strategy
Regenderizing other animals as she
Synonyms:
Challenging sexist language in biology Description:
Routinely calling other creatures "she", not "it" or "he". Context:
Humans habitually make value statements in code, usually without awareness of doing so. Language plays a key role in the way humans construe reality. Insofar as conceptions of social reality are expressed in language, language is at once constitutive of social reality and reflective of it. It is not private behaviour. Because of its power to shape consciousness, language is able to create a startling perturbation in habitual concepts upon occasion. This provides an occasion for the emergence of critical awareness of habitually unquestioned assumptions. Claim:
Regenderizing is a small step in the direction of developing new patterns of thought, based on its demonstrable ability to open entry into the realm of how we understand the world to be put together. Calling an insect "she", rather than "it", is not common, ordinary amiable conversation. Its meta-message is that we are not, after all, who we thought we were in relation to one another and the rest of nature. The word rings an alarm to awaken consciousness of there being such a question to ponder on. Values:
SexismUnchallenging Subjects:
Biosciences → BiologyZoology → Animals
Society → Sex-related questions
Language → Languages
Type Classification:
D: Detailed strategies Related UN Sustainable Development Goals:
