Each week here at the Australian Writers’ Centre, we dissect and discuss, contort and retort, ask and gasp at the English language and all its rules, regulations and ridiculousness. It’s a celebration of language, masquerading as a passive-aggressive whinge about words and weirdness. This week, we're doing the rounds…
Q: Hi AWC, can we talk about Susan?
A: Ummmm, sure. Which one? US women’s suffrage hero Susan B. Anthony?
Q: No, not her, but what’s the deal with the word “suffrage” anyway? Is it related to suffering?
A: Looking at politics, you’d think so! But no, that would be “sufferage” with an E. The word “suffrage” is defined by Macquarie Dictionary as “the right of voting, especially in political elections”. And it comes from the Old French “sofrage” – meaning “a plea or prayer on behalf of another”.
Q: So voting for someone else?
A: Basically. The original Latin “suffragium” is a bit foggy in its original, but one theory links the ‘frag’ part to breaking – specifically casting a ballot using a broken tile.
Q: I’m not sure the old guy at my polling booth would accept that.
A: The same Latin “breaking” root also gives us words like “fragment” and “fragile”.
Q: Makes sense.
A: And while the word “suffrage” has been in English since the 14th century, it would take until 1906 for the term “suffragette” to take hold – as a female supporter of the cause of women’s voting rights.
Q: So is that when they built Suffragette City? Sounds like a lovely place.
A: Ummm, no, that’s just a 1972 song title by David Bowie. Curiously, the song apparently has nothing to do with women’s voting rights, but was more of a fever dream of ideas inspired by Anthony Burgess’ book, A Clockwork Orange.
Q: That was all very interesting stuff! But it’s not the Susan I wanted to talk about.
A: Oh, okay. Is it Susan Sarandon – one half of that famous cinematic road-tripping duo Thelma and Louise?
Q: Ahhh – but WHICH half IS she though? Is there an easy way to remember?
A: Well, here are two options. “S” for Susan is in the name “Louise” – that’s one way of remembering it. Or imagine co-star Geena Davis sipping on a “G&T” – “Geena and Thelma”.
Q: Thanks for that. But no, she was also not the Susan I wanted to discuss.
A: Okay, we give up. Which Susan is it?
Q: Lazy Susan.
A: Lazy Susan??
Q: Yes. That staple of all good Chinese restaurants. How did the ‘Lazy Susan’ get its name?
A: Ahhhh, okay. Well first, let’s return to the Macquarie Dictionary and its definition: “a revolving tray for serving condiments or food.” They also note it can be a corner cupboard that spins to allow easy access.
Q: Sure. So how old is it?
A: The rotating table tray itself dates back as far as the late 1700s and was originally known as a “dumb waiter”.
Q: But isn’t that an elevator for trays of food?
A: Today, yes, we’d think of them as that. But for a century or so in the middle, the term meant both the elevator AND the rotating tray.
Q: What a confusing time it must have been. So when did it get, um, Susanified?
A: There are a few theories about who named it “Lazy Susan” involving rather famous men. One such theory claims Thomas Jefferson invented the device for his daughter Susan, as she always complained about being served last at dinner. Another suggests that Thomas Edison named it for HIS daughter.
Q: Well he did invent the early record player, and that’s kind of like a Lazy Susan for music, right?
A: Haha, true.
Q: So what you’re saying is if you lived two hundred years ago, were named Thomas, and had a daughter named Susan, can you claim to have named it?
A: So it seems! A more broad theory suggests many servants of this time were named Susan, so this new invention enabled them to do less work during the meal service.
Q: When did the term catch on in widespread use?
A: Not until the 20th century. We see it referred to in a Boston print article in 1903 and then in many advertisements in the 1910s as either a “lazy Susan” or both capitalised: “Lazy Susan”. It had entered most dictionaries by the 1930s, and the object became extremely popular in suburban homes in the 1950s.
Q: And today, it’s the most popular item on the table at a Yum Cha restaurant!
A: Haha, it’s true that Chinese restaurants love a Lazy Susan. Although their name for it simply translates as “dinner-table turntables”.
Q: On the turntables tonight, it’s DJ Lazy Susan – spinning the latest jams, and pickles, and sauces…
A: Haha.
Q: Quick, give me a quote about this and voting!
A: Ummmm, okay. “Going out for Chinese food sure gets my vote”.
Q: Oh, will you LOOK at that – our conversation has come full circle. Just like a Lazy Susan!
A: Ugh. Gosh, how serendipitous.
Q: Okay, I’m off to watch Thelma and Louise now. I hear the ending is a real cliffhanger…
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