So I'm writing a story that involves a country that hates science and technology and hunts people who practice these things like witches to be killed or enslaved. Problem is I need a slur to call them and the best I can find/come up with is an old world war 2 term called Boffin. Which I hate. Does anyone have an idea? For context, not religious based, and because there is magic in the world its not people rejecting said magic. Edit: The slur users, are also Norse in origin. The word does not necessarily have to be of the same origin however.
"Paper Pushers" (because doctors and scientists always have their degrees hanging in their offices) "Giats" for the Greek word "giatros" which (according to google translate) means "doctor"
Tech Boys/Tech Girls (A slight spin on the WH40K Ork 'Mech Bois') Techies Dorktors Frankensteiners (Frankens for short) Found the urban thesaurus and this is what it dug up per: https://urbanthesaurus.org/synonyms/doctor https://urbanthesaurus.org/synonyms/Scientist https://urbanthesaurus.org/synonyms/Engineer Frankly for engineers I fancy Garbologist. Good luck, and I hope you can find something to either spark your liking, or something you can possibly riff off.
It kind of depends on why exactly the society doesn't like them. Scientists have been declared heretics because their discoveries opposed religious truths. And they've been called the elites by those who dislike their (assumed) "I know best" attitude. If it's politically motivated they could be traitors or something along those lines.
It depends on how hated they are. The two words that really incite a sense of deep hatred is the N-word...and the name Hitler. I hesitate to use either of these terms because I grew up in a blended, african-american family, but...again...if your point is to really how bias towards these scientists; others are, just combine their work with the ultimate in slurs. And example might be, "Analytical Hitlers" or Analytical-Negros...only I cannot bring myself to use the real n-word. But if you use those vile slurs just once or twice, you have conveyed the point that they are REALLY hated. IF that is your point. Just keep in mind, it may be too strong for some readers...
paper-hangers or ticket collectors (for the reason @J.T. Woody mentions above) Brainiacs, highbrows, atom-benders... I think most on here would come up with a dozen slurs or insults without breaking sweat, only you know what nuance you really want to use for your story; it's lurking, there, in your brain. Shake your head a few times and it will drop out onto the page.
Do the technology-hating people live in caves? Would an entire country of luddites pose any particular threat? If the whole country hates scientists, one could reasonably guess they don't have institutions of higher learning, since all human advancement has been related in one way or another to scientific method of discovery; so you have no houses, indoor plumbing, efficient crop harvesting methods, sanitation, etc. obviously this might come across as facetious, so maybe ... is there a particular branch of science they hate? Such as computers and medicine, but technology for housing, road-building and ships is OK? I'm struggling to think of how a society could reasonably function with an all-encompassing hatred of technology without being literal savages. You've mentioned the norse there and even they relied upon technological advancements, such as solar stones for navigation, calcite and superior steel from the Rhineland. Also, what kind of world is this? Is it modern, or ancient? If you were to say it is set in 700AD, that would indicate a much different landscape than the science and technology of 2020. Also, why IS this country so against technology? The main historical reference I have for non-religious opposition to technological advancement is the Luddites, who went around smashing power-looms and spinning mules because they worried industrialisation was taking away their skilled cottage industry jobs. What factor played into this country's dislike of technology?
Yeah so without revealing too much its more so they hate technological advancement of mechanical nature. They rely more on magic and the ruler imposes the ostracizing of scientists and engineers because he taught the people magic as a way to control them. I do understand your saying how you don't understand how a society could function without science and technology without being savages which is something I had to struggle figuring out as well. So essentially what I'm trying to make it out to be is a different understanding of said terms. Powered items, whether from steam, electricity etc., is considered evil and wrong. A trebuchet, ballista, etc, things like that, are not considered technology by the people who despise tech (hypocritical? yes. But welcome to many ignorant and hateful societies). Basically if it can ru without using your hands its wrong. However if it uses magic its fine, but I think I'm going to stay away from magic powered technology to start and introduce it later. Second, people who study things like atoms, planets, cells, disease, etc, are considered evil because they eventually try to explain a different source of said study than what its "actually" from. Say, the sun was made by someone else than who they are supposed to believe made it. (I know I said its not religious based and this makes it sound like it is. Sorry its confusing, their's a whole lot of layers to this that I just can't say). Best I've found is the word Demics. Short for Academics, but it sounds close enough to demonic that it works.
First, I really like the idea of "Demics." It's the sort of word you can introduce early without explanation, allowing some readers to figure it out and explaining it later for others. Second, and I gotta boldface this I mean no slur against the Amish but your society's rules sound similar to those that the Amish live by. Looking into their culture might help you with a framework and rationale for what is acceptable and what's not. Again, the Amish are no better or worse than any other group and make some seriously nice handicrafts.
I've thought of Alchemist but they usually tend to be (in the various ways they've shown up in history) somewhere between science and magic, so I'd like to use the term for some other group in the future.
We used to get called 'Fussels' (German), which means 'lint' in English. When you forget a handkerchief in a pocket and it all goes into the washing machine, little white specks cling to every item of your clothing after the wash. This is the 'lint' I mean. It was meant derisively, though we scientists were kind of proud for the label. Why 'lint'? Because scientists were always sticking their noses where they were not wanted, always turning up in places they should not be, always around.
We still used the term "boffin" when I was growing up in rural Canada, and I don't recall it being particularly derisive. Joseph Stalin used the phrase "rootless cosmopolitan" to refer to both intellectuals and Jews, who (in his mind) shared a lot of the same character deficiencies. (Weird how Uncle Joe gets a pass for shit like that, eh? Well... history, victors.) Mao called them the Stinking Old Ninth during the Cultural Revolution, based off of (oddly enough) the Confucian social order. Anyone know if Pol Pot had any term for them? Other than whatever the Khmer word is for "fertilizer?"
