• naught101@lemmy.world
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    16 hours ago

    The original meaning is “bad, rotten” in relation to wood. From there it was applied to people as a derogatory term.

    It was then presumably intentionally claimed as a badge of pride for the punk music scene, where it effectively means “anti-orthodox, anti-authority, rebellious, outsider”

    It gets used in pretty diverse circumstances, many of which don’t share much meaning with the original music scene meaning. Like steampunk is basically a purely aesthetic term, with none of the political connotations.

      • naught101@lemmy.world
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        12 hours ago

        Writers say all kinds of wack shit. Some of it sticks, some of it doesn’t. This one’s not really relevant to the OP’s question.

          • naught101@lemmy.world
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            10 hours ago

            Usage determines meaning, not age… if no one else picked up that meaning and ran with it, then it’s not really relevant to common usage.

            • Jerkface (any/all)@lemmy.ca
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              4 hours ago

              It’s obviously relevant to a conversation about the meaning and history of the word, even if it’s not a common usage today. If William S. Burroughs said it, it’s worth taking a moment and making sure it actually fucking sunk in, and not just going eww that’s not the way mom makes it. When people use “punk” pejoratively, and they commonly do, they are certainly calling on this legacy. I hadn’t made the connection to homophobia before.

              • naught101@lemmy.world
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                2 hours ago

                I have never heard of people using the term “punk” with any connotation of “homosexual”. It’s interesting to learn that Burroughs (and perhaps a few others?) once used it that way, but I’m skeptical that that has meaningfully influenced broader common usage. “They are certainly calling on this legacy” seems like a claim that needs evidence?

    • LoveEspresso@retrofed.comOP
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      12 hours ago

      That’s a nice link, thanks !! It explains the meaning of punk nicely.

      So, how does the word punk combine with solar to express a meaning ?

      • naught101@lemmy.world
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        10 hours ago

        The Wikipedia page expresses it fairly clearly in the intro paragraph:

        Solarpunk is a literary, artistic, and social movement, closely related to the hopepunk movement, that envisions and works toward actualizing a sustainable future interconnected with nature and community. The “solar” represents solar energy as a renewable energy source and an optimistic vision of the future that rejects climate doomerism, while the “punk” refers to do it yourself and the countercultural, post-capitalist, and sometimes decolonial aspects of creating such a future.