A Feminist and a Linguist Walk into a Bar…
I am always look for juicy tidbits on the use of gender in language and I think I just struck GOLD! Tumblr user mitosisisyourtosis or as they self identify, Feminist Chewbacca, recently posted the image above with the quote “men fabricated the idea that they are the default sex to compensate for their biological inferiority and general superfluousness. this is not just the “natural order” this is the language of a patriarchal culture.”
Now, I’m not going to comment on Feminist Chewbacca’s perspective on the use of gendered language here--I’ll leave that up to you.
However, what ensues is one of the juiciest linguistic and feminist flame wars I’ve seen the internet provide. Seemingly from folks that know what they’re talking about.
Me, as I read the whole thing:
Brief summary:
- rhysiare lays in and picks every one of the words cited in the image apart, asserting that each word’s evolution is devoid of masculine/male/man-preferences
- rhysiare gets sassy AF and throws vague linguistics credentials around and basically invites Feminist Chewbacca to come for them
- a bunch of internet commentators and media sites pick up on the exchange and publish how a feminist just got schooled by a linguist
- but wait!!! It gets so much better!
- madmaudlingoes chimes in and lays down some serious #truth on the matter (and sounds hella smart). They:
++ a) credentialize themselves heavily, and
++ b) explain how language evolution cannot be looked at in a vacuum by tracing words to their origin but rather must take current social use and construction into account and,
++ c) discredits a good half of the points that rhysiare makes - Meanwhile, Feminist Chewbacca says nothing
My conclusion:
- Wait for the full story, internet!
- Etymology is super sexy, but even if the origins of gendered language may perhaps be divorced from overt sexism and patriarchy (which, hello, they’re not), check yourself on current use of language
I’ll let you draw your own conclusions:
xoxo,
Belle Bottoms
@missbellebottoms
As far as language goes, I absolutely agree that history and prescriptivism don't matter much. Where a word came from doesn't matter one bit, what matters are the common usages today and how they shape the way we think about the world around and within us.
I'd certainly agree that our culture has some misogynistic overtones ingrained quite deeply, no doubt about it, but at least to me the message of the original post doesn't ring clear for all of those words (keep in mind I'm not a native speaker). I certainly don't hear or feel a son in person and don't see much of the he in she. But I can absolutely see the male in female. There are a lot of things to work on.
Ironically, I do see some sexism in the Feminist Chewbacca statement on the matter that you quoted, but I really support the way madmaudlingoes handled it.
Ahahah 😆
If English feminists think that way it was the end of all the world... ahahah how many ethnocentrism is in that? In neo latin lenguages human is said umano or humain and there are no derivative from english man and so person is persona or personne but son is only an English word for figlio or fils!
For the reason it is one of most used language, can you think only in a way?
Ahahah good and technical explanations, good work, I feel sadness for women who think a so ethnocentric feminism, when the women would to think more humankindly (let me pass the term). Ahahah 🤣
But it’s true, excluding rare cases like Italian where woman donna derives from domina (the latin feminine of dominus, lord) in most languages the word is often derived from the man word and in others numerous cases is the same term as wife (like in German Frau or in French femme) so there’s a little a patriarchal thinking of possession or inferiority of a woman
Please, feminists came to read my introduceyourself post, I talk about gender equality and matriarchal revolution (everyone knows that I made pacts often with women and witches 🙃)
Regards
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