Stigma:
- 1) The recognition of differences based on some distinguishing characteristic or mark;
- 2) A consequent devaluation of the person
Quiggle: A made-up term (by famous sociologist, Erving Goffman) to identify all of the variations and differences of the human body which occur either from birth, daily wear and tear, accident or illness which can be, and will be stigmatized.
"The normal and the stigmatized are not persons, but rather perspectives." - Erving Goffman, 1963
One of the things I was most looking forward to upon my first landing at Heathrow was the long ride into London in one of England's famous black taxis. It all started innocently enough when once I was settled in the incredibly spacious vehicle I asked the driver a simple question, and to my amazement didn't understand one word of his reply - experiencing first-hand the old saying "divided by a common language". The situation became even more embarrassing and went downhill quickly when he realized from my lame replies what was happening - after all, these guys are smart, they have "the knowledge" (a term applied to the in depth knowledge of 320 main routes through central London that taxi drivers must know without the help of consulting a map in order to obtain a license). Then the true awkwardness set in as he tried to apologize for his poor Cockney English - speaking very slowly I might add. When I remarked that however difficult their accents are it was the Brits who took to the air and sea in anything that would fly or float, thus saving us both from truly being able to communicate in a common language - German!
Like magic, that one statement seemed to open an entirely new perspective (like maybe Americans had a sense of humor!) and communication. For the rest of the trip he spoke even more slowly, like he was teaching a child; and I, instead of nodding or saying something inane, admitted when I didn't have a clue and we started over. At times we even resorted to pen and paper, so determined we were now to communicate. Needless to say I ended up having a fabulous ride into the center of London, when to my surprise he turned off the meter and showed me Churchill's war room and other sites before leaving me on Park Lane to attend my conference.
Since that time I've had dozens of London taxi rides into the city center from Heathrow, but none so brilliant as the first Much of the education he gave me that day has long since been forgotten. Something that did stick, however, was what he told me about the fate of the pilots who were badly burned defending our freedom. The Hurricanes and Spitfires flown in the Battle of Britain carried highly inflammable fuel which resulted in appalling burn injuries for many of the pilots who parachuted to safety when their planes were shot down. Most of these men were sent to a hospital in East Grinstead where (later to be knighted for his work) Sir Archibald McIndoe pioneered the field of reconstructive plastic surgery using these pilots as guinea pigs for his ideas. They later became known as The Guinea Pig Club.
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