to be annoyed that yet again eastenders used the expresion"epi"

[2shoes]

bianca was telling her dd of and used the expresion and roxy used it the other week.
can't the scrip writers think of a better word to use??
dd has epilepsy and so does dh. and I can assure you it is no laughing matter.

forgive my ignorasnce as i have very little experience with epilepsy (sp) but where do those who were offended by this soap opera believe the line should be drawn?
not just in relation to epilepsy but in the whole "real life dialogue" versus not wishing to offend anyone debate?
i'm just interested in what people deem ok and what is offensive.
what about phrases like "going mental/mad" or bedlam etc?

My nephew has severe epilepsy and I have occasionally used the term "eppy" for tantrums too. It wouldn't have occurred to me to connect the two. My sister always says dn has fitted/is fitting. Certainly his fits bear no relation to tantrums (although he has those too). Having looked up the derivation I see that it referrs to "a fit of anger", but I did have to try several slang dictionaries to find it at all.

it is very easy to come out with "well it is rl crap" when it doesn't affect you.
I asked dh(who does not watch EE) what he thought as he is a grown man with epilepsy and he thought it was out of order.
if the so called clever script writers can manage to write a script without words like fuck, nigger, paki in them I am quite sure they can leave crap like that out.
I have only met one person in rl who used the term epi and she was rather thick.

i have just realised that i posted this in the wrong topic. shouldn't have been in AIBU as I am not. sorry (we need a rant topic)

I completely agree with riven.

Some people just don't care if they hurt or offend anyone.

Why should an offensive term be acceptable because people in RL use it.

If I called someone a stupid paki, would it then be ok for a character on Eastenders to use that expression?

The scriptwriters are professional writers, I would presume that their vocabulary is large enough to find alternative terms for having a tantrum:

Entry Word: tantrum

Function: noun

Text: an outburst or display of excited anger

Synonyms: blowup, explosion, fireworks, huff, scene

Related Words: eruption, flare-up, outburst, storm, uproar; agitation, delirium, distraction, frenzy, furor, furore, fury, hysteria, rage, rampage, uproar; upheaval; reaction, rise; dander, temper; pet, pouts, sulk(s)

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Madmuggle, people may use it in ignorance of the actual derivation and meaning of the word. But it definitely comes from 'epileptic fit'. So it IS offensive and certainly is an example of prejudice against people with this condition.

I don't know if it would bother me, having not seen the programme. But if someone used that word in front of me, I would explain what it means and ask them not to use it again.

It's generally not something I get that worked up about, but I can't speak for everyone with epilepsy - many of whom ARE disabled. Not all - I'm fine thanks to modern medicine but it's not so long ago there were no drugs and people with epilepsy were shut away in 'epileptic colonies' - as recently as the 1960s. And there is still plenty of prejudice, people thinking anyone with epilepsy is stupid, or just being frightened and avoiding anyone with the condition in case they have seizure.

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Oh i know, i heard them use the expression broken heart and my son has actually got a broken heart, if they had ever gone through a child needing open heart surgery they wouldn't use that expression. it's sick.

well put kinder

I'm epileptic
I'm not thick (thats not a particularly nice word to describe someone either if you're going to get precious)
And I have used the word epi to describe an epileptic fit

But I don't watch Eastenders
Its shit

Sorry if I've offended any shit BTW

Hahahaha Saga, good post.

my dd is very sick from the condition and if people sid it to me id have to tel them to atch wht they say as dont want my child being labelled, she is not naughty she is porly so why should a tantrum be put in sae catergary as an epileptic fit, for those who dont even know to say it ok is damn right rude, and if it was there children like this thet wod only then tAKE A BLIND BIT OF NOTICE

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Here's to Mr Orwell and the delights of Newspeak. Adopt that they we can confidently fail to piss anybody off, intentionally or innocently.

No. I want to be able to use the English language without being labelled unjustly. In my area eppy has nothing to do with discriminatory terminology It means a temper tantrum. Nothing more. I will not refuse to use the word in my everyday life because somebody who uses a different dialect may become offended. That's due to distance and the evolution of language. It's the way of the world.

Please do not make assumptions about me based on a love of literature and a short temper I am just a little fed up of the language that we use being fenced off and 'banned' for fear of some random stranger taking it the wrong way. Words are notorious for having more than one meaning. If every word that had a possible derogatory connotation were to be outlawed we would, as I intimated in my last post, be stuck with a very stripped down language, as in Orwell's 1984

I saw this last night and said to DP about it.

I used to say having an 'epi' when I was growing up, not knowing at the time where it came from. I imagine a character like Bianca still would.
But it doesn't make it right, complain if ti bothers you, I'm sure many other people will have done too.

Out of curiousity, and not trying to be provocative - do people find the expression "don't have a fit" as offensive as "don't have an eppy"?

I have tried several times to explain this to people at work - (in the context of suggesting they should find a different word other than "brainstorm" which many find offensive.) It's met with a shrug and a mystified expression. I do not get it; it's not hard to find different, better words. One member of staff lost a close friend to epilepsy, so there really ought to be some understanding, but.... no. I don't watch Eastenders, but wholeheartedly agree they should stop using this offensive phrase.

Do we accept doctors describing women who have recurrent miscarriage as "habitual aborters" because it's part of their terminology and they should't have to change their language? No we say six years of medical school should give you the mental capacity to find a different word.

If you love literature and love words you should always be changing and updating your vocabulary anyway. Stephen Fry wrote a good column on this years ago suggesting a "Fresh Phrase Day" which I think is an excellent idea.

Funny how yesterday we had Tanya giving Chelsea a piece of her mind for saying "bum". I didn't really watch it last night, just caught that bit so don't know the context.

out of interest what time does eastenders air at?is it pre or post watershed?