feels strange to write that we launched from the Earth to land on the moon, yet, according to some well-established writing standards, this is correct. The Sun also shares this type of disagreement (is it the Sun or the sun in our solar system, or Solar System?). This got me wondering, is the E\/equator as a place capitalized?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The next word escalates the potential for controversy, God. According to what I read, when the word god refers to the God of a monotheistic religion, as in a single supreme being, the word is capitalized. However, when we are referring to a god as one of multiple gods within the same religious system, it is not a proper name and is not capitalized, but the individual name of the god is. For example, Christians worship a single God, while Rama is a god in Hinduism. The split for capitalization is between monotheism and polytheism, which concerns me. (Are different monotheistic Gods still capitalized when referred to as a group?) This might unintentionally signal different levels of approval or respect between religions if capitalization is interpreted that way. This might also get very tricky when translating ideas across cultures. For example, there is a single Catholic God that is simultaneously a trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, or \u201cHoly Ghost\u201d as I was taught growing up), then there are angels, Satan, saints, and Mary who have different roles. In Hinduism, there is also a trinity, Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva, that together represent Brahman, the unity of creation. Then there are devas, asuras, yakshas, rakshasas, and others. This kind of pattern also exists in other religions. When reading Things Fall Apart<\/a><\/em>, I came across Chukwu, the supreme God in Igbo traditional religion, which all else, including other gods, come from or are a part of. There is a brief discussion in the book between two characters about if Chukwu is or is not equivalent to the English missionary\u2019s God. Does a religious entity from one culture translate clearly enough, with sufficient understanding, into the categories of a single being versus multiple beings that do or do not get defined as a God or gods in English to fit into our capitalization rules? Would Catholicism clearly translate into monotheism, and Hinduism clearly translate into polytheism when studied by an outside observer? Should we consider always capitalizing the word god in order to be respectful across cultures and recognize that there might be misunderstandings? Is God actually a title and should be capitalized in all cases like Mister and Madam? I raise these questions while realizing that we have to make a decision when writing, just as I have had to do here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In modern English, pronouns are not capitalized even if the noun is. However, the pronouns referring to God are sometimes capitalized by some authors, as in He and His, to signal that the person has a deep respect for the corresponding deity. This gets problematic when talking about multiple deities in a neutral way because, unless this is your intention for a character, it opens the door to signal personal rankings of levels of respect of different religions and underscores how the capitalization of different forms of the word god may unintentionally signal the author\u2019s judgment. It also throws a wrench into things if we have simultaneous conflicting rules about capitalization. Reverential capitalization could lead us to write Angels versus satan, for example, which is the opposite of the broader proper name convention.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is an argument that might be made about why we capitalize proper nouns in the first place if it is not meant to show a level of respect. However, I don\u2019t think this holds up; in the end, it is just an arbitrary standard rule. We don\u2019t respect Mars more than the \u201cmoon\u201d or Coca-Cola more than water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Okay, now let\u2019s talk about race. In general, I avoid using the terms Black and White to refer to races. However, I was paraphrasing a character in Things Fall Apart<\/a><\/em> who used the term White and ran into the problem of capitalization. It quickly got more complicated than I expected, so I held off until I could look into the question some more. I thought Black and White were proper nouns and should be capitalized, but while writing, I wanted to quickly double check if White was capitalized (it looked strange, like I was used to seeing it in all lowercase) and found that this was an ongoing discussion. I was surprised to find out that Black was not standardly capitalized until recently and that there were arguments for and against capitalizing White. (I mentioned this to my wife. She already knew all about this debate of capitalization. I follow the news daily, but this is something happening in our culture that I missed.) On one hand, White is a proper noun that refers to a group of people; however, writing White instead of white might be interpreted by some to indicate support for White supremacy. Let me be clear and state that I do not support White supremacy and am in no way trying to signal support by capitalizing the word white when it is used as a proper noun. (This illustrates a reason why we should not cloud things with reverential capitalization.) This comes with a counterargument that capitalizing White helps to take the signal back away from White supremacists. (This is something I can support. It feels like cultural wack-a-mole with a trolling aspect, with whatever new thing has been co-opted, like ok hand signs and Hawaiian shirts. I think we should take these back yet strike a balance with being thoughtful of how symbols might be perceived by the people around us. For example, I am not going to fly a Confederate flag or paint a swastika to try to \u201ctake it back\u201d.) Another argument for capitalizing White is that \u201cwhite\u201d makes it sound like this is the default or expected race unless stated otherwise. Then there is an argument that White should not be capitalized in order to help right past wrongs. (This list of reasoning is not meant to be exhaustive.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After reading some more and reflecting on it, I still think both Black and White should be capitalized. However, I am well aware that some people, my wife included (I checked with her first to see if it was ok for me to write this), disagree with me about capitalizing White.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here are some example guidelines: The MacArthur Foundation wrote that it will capitalize Black, Brown, Indigenous, and White. The Associated Press and The New York Times said that it will capitalize Black but not White. The National Association of Black Journalists said it will capitalize Black, White, and Brown. The Center for the Study of Social Policy announced that they would capitalize both Black and White. The APA style guide says that the names of racial groups, including Black and White, are capitalized. (This is also not meant to be exhaustive.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In summary: I recognize that languages evolve and that words are defined by how they are used; we are a part of this. I think that we should, until we decide to capitalize all nouns or none, follow the proper noun convention as consistently as possible. (My elementary school self would be amazed that I would take the time to argue for this later in life.) Capitalization of a word should not be taken as a sign that the author holds the idea behind the word in a higher level of respect relative to the other words around it; this creates impossible conflicting writing situations and should be avoided. Moon should be capitalized. God versus god is tricky and deserves being thoughtful\u2014I plan to reflect on it some more beyond what I have written here. Pronouns for God, such as he or she, should not be capitalized. Finally, Black, White, and other terms for race should be capitalized.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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