<I>The British Council?s language clinic with ?Dr Danny?</I>

Hello and welcome back to the English Language Clinic. This week I have been asked ?What is a ?misanthrope??? A ?misanthrope? or ?misanthropist? is someone who hates humanity (indiscriminate discrimination). Those suffering from ?misanthropy? often consider people as ?inherently evil? (evil is a natural and necessary part of them). If your hatred is confined to women you are a ?misogynist? and hatred of men makes you a ?misandrist?.

What if your hatred is not confined to members of a specific sex? (?Gender? describes a person?s sense of identity, as male or female; ?sex? describes the biological actuality). Well, hatred of other races makes you a ?racist? and if you are intolerant of opinions or beliefs you do not share, you are a ?bigot?.

If you feel an extreme allegiance to a group and this results in hatred of other groups, you could be described as a ?chauvinist? (the most common use of this is the term ?male chauvinist (pig)?). If your feelings of allegiance are towards your country and this produces the urge to hate other countries, you are displaying the characteristics of ?jingoism?.

Fear is often the cause of hatred; in many cases, the same word is used to describe fear or hatred. Hatred or fear of strangers, particularly foreigners, is ?xenophobia?, ?homophobia? describes a similar reaction to homosexuals and ?ephebiphobia? is either hatred or fear of youth. ?Gerontophobia? describes either hatred or fear of old people or of growing old yourself. Afraid of men? You are suffering from ?androphobia?. Terrified of women? You are ?gynophobic?. If, like me, you are ?coulrophobic?, you are deeply unsettled by clowns.

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