Reinforcement of male dominance through language
Name(s):
Phallogeneric terminology
Nature
Use of the term "he" or "man" to speak of one member of a mixed group of people is considered correct English, even if the group consists of 50 women and one man. This creates in the minds of those who use the language an image of male people. Likewise "the evolution of man" lets you see in the mind's eye males evolving. This misleads the imagination, so much so that history, current events, the direction of the universe all take place without females having ever been there. When both sexes have the image of the male in mind when they use the term "man", this also means that males and females have a dramatically different sense of themselves as participants in the human venture. Pseudogeneric terms may create the impression of including men but which in reality convey the message that only men exist.
Aggravates
Aggravated by
Strategy(ies)
Value(s)
Reference(s)
Type
(F) Fuzzy exceptional problems