I'm sorry, I wasn't trying to disrespect you - I was merely trying to make light of the whole conversation.
Personally, I think it's ridiculous that someone could take offense at being refered to by their gender just b/c it doesn't specify species when the species is understood. When you say "She is a female", the "she" refers to a human, so that's not disrespectful by your definition. In my use of it, I did not specify, but it is understood.
Even if it is not understood, if it is wrong to call a woman a "female" then it's wrong to say how "feminine" she is b/c that doesn't specify gender either.
By your definition, "woman" is the only word that can be used to describe a "human of that sex". Calling one a "girl" would be disrespectful because of your "not acknowledging their age".
And then after that, calling them a "woman" could be seen as putting them down b/c they have to have a seperate term from men, which is what this is all about, isn't it? Female empowerment?
I didn't say anything about anyones race, religion, or anything that people find offensive. I, nor anyone else I have talked to on the subject, has ever heard of anyone ever claiming to be offended b/c they were referred to as a "female".
But then again, maybe that's just because they are secure with their collective personhoods.
One final note : if everyone had to stop saying a particular word just because it offends ONE person (or a small group of people), there would be no English language. Saying it is wrong to call you a female is like denying that you are a female at all.
Ugh this makes no sense to me.
Someone else besides me or Ellen respond to this so I know even more that I'm not wrong on this issue.
After I explain to you that some people, clearly myself included, find it derogatory to be referred to by only their sex, for you to completely disregard my statements and refer to me using the exact words to which I object is nothing if not disrespectful.
Furthermore, this is not about “female empowerment.” This is about appropriate and respectful word usage that is sensitive to labels so as to maintain peoples’ individualities rather than broadly classify them as objects.
I'm not sure that I completely follow your female/feminine assertion, but if I understand it correctly, the problem with it comes down, again, to particle of speech. Consider: “Feminine” is an adjective, so it is appropriate to say “She is feminine,” just as it is appropriate to say “She is female.” However, to say “She is a feminine” is not appropriate-She is a feminine what? Just as She is a female what? The pronoun "she" does not by definition exclusively refer to a human, which you seemed to suggest in your post. If she is a female human being, then she is a woman (or a girl or a young woman, depending on her age).
What is offensive and demeaning, as I have previously explained, is discounting one’s personhood. For example, it is derogatory to refer to people diagnosed with schizophrenia as “schizophrenics,” because they are people first and not merely their illness. To refer to them as “schizophrenics” equates them with only their condition and disregards their individualities, as it does to refer to people by only their biological sexes. This is very clearly not a matter of being “secure” in one’s personhood; this is a matter of using language that maintains respect for the individuality of others, the importance of which is the sole point that I am trying to express.
This will be my last post on the matter as I have already spent more time on this subject than I ever intended, and I believe that there is nothing more that I can add or state differently to communicate my position. For additional information that may further explain or clarify my views on this topic, please refer to “Guidelines to Reduce Bias in Language,” Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Ed., pp. 61-76. Although the APA Publication Manual is intended to guide scientific writing and not online journals entries, this section of the manual gives a good explanation of an academic perspective on this issue.
Personally, I think it's ridiculous that someone could take offense at being refered to by their gender just b/c it doesn't specify species when the species is understood. When you say "She is a female", the "she" refers to a human, so that's not disrespectful by your definition. In my use of it, I did not specify, but it is understood.
Even if it is not understood, if it is wrong to call a woman a "female" then it's wrong to say how "feminine" she is b/c that doesn't specify gender either.
By your definition, "woman" is the only word that can be used to describe a "human of that sex". Calling one a "girl" would be disrespectful because of your "not acknowledging their age".
And then after that, calling them a "woman" could be seen as putting them down b/c they have to have a seperate term from men, which is what this is all about, isn't it? Female empowerment?
I didn't say anything about anyones race, religion, or anything that people find offensive. I, nor anyone else I have talked to on the subject, has ever heard of anyone ever claiming to be offended b/c they were referred to as a "female".
But then again, maybe that's just because they are secure with their collective personhoods.
One final note : if everyone had to stop saying a particular word just because it offends ONE person (or a small group of people), there would be no English language. Saying it is wrong to call you a female is like denying that you are a female at all.
Ugh this makes no sense to me.
Someone else besides me or Ellen respond to this so I know even more that I'm not wrong on this issue.
Reply
Furthermore, this is not about “female empowerment.” This is about appropriate and respectful word usage that is sensitive to labels so as to maintain peoples’ individualities rather than broadly classify them as objects.
I'm not sure that I completely follow your female/feminine assertion, but if I understand it correctly, the problem with it comes down, again, to particle of speech. Consider: “Feminine” is an adjective, so it is appropriate to say “She is feminine,” just as it is appropriate to say “She is female.” However, to say “She is a feminine” is not appropriate-She is a feminine what? Just as She is a female what? The pronoun "she" does not by definition exclusively refer to a human, which you seemed to suggest in your post. If she is a female human being, then she is a woman (or a girl or a young woman, depending on her age).
What is offensive and demeaning, as I have previously explained, is discounting one’s personhood. For example, it is derogatory to refer to people diagnosed with schizophrenia as “schizophrenics,” because they are people first and not merely their illness. To refer to them as “schizophrenics” equates them with only their condition and disregards their individualities, as it does to refer to people by only their biological sexes. This is very clearly not a matter of being “secure” in one’s personhood; this is a matter of using language that maintains respect for the individuality of others, the importance of which is the sole point that I am trying to express.
This will be my last post on the matter as I have already spent more time on this subject than I ever intended, and I believe that there is nothing more that I can add or state differently to communicate my position. For additional information that may further explain or clarify my views on this topic, please refer to “Guidelines to Reduce Bias in Language,” Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 5th Ed., pp. 61-76. Although the APA Publication Manual is intended to guide scientific writing and not online journals entries, this section of the manual gives a good explanation of an academic perspective on this issue.
Reply
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