I think the class identification has to be prior, and the pejorative
senses attached to it. So, the scullery is filthy, as there weren't
many resources for her to be otherwise and her work was filthy;
sexually loose because her virtue had little social or economic value
and loss of same wasn't as likely to invalidate her for marriage as
it would have a girl in the doweried classes.
At 07:27 PM 8/30/2007, you wrote:
>>More complex than that. Slut signidied a scullery maid, so slut's
>>wool would be what a bad housekeeper didn't sweep up.
>>
>>Mark
>
>Well sometimes, though I'm not sure this was ever the predominant
>meaning, and "slut" usually had (at the best) a negative
>connotation. Here's a list of various synonyms found in John
>Florio's _A World of Words_ in 1598:
>
> a pisse-kitchin, alwaies cowring by the fire: an idle flurt, a
> driggle-draggle, a durtie slut: one that will beray hirselfe.
> a durtie draggletaile, a filthie slut, a dunghill queane. Also dung.
> a scarffe. Also any filth, trash, rabble, matter, or stuffe.
> Also a flurt, a slut, a baggage, a trull, a minxe, a gill, a
> gickesie, a queane.
> a pussell, a pugge, a paltry wench, a driggle-draggle, a slut, a
> whore, a flurt, a strumpet, a gixie, a minxe.
> a slut, a flurt, a piskitching, a filth, a gixie, a gill, a
> minxe. Also the chiefest skold in a parish, an idle proud huswife.
> to play the idle flurt, trull, slut or whore, to braule, chide or skold.
> a slut, a driggle-draggle, a piskitching, a flurting drudge.
> a filthie, sluttish slut.
> a fishing rod. Also a flurt, a slut, a driggledraggle.
>
>Retro-Rodent
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