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HelpRuby & Oswald
I thought of this pairing when I was thinking about how some names seem to "belong together" because they share a link of association - like Malcolm & Martin, Rosa & Claudette, examples like that. I was watching the movie Parkland when I realized that Ruby & Oswald fit that pattern really well, and I was curious about how offensive people would perceive such a set to be, so I made this poll:
http://www.behindthename.com/polls/234095
What would you think if you encountered this as a sibset? What would your thoughts be?
http://www.behindthename.com/polls/234095
What would you think if you encountered this as a sibset? What would your thoughts be?
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Replies
How do Rosa and Claudette associate with each other?
I don't see Oswald as being offensive. I don't live in the US, so it doesn't matter to me. Furthermore, Osvaldo is used frequently here without any negative associations. Oswald seems to still be considered an acceptable name in Germany, even though it's not popular at the moment.
I don't see Oswald as being offensive. I don't live in the US, so it doesn't matter to me. Furthermore, Osvaldo is used frequently here without any negative associations. Oswald seems to still be considered an acceptable name in Germany, even though it's not popular at the moment.
This message was edited 3/15/2014, 4:42 PM
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I would think the parents were either very uninformed or had very bad taste. Neither one of the names is bad (no, actually, Oswald is a really bad name) but together they are so corny and negative. And Oswald is not a name you ever see as a first name anymore, no other associations except Lee Harvey, that a Ruby and Oswald sibset is just inappropriate. Any denials on the part of the parents that they didn't know about the associations would ring hollow.
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Oswald
Is quite loaded with associations.
For all the good associations, you have Lee Harvey Oswald, and, moreso here in the UK, Oswald Moseley. Moseley was a fascist, an unpleasant person in his personal life, and not a nice fellow.
I've come across/heard of a couple of younger Oswalds/people who considered naming their children Oswald (especially in a town near me which has got very much on board with the weird-recent-middle/upper-class-quiet-UKIP-following of the last few years, and does seem a haven for closet bigots). Without exception, they've all been fascist/UKIP/BNP/Daily-Malicious-reading/bigoted/prejudiced-type families, if relatively reticent about it. The mother of a young Oswald was recently in our weekly paper's name'em-and-shame'em court proceedings sum-up for GBH against a Muslim teacher at her son's school. My friend works at that school and I know the mother. She is not a nice lady. In our area that kind of thing is very rare and does make local news.
Ultimately, it's a name I've always associated with fascism, and which has been associated with British fascism since Moseley's day. I don't think it's an obscure association either. Most uses of the name seem to be for rather than despite of.
So yeah, I hate the association and I do think it's going to attract judgement. I'd judge it in real life. As a name, I really don't like the sound of it either. I think it's in the phlegmy-snotty dorky category, along with Dwayne and Rupert and Wayne and Wallace and so forth. Ew.
Ruby does not appeal to me. It's a little moll-ish. It's not awful, but I do think it wouldn't be out of place in some terrible Sin-City-like film.
Is quite loaded with associations.
For all the good associations, you have Lee Harvey Oswald, and, moreso here in the UK, Oswald Moseley. Moseley was a fascist, an unpleasant person in his personal life, and not a nice fellow.
I've come across/heard of a couple of younger Oswalds/people who considered naming their children Oswald (especially in a town near me which has got very much on board with the weird-recent-middle/upper-class-quiet-UKIP-following of the last few years, and does seem a haven for closet bigots). Without exception, they've all been fascist/UKIP/BNP/Daily-Malicious-reading/bigoted/prejudiced-type families, if relatively reticent about it. The mother of a young Oswald was recently in our weekly paper's name'em-and-shame'em court proceedings sum-up for GBH against a Muslim teacher at her son's school. My friend works at that school and I know the mother. She is not a nice lady. In our area that kind of thing is very rare and does make local news.
Ultimately, it's a name I've always associated with fascism, and which has been associated with British fascism since Moseley's day. I don't think it's an obscure association either. Most uses of the name seem to be for rather than despite of.
So yeah, I hate the association and I do think it's going to attract judgement. I'd judge it in real life. As a name, I really don't like the sound of it either. I think it's in the phlegmy-snotty dorky category, along with Dwayne and Rupert and Wayne and Wallace and so forth. Ew.
Ruby does not appeal to me. It's a little moll-ish. It's not awful, but I do think it wouldn't be out of place in some terrible Sin-City-like film.
This message was edited 3/15/2014, 1:09 PM
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They do work somehow, don't they? They have a quirkiness and instability about them that complement each other.
But yes, as Tassiegirl pointed out, the connection they share is the JFK assassination. Being Canadian, I wasn't sure how strong the memories about that issue still were, and if the set would immediately set a certain "tone", you know?
But yes, as Tassiegirl pointed out, the connection they share is the JFK assassination. Being Canadian, I wasn't sure how strong the memories about that issue still were, and if the set would immediately set a certain "tone", you know?
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I didn't even think of that. Whoops.
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Maybe that's where the association between the two comes from for you? You heard that ages ago and it stuck in your subconscious lol
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