Nov 26 2008
Sojer Boys and Injuns
There are two words that appear throughout various Louis L’amour novels that really bother me.
Sojer (Slang for Soldier)
Injun (Indian)
Both words are used by various nefarious characters as derogatory terms. The politically correct movement of the very recent past has strongly discouraged these types of words and phrases and more than a little bit of that movement has ingrained itself into my personality.
In most cases I enjoy putting myself into the time period of the book that I am reading, and L’amour does a wonderful job of recreating the old west. Both “Sojer” and “Injun” are authentic uses of the words and correctly placed, but they still grate on me.
Part of the problem may be that the only time they seem to appear is when a bad guy uses them. They are a meta-clue as to who to watch out for and give away pieces of the plot without allowing the reader to solve the mystery organically.
Fascinating about them being meta clues. I’m not sure I would have picked up on that by myself.
I read a few Louis L’amour books in high school upon the recommendation of a few of my classmates. I enjoyed them, but certainly noticed the “sign of the times”. I just took it in the context it was used and didn’t worry about whether it was politically correct. That’s the only way I can enjoy something as entertainment.
Davida