• kivihiili@lemmy.blahaj.zone
    171·
    2 days ago

    i’m a machinist, and “turning” is something you do on a lathe, specifically using a cutting tool to make something skinnier, usually either metal (for me) or wood.

    now, while it may not be the original intention, i think the metaphor of turning a girl/femoid on a lathe to form their new body actually works super well!!

    “estrogen turns the body and the girl feminine as though an expert woodworker turns features in a seemingly unremarkable block of wood”

    i do not know why i’ve been so flamboyant with my words as of late :))

    • TotallynotJessica@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOPEnglish
      13·
      2 days ago

      i do not know why i’ve been so flamboyant with my words as of late :))

      who knows, but I’m not gonna stop you :3

    • applebusch@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
      3·
      2 days ago

      This is an interesting idea but I think the metaphor doesn’t hold up with wood. You can only really remove material when you turn wood on a lathe, but feminizing is about adding as much as it is about removing. I think something like the process for making brass instruments is more apt. They basically take a tube of metal and spin it on a lathe, then shape the material by bending it with various tools into the classic diverging nozzle shape, but generally don’t remove material. I imagine it more just kind of pushing bits around to get the more feminine shape, like turning a tuba into a trombone or something.

      • kivihiili@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
        2·
        1 day ago

        that technique (and analogy) sounds super intriguing! i want to know more, but i wasn’t able to find what you were talking about on the internet sadly. are there any articles/books/etc. you’d recommend?