One big freak show, thanks to that word

We use ‘dwarf’ and ‘lilliputian’ for people who suffer from the hereditary condition achondroplasia. But both words are useless, even hurtful, because they turn people into mythological creatures, such as Gimlic with his war ax in The Lord of the Rings or the tiny inhabitants of the land of Lilliput in Jonathan Swift’s satirical novel Gulliver’s travels (1726).

Due to the cultural impact of the fictional dwarf, the existence of small people threatened to become one big freak show, as in the second half of the nineteenth century when so-called dwarfs were a favorite attraction in the heyday of variety shows. Around the seventeenth century, noblemen liked to keep dwarfs in their homes as a curiosity: Archduchess Maria Theresa of Austria had six, for entertainment at court.

Meanwhile, stories about ‘dwarves’ and ‘Lilliputians’ are irresistible. Take the beautiful image of Swift’s protagonist Lemuel Gulliver who awakens in Lilliput to find that an army of little people has tied him up. Or my favourite: the six grumpy dwarves who appear in Terry Gilliams’ fantasy film Time Bandits (1981) Jumping out of a boy’s wardrobe at night, after which the time travel adventure begins.

But whether little people themselves enjoy being performed in this way is doubtful. It’s because of language, because of words. In Van Dale ‘dwarf’ reads: „ (in fairy tales) small creature; small person or animal”.

There you have it. ‘Human or animal’. The Middle Dutch ‘dwerch’ means monster or monstrosity. In Sanskrit, ‘dhvaras’, or evil spirit, and ‘dhûrvati’ suggest to deceive or deceive. And “Lilliputian”? That is certainly a silly word for short people, because Lilliputians are no longer than fifteen millimeters.

It is clear that new words for ‘dwarf’ and ‘Lilliputian’ are urgently needed. Finally, Swift himself says: “Good language means the right words in the right place.” But it is difficult, because when it comes to ‘dwarf’ the imagination runs wild. The London party company Cheeky Events, which deals in small people, is recruiting with the advertisement: “Hire a dwarf. And join the latest craze: cuff a dwarf for extra allure at your bachelorette party.”

The actor who can no longer tolerate it is Peter Dinklage, world famous for his role as Tyrion Lannisterthe venomous, achondroplasia-stricken right-hand man in the fantasy series Game of Thrones† Dinklage said he was strongly opposed to a new film adaptation of the fairy tale Snowwhite and the Seven Dwarfs† In a podcast, he addresses Disney: “So you’re making a retarded story about seven dwarfs living together in a cave? Have I not done anything for a good cause?”

In a response, Disney says that the dwarves will look different in the remake. But how? I give them to do. if Man Mountain (cf. Swift) I can thoroughly enjoy all the dreamed dwarfs, especially those seven mini-men who return home in the drawn 1937 classic and sing: ‘Hey ho, hey ho, you don’t get it as a gift!’ Which, I think, accurately reflects how real little people have to live every day.