1. Sydney Hill
Szczembara
AP Language
December 18 2015
Everything You Own in a Box tothe Left
People often reject the unique, they look with a quirked eyebrow and a disfavouring eye on
those who are different. In an unspoken agreement, the majority decided to don a negative
attitude to the minority. Perhaps one of the most finespun, subtle discriminations in the
world we live in today is that against the left; so inconspicuous is it that most never realise its
existence. Most would sneer, “how can there be discrimination against left? It’s just a
direction, a handedness, an adjective,”, but ‘most’ are the unwittingly biased majority.
The word ‘left’, bears three direct meanings. When facing North, it refers to the West side. In
the political sense, left, left-wing, and leftist all refer to someone with liberal political views,
views that may be different. Lastly, the word ‘left’ is used to convey abandonment and

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aloneness, such as being ‘left behind’ or ‘left hanging’.In contrast, when looking at the
definitions of the word ‘right’, you find that there are drastically more and positive
connotations: morally correct, accurate, privilege,and justified.
In language, the left side, and therefore the left hand, has always had pejorative connotations.
The English word ‘left’ in itself comes from the Kentish Old English word lyft, which means
“weak, or foolish”. In nearly every language, left is associated with something negative. Latin
Sinistra and the resultant Sinister were originally used to represent ‘left’. The Sanskrit “ववव”
(waama) has the same meaning for ‘left’ and ‘wicked’, as does Italian, where sinistra is used to
represent both ‘sinister’ and ‘left’. In many languages, ‘left’ only exists to be an antonym for
‘right’. The French gauche has the literal definition of “not right”.
The gift of being able to write with either hand we know as ambidexterity. The word, in
context, means ‘able to use both hands equally well’, but it also carries the connotation of
being deceitful or double dealing.This comes from the thought that the right hand would be
used for good, and the left hand would be used for ill. The Latin root word of ambidextrous,
dexter, is the word used to mean ‘right’, so, because it keeps that root word, ambidextrous
literally means “right handed on both sides”, reflecting the bias.

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Many common expressions and colloquialisms refer disparagingly to ‘left’ and left
handed people. To have “two left feet” means to be clumsy and inept at dancing.Australians
often use the term “cack-handed” as a slang term for left handed people, “Southpaw”being the
American equivalent. A “left handed compliment” is one that has a less flattering undertone or
meaning. Other languages have their own sayings, and, in addition to negative lingual
connotations, cultures themselves around the world have, and sometimes still do, subjugate
Left handed people.
Historically, the left hand has been associated with bad luck and uncleanliness. And because
they wouldn't utilise the other hand as much, people began to associate those who were born
left handed as foolish and backwards. In places where hygiene was an issue, the right hand, as
the dominant hand of most individuals,was used for social interactions and eating, leaving
the left the unfavourable duty of being used for personal cleanliness, especially after using
the bathroom. In many middle eastern countries, it is still considered rude to shake hands or
eat with your left. It is believed to be unlucky to encounter a left handed person at the start of
a journey in Scotland.
Apart from the practical differences, religion has influenced people's views of those who are
left handed. In Christianity, The Right Hand of God is considered the holy side, and is where
Jesus stood (this is also where the phrase “Right hand man” comes from). However, the left

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hand of God was reserved for judgment. The archangel Gabriel, one of six angels of death,
sits at God’s left side. The left hand path refers to Satanism. Left Handedness was often used
to convict and subsequently execute witches and people believed to be consorting with the
devil.
These negative connotations have carried on into recent history. Throughout the world,
children are encouraged or even forced to write with their right hands, either due to cultural
or social pressures. In American schools, it was never uncommon for school children to be
physically punished for being left handed. Duringthe 18th and 19th centuries, there were
purposeful and often brutal attempts at setting conformity into the educational system,
including such practices as tyinga child's left hand behind their back or imposing Corporal
Punishment on naturally left handed children. In the 20th century, Abram Blau, noted
American Psychoanalyst, was still suggesting that Left-Handedness was caused by perversion
and a lack of respect for authority. It was only after World War IIthat tolerance began to arise
for Left handed persons, but the Catholic Church, and therefore, Catholic Schools, still
insisted on the reprimanding and scolding of them. Those who have attended Catholic
schools duringthe sixties confess stories of being whacked in the head with dictionaries and
smacked in the hand with yardsticks, my own great aunt tells me how her teacher used to
make her sit on her left hand the entire day so it couldn't be used because she thought that left

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handed children were possessed by Satan. Soviet countries maintained strict policies against
left handed people until well into the seventies, making right handedness compulsory in
schools. Albania even went so far as to make left handedness illegal.
Parents and teachers fail to understand how detrimental forcing a child to convert
handedness is. Trying to create a right handed child out of a left handed one may result in
dyslexia, and/or learning and speech disorders like stuttering. Andall the hard work put into
morphing them more often results in ambidexterity than full righthandedness. Even today,
left handed students aren't shown the same considerations as their right handed peers. Most
school desks are attached to the chair on the right side, offering an armrest for the right
handed. However, it doesn't extend fully to the left, forcing the left handed to contort
uncomfortably to be able to write properly, which can cause back problems and the
appearance that the student is cheating. Scissors are almost always built with the right blade
on top, which allows you to see what you're cutting, if you do it with your right hand. Using
your left feels uncomfortable and the scissors shear the paper instead of cutting it.When I
was young I thought I was stupid because the cuts I made on paper never looked as pretty and
clean as the other kids’. Most left handed people tend to end up as more right handed than
not, as everything around us tends to be crafted for the right handed majority. We adapt and
conform so often that when we are presented with the rare object designed for us, it seems

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strange and unnatural. That majority is so unused to and so often unwitting to our struggle,
that they roll their eyes when we complain. People have told me to “Just deal with it, it doesn’t
matter” when I’ve expressed my grievances with my hand hitting my binder rings, or how I
smudge everything Iwrite and draw.
The unfair perception that we are clumsy and inept has only been cast upon the 10%
because we live in a world where we have no choice but to try to conform to the 90%. Tools
made for right handed people but used by the left handed often result in sloppy work, broken
equipment, and injuries. Even in the relatively open minded society that we live in today,
parents still encourage children to switch handedness, and the pressure to conform to the
majority leads some naturally left handed children to self-inflict the conversion onto
themselves, solidifying what generations before have tried to do: force conformity and create
a feeling of unworthiness amongst the ten percent.