[Vwoolf] FW: Etymology of Term Used in A Room of One's Own

[Elisa Sparks]

Maybe everyone else already knows this, but I thought this post from an assiduous undergraduate might add a small nugget to our pile of knowledge about Room.

Dr. Sparks,
I remembered you wondered if Woolf might have known about the slang version of the term "faggot" when writing about the professor in A Room of One's Own. I checked the OED, and the etymology is intriguing. The term was used since the 16th century as "a term of abuse or contempt applied to a woman," and 1914 is the earliest recording of the term being used as slang for homosexual. Also, examples for "faggot" as a pejorative term used toward a woman include James Joyce and D.H. Lawrence. I think that Woolf was aware of both of the meanings and applied them to create a double insult.

I hope you find this as interesting as I did.

Best,
Justin Holliday
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