Rakukojin
07-29-2006, 02:39 PM
Okay, basically I have a paper due on Wednesday on who suffers more from sexism through language, women or men. I haven't made up my choice yet but I would like to get some insight on what some SRK members think, to futher help my paper.
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Here's some basic points that I have of sexism for both women and men. Sorry if it seems generalized and hard to understand, they were taken from my notes.
Women
1) English keeps women invisible.
- Words like man, mankind, "he", etc. (Example: "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind")
- "Founding Fathers", does not credit the women that helped.
- Adam's rib words (Example: [fe]male, [s]he, [wo]man, etc.)
2) English defines women's roles.
- Most sports seperate women (Example: [W]NBA, [L]PGA, High School mascots for school sports - Lady Panthers, Lady Wolves, etc.)
- Adding male to words that are gender neutral (Example: [Male] Nurse, [Male] Prostitute, etc.)
- Having words depicting roles "meant" for women (Example: Housewife, Mr. Mom, etc.)
3) English makes male traits seem better.
- Being Manly vs. Being Womanly/Girly (Example: Manly - Tough, Strong, Fearless, etc. Girly - Fragile, Weak, Scared, etc.)
- Doctor/Nurse, Tomboy/Sissy, etc.
- Males that date lots of women are players, women that date lots of men are whores.
4) English Objectifies Women.
- Calls women animals (Example: Chick, Foxy, Bitch, Bird, etc.)
- Calls women desserts (Example: Honey, Cupcake, Muffin, etc.)
- Calls women possessions (Example: Naming guitars, cars, etc.)
- Calls women disasters (Example: Hurricanes - Katrina, la nina worst than el nino, etc.)
5) God
- When speaking of God, most think of a male figure.
Men
1) English is gender exclusive.
- Mother Tongue (Mom teaches the language to children)
- Alma Mater means Nourishing Mother
- Mammal called that because of mammary glands
2) English makes parent seen as mothers, not fathers.
- Parents = Mom (Example: Bring your parent to school means bring your mom to school)
- Mother a child = Take care and raise a child.
- Father a child = Males seem like just sperm donors.
- Advertisement targets women and ignore male parents (Example: Jiffy moms choose Jif, Kix - Kid tested, mother approved.
3) English sets social expectation of males.
- Boys cannot cry but can cuss.
- Restrictive (Example: Sissy, Pussy, Pancy, etc.)
- Men are never victims, always sacrifice (Example: If wife beats husband then men must have started it, if a robber might be in the kitchen at night then men must check it out, Titanic - Women and children first so men must sacrifice their lives even if they are the only parent, etc.)
- Selective Services aren't really selective, only for men.
4) Growing up teaches young boys to be "men".
- Don't be a crybaby, be a big boy.
- Called a Mama's Boy if they are sad.
- Play only with male toys (Example: Action Figures, cars, guns, etc.)
- Thought to be fruity/gay if playing with dolls, dress up, etc.
- Don't be emotional, suck it up (Example: Spoken by coaches, teachers, etc.)
- Male video games (Example: Halo, Grand Theft Auto, etc.)
- Called names if they're have no "courage" (Example: Wimp, Chicken, Sissy, etc.)
- Teachers and coaches use English to toughen boys (Example: Walk it off, suck it up, etc.)
5) English makes males do most of the work in relationships.
- Males must pay otherwise they're "cheap".
- Males are more easily satisfied in sex, so males must perform better and be "good" in bed - Performance Anxiety.
- Males must propose and buy ring for marriage to serve their roles as the "protector" and "provider" of the family.
- Divorce makes males lose more (Example: Alimony, Child Support, Child Custody, Assests)
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These are all gathered from articles I had to read. Maybe some people has more ways that the English language is sexist and can help me out. Please share your opinions :angel:
And to help me choose a side, I'm setting up a poll.
---------------------------------
Here's some basic points that I have of sexism for both women and men. Sorry if it seems generalized and hard to understand, they were taken from my notes.
Women
1) English keeps women invisible.
- Words like man, mankind, "he", etc. (Example: "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind")
- "Founding Fathers", does not credit the women that helped.
- Adam's rib words (Example: [fe]male, [s]he, [wo]man, etc.)
2) English defines women's roles.
- Most sports seperate women (Example: [W]NBA, [L]PGA, High School mascots for school sports - Lady Panthers, Lady Wolves, etc.)
- Adding male to words that are gender neutral (Example: [Male] Nurse, [Male] Prostitute, etc.)
- Having words depicting roles "meant" for women (Example: Housewife, Mr. Mom, etc.)
3) English makes male traits seem better.
- Being Manly vs. Being Womanly/Girly (Example: Manly - Tough, Strong, Fearless, etc. Girly - Fragile, Weak, Scared, etc.)
- Doctor/Nurse, Tomboy/Sissy, etc.
- Males that date lots of women are players, women that date lots of men are whores.
4) English Objectifies Women.
- Calls women animals (Example: Chick, Foxy, Bitch, Bird, etc.)
- Calls women desserts (Example: Honey, Cupcake, Muffin, etc.)
- Calls women possessions (Example: Naming guitars, cars, etc.)
- Calls women disasters (Example: Hurricanes - Katrina, la nina worst than el nino, etc.)
5) God
- When speaking of God, most think of a male figure.
Men
1) English is gender exclusive.
- Mother Tongue (Mom teaches the language to children)
- Alma Mater means Nourishing Mother
- Mammal called that because of mammary glands
2) English makes parent seen as mothers, not fathers.
- Parents = Mom (Example: Bring your parent to school means bring your mom to school)
- Mother a child = Take care and raise a child.
- Father a child = Males seem like just sperm donors.
- Advertisement targets women and ignore male parents (Example: Jiffy moms choose Jif, Kix - Kid tested, mother approved.
3) English sets social expectation of males.
- Boys cannot cry but can cuss.
- Restrictive (Example: Sissy, Pussy, Pancy, etc.)
- Men are never victims, always sacrifice (Example: If wife beats husband then men must have started it, if a robber might be in the kitchen at night then men must check it out, Titanic - Women and children first so men must sacrifice their lives even if they are the only parent, etc.)
- Selective Services aren't really selective, only for men.
4) Growing up teaches young boys to be "men".
- Don't be a crybaby, be a big boy.
- Called a Mama's Boy if they are sad.
- Play only with male toys (Example: Action Figures, cars, guns, etc.)
- Thought to be fruity/gay if playing with dolls, dress up, etc.
- Don't be emotional, suck it up (Example: Spoken by coaches, teachers, etc.)
- Male video games (Example: Halo, Grand Theft Auto, etc.)
- Called names if they're have no "courage" (Example: Wimp, Chicken, Sissy, etc.)
- Teachers and coaches use English to toughen boys (Example: Walk it off, suck it up, etc.)
5) English makes males do most of the work in relationships.
- Males must pay otherwise they're "cheap".
- Males are more easily satisfied in sex, so males must perform better and be "good" in bed - Performance Anxiety.
- Males must propose and buy ring for marriage to serve their roles as the "protector" and "provider" of the family.
- Divorce makes males lose more (Example: Alimony, Child Support, Child Custody, Assests)
---------------------------------
These are all gathered from articles I had to read. Maybe some people has more ways that the English language is sexist and can help me out. Please share your opinions :angel:
And to help me choose a side, I'm setting up a poll.