Hyphen (Object Lessons) -- Pardis Mahdavi, Christopher Schaberg, Ian Bogost -- Object lessons, First edition, London, 2021 -- Bloomsbury Academic; -- isbn13 9781501373909 -- 6941f12c7cec3387e6e6b8bcaa013439 -- Anna’s Archive (1)
The excerpt weaves together a series of narrative vignettes, memoirs, and dialogues that explore the hyphen both as a punctuation mark and as a metaphor for hyphenated identities in contemporary America. It follows several protagonists—Dani/Danielle, a Chinese‑American queer student navigating pronoun changes and family conflict; Ania, a Latina activist who balances campus organizing with work at a dominatrix club; Ade, a Black‑American football player wrestling with the decision to kneel during the national anthem; and a group of Google engineers debating the technical and cultural significance of non‑breaking hyphens. Interspersed are historical accounts of the 2007 Shorter Oxford English Dictionary hyphen controversy, scholarly reflections on the hyphen’s role in language evolution, and theoretical framing from Parker Palmer and Gloria Anzaldua about “bridging the tragic gap.” The text illustrates how the hyphen functions as a site of connection, division, and power: it links words, links identities, and can be weaponized or reclaimed. Through personal anecdotes, campus coalition meetings, activist moments, and technical debates, the author demonstrates that embracing the hyphen—living “in‑between”—offers a way to negotiate multiple selves, resist essentialist labeling, and forge new collective meanings.
Topics
Hyphenated Identity and Personal Transformation (Dani/Danielle)
A memoir of a Chinese‑American queer student who moves from Daniel to Dani to Danielle, changes pronouns, confronts family expectations, and re‑appropriates the motto *E Pluribus Unum* to articulate a self composed of multiple hyphenated selves. The hyphen operates as a metaphor for linking, dividing, and ultimately unifying her intersecting identities.
Intersectional Activism, Coalition Politics, and Symbolic Protest
Narrative of Ania, a Latina activist who balances campus organizing with work at a dominatrix club, and Ade, a Black football player wrestling with the decision to kneel during the national anthem. Set within the ASU Council of Coalitions, the story exposes racism, homophobia, and accusations of “divided loyalties,” showing how the hyphen can both bridge and fracture collective movements. Ade’s #TakeAKnee moment becomes a hyphen‑like gesture linking personal conviction to broader protest.
Hyphen in Language and Technology: Historical Controversy and Modern Workplace Debate
Chronicles the 2007 Shorter Oxford English Dictionary hyphen removal controversy, media backlash, and scholarly defenses of the hyphen’s linguistic role, then shifts to a dialogue among Google engineers debating the necessity, aesthetics, and political implications of non‑breaking hyphens in code and documentation. The piece links technical design choices to cultural identity politics.
Theoretical Framework: Hyphen as Bridge, Tragic Gap, and Hybrid Self
Integrates Parker Palmer’s “tragic gap” and Gloria Anzaldúa’s “bridge” metaphor to argue that living “inside the hyphen” enables the creation of hybrid selves and new collective meanings. This conceptual lens underpins all narrative vignettes, positioning the hyphen as a site of connection, resistance, and possibility.