on 2/05/2003 17:52, Moose at olymoose@xxxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:
> So, in Spanish, the symbolic subtext is that straight ahead,
> straightforward, etc. are masculine qualities and deviation, turning
> aside, etc. are feminine qualities.
Hi Moose,
Being my mother tongue, I've always understood the following:
If you tell a taxi driver "Siga derecho" he will go straight ahead, and the
word derecho in this context is neutral, neither masculine nor feminine.
If you are told "Mira la vista por la izquierda", you can be told "Mira la
vista por la derecha" just the same, because the grammatical structure
implied in this sentence is the omited noun "mano" (hand) which is always
feminine. If the person speaking wishes to use the noun "lado" (side) which
is always masculine, he will have to say "izquierdo" and "derecho" as you
correctly pointed out; and is almost impossible to omit.
As for the quoted semiotic conclusion, I'm not so sure this is the rule.
Hope this helps,
Fernando.
PS: Thanks for your offer to scan slides. May I keep in touch ?
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