Gender-Fair Language PDF

GENDER-FAIR LANGUAGE Presented by: BSED - 1B  LEARNING OBJECTIVE 1. Identify the ways language discriminates against women. 2. State forms of discrimination in language. 3. Explain how gender-fair language can be realized. What comes to your mind after you stared...

GENDER-FAIR LANGUAGE Presented by: BSED - 1B  LEARNING OBJECTIVE 1. Identify the ways language discriminates against women. 2. State forms of discrimination in language. 3. Explain how gender-fair language can be realized. What comes to your mind after you stared at this photo?  GENDER-FAIR LANGUAGE -aims at reducing gender stereotyping and discrimination. Two principle strategies have been employed to make languages gender-fair and to treat women and men symmetrically: neutralization and feminization.  GENDER-FAIR LANGUAGE Neutralization is achieved by replacing male- masculine forms with gender-unmarked forms. Feminization relies on the use of feminine forms to make female referents visible. What is Sexism in Language?  SEXISM IN LANGUAGE -It is the use of language which devalues members of one sex, almost invariably women, and thus fosters gender inequality. -It discriminates against women by rendering them invisible or trivializing them at the same time that it perpetuates notions of male supremacy.  Why The Concern About Mere Words? Why The Concern About Mere Words? Words have a lot of power—they shape our perceptions, influence our actions, and connect us to others. Kinds of Sexist language  INVISIBILIZATION OF WOMEN The invisibilization of women is rooted in the assumption that men are dominant and are the norm of the fullness of humanity, and women do not exist. Some obvious example of women invisibilization in language are: The assumption that certain functions or jobs are performed by men instead of both genders.  TRIVIALIZATION OF WOMEN Is any language which makes something seem unimportant Violation of Gender- Fair Language  VIOLATIONS OF GENDER-FAIR LANGUAGE Sexist language is a tool that reinforces unequal gender relations through sex-role stereotypes, microaggressions, and sexual harassment. Language can be used to abuse, such as in the case of sexual harassment, or to  FOSTERING UNEQUAL GENDER RELATIONS Language that lacks parallelism fosters unequal gender relations,by using words and sentences that emphasize the power and superiority of males, making women invisible and portraying them as inferior  Gender Polarization of Words in Use of Adjectives The personal care brand Dove recently came out with an advertisement that used parallel adjectives to show the difference in perception regarding men and women. Both men and women did the same activity, but were described differently. In the ad, men who took the lead were considered the “boss”, while women who had the same initiative were “bossy”. Men who worked overtime were seen as “providers”, while women who did the same were seen as “uncaring”. This polarization of adjectives shows how perception does change how one sees certain acts, depending on who performs them.  TOWARDS A GENDER-FAIR LANGUAGE Today, the use of gender-fair language in institutions of education and the removal of sexist language as imperative to gender responsiveness is currently being advocated. Gender neutral language or pronouns are being used now Gabriela women’s party national president and party-list representative, Liza Maza called for a ban of sexist language in all official communication and documents in thehouse of representatives HOW TO AVOID SEXIST LANGUAGE? a. Avoid attaching sexist terms when the gender is unknown When the gender is unknown, there is no reason to attach a supposed gender. If we are talking about a doctor, whose identity is not given, do not assume the doctor is he. b. Avoid Sexism Sexism is introduced to base words by using suffixes. Adding ess or ette onto an otherwise neutral noun indicates a feminine adjustment to a masculine word and therefore should be avoided in non sexist language (e.g.usherette, directress) c. Avoid demanding words Some words demean like “chick” to refer to woman and “cat” to refer to man d. Avoid stereotyping Stereotyping means ”unvarying form of patterns : a fix or conventional nation or conception. This develops through time: male perceive themselves as tough, powerful, strong while women perceive themselves as weak, submissive, passive (e.g. secretary is always perceived to be a woman while a bank president is often perceived as man). e. Avoid Verbal Abuse Words can be used as weapons or healers depending on the choice of verbiage and the manner in which they are spoken. Words like cry baby or mama's boy are often used with the intent to hurt. Women are described as "witches", "bitchy", "catty" or "spiteful". The verbally abusive man is often described as demanding, controlling, bossy, domineering. WHAT TO DO TO BECOME A NON-SEXIST SPEAKER OR WRITER  SEXIST NON - SEXIST Characterized by , or not biased or discriminating showing prejudice, against person on the basis stereotypes or of sex. Parenthetical discrimination, typically ( Nonsexist n.d.) against women on the basis of sex. (Oxford Language Dictionary n.d.) a. Avoid using Man to refers Human Sexist: Man was created by God to inhabit the earth. Non-sexist: Humans were created.... b. Avoid describing women's appearance in terms of their sexuality or femininity unless the same can be applied for men in the same situation -When describing women, select detail carefully and honestly, asking "would the other sex be so described?" c. Use "man" correctly 1. "Man" as a verb. Substitute with work, serve, operate staff, and run. Sexist. We are going to man the booth. Non-sexist. We are going to supervise/ watch the booth. 2. "Man" as a prefix Sexist: mankind, manpower, man-hours, man-made, manholes Non-sexist: humanity, human power, work hours, artificial, utility covers 3. "Man" as suffix Sexist: Chairman, spokesman, salesman Non-sexist: Chair/presider, spokesperson/salesperson 4. "Man "as people Sexist: Englishmen, Frenchmen Non-sexist: The English, The French 5. "Man" as public servant Sexist: congressman, lady senator Non-sexist: legislator/representative, Senator d. Use pronouns correctly. -A pronoun is used to replace a noun or another pronoun. First and second person pronouns are genderless (I, we, me, you, our, your, yours etc.) but third person causes sexist difficulties. 1. Use plural nouns/ pronouns Sexist. A child should learn to tie his own shoes. Non-sexist: Children should learn to tie their own shoes 2. Omit the pronoun Sexist: A politician's opinion. likes to offer his Non-sexist: A politician likes to offer opinion 3. Change the subject Sexist. A lawyer who wants to win his case will do his homework. Non-sexist: Homework is important to the lawyer who wants to win a case 4. Use the passive voice Sexist: The gardener uses his tools in his works. Non-sexist: The gardener's work is accomplished with the use of tools e. Avoid sexism by endings and implications. Use neutral words. Sex should not be used as a basis to differentiate between two qualified people. Many Americans have the habit of making two forms of nouns- masculine and feminine- when only one is required. SEXIST NON SEXIST Usherette attendant janitor Sanitary engineer f. Define women by who they are, not by who their fathers are. THANK YOU!  Reference Gender s: office and development Cagayan State University Andrews Campus , Tuguegarao City https://csu.edu.ph/docs/GAD/Use%20of%20Gender%20Fair%20Language.pdf na (Rodriguez A., 2018) https://library.pcw.gov.ph/sites/default/files/Gender-fair%20language%20a %20primer.pdf