Gender Equal Text in English Literature : How This Can Save the Future Discourse?

Points of Discussions: 

1."Gender-Neutral Language in English Literature: Myths and Realities"
2. "Debunking Misconceptions on Gender-Equal Text in English Literature"

Introduction

"Girls and boys see gender inequality in their homes and communities every day – in textbooks, in the media and among the adults who care for them." Unicef 

Before starting our discussion on Gender Equal Text , we will pull out the greater canvas of Gender equality tests. We are talking about the very controversial Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita”. 

“Lolita, light of my life, fire of my loins. My sin, my soul. Lo-lee-ta: the tip of the tongue taking a trip of three steps down the palate to tap, at three, on the teeth. Lo. Lee. Ta. She was Lo, plain Lo, in the morning, standing four feet ten in one sock. She was Lola in slacks. She was Dolly at school. She was Dolores on the dotted line. But in my arms she was always Lolita. Did she have a precursor? She did, indeed she did. In point of fact, there might have been no Lolita at all had I not loved, one summer, an initial girl-child. In a princedom by the sea. Oh when? About as many years before Lolita was born as my age was that summer. You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, exhibit number one is what the seraphs, the misinformed, simple, noble-winged seraphs, envied. Look at this tangle of thorns.” Vladimir Nabokov, “Lolita” 

The passage in reference address some issues to gender inequality:

 1. It does describe the objectification and sexualization of a young girl. 

2. The speaker, a man, describes his infatuation with a girl he calls "Lolita," who is described as a child and later a teenager.

3. The passage suggests a predatory and inappropriate relationship between the man and Lolita, which is not consistent with principles of gender equality.

4. The sexualization of young girls can lead to harmful consequences, such as increased rates of sexual harassment and assault, and can contribute to a culture that does not value women as individuals with their own agency and autonomy.

Argument: It is important to promote and uphold principles of gender equality in all aspects of society, including in literature and media. This means challenging harmful and stereotypical portrayals of women and girls, and promoting positive representations that depict women as complex and multifaceted individuals with their own desires and goals. While the passage from "Lolita" may not directly promote gender equality, it does provide an opportunity to reflect on the ways in which literature and media can perpetuate harmful attitudes and behaviors. By promoting a more nuanced and respectful understanding of gender and sexuality, we can work towards a more just and equitable society for all.

Even though we cannot make such distinctions watertight, our topic in discussion is the very language that is written by the author.

Gender Neutral Language

Language forms a major civil constitution in world civilization. Starting from oral literature to mythical texts, from primitive cultures and religion to recent political affairs language and literature mark a distinctive role. By etymological and structural analysis of the text we can classify distinctive parameters of social structures. Now that language carries a power balance. The marginalized and the weaker section of the society scarcely have any words. So the women are too stricken by language imbalance. Women’s Rights on linguistic presentations, rights that establish the same social, economic, and political status for women as for men. A gender neutral language must guarantee that women will not face discrimination on the basis of their sex. Until the second half of the 20th century, women in most lead languages were denied some of the moral and indispensable rights accorded to men. Although women in much of the world have gained significant legal rights, many people believe that women still do not have complete linguistic equality with men. In the long history of women rights, they have fought for Property Rights , The Right to Vote , Protective Labor Legislation , Equal Rights Amendment , Equal Pay Act , Civil Rights Act, Reproductive Rights and they are now fighting for gender equal text.

What is Gender Equal Text?

We must learn a few common terms in the field, such as gender-sensitive language, sexist language, gender-discriminatory language, gender-biased language, etc., in order to conduct a discussion on gender-equal text or gender-neutral language.

Gender-sensitive language is gender equality made manifest through language. When women and men—as well as those who don't fit into the binary gender system—are addressed through language as beings of equal value, dignity, integrity, and respect, gender equality has been achieved.

Sexist language, however, is essentially the same as language that discriminates against a particular gender. Although there is a slight difference in how the terms are used, sexist language is typically understood to be language that is intended to be offensive. Example of sexist language: “Women must earn less than men because they are less intelligent.”

Gender-discriminatory language is the opposite of gender-sensitive language. It includes words, phrases and/or other linguistic features that foster stereotypes, or demean or ignore women or men. At its most extreme it fails to treat the genders as equal in value, dignity, integrity and respect. Example of gender-discrimonatory language: “Ambassadors and their wives are invited to attend an after-dinner reception”

Gender-biased language either implicitly or explicitly favours one gender over another and is a form of gender-discriminatory language. Example of gender-biased language: “Every day, each citizen must ask himself how he can fulfil his civic duties”.

There are three broad categories under which much gender-discriminatory language falls:

Stereotypes: assigning gender when gender is unknown or irrelevant as a result of stereotypes.

Invisibility and omission: language which casts the male as the generic norm and keeps women from being visible in public life.

Subordination and trivialisation: language which paints one gender, often women, as inferior, or belittles them.

These three categories are very closely related. In fact, invisibility, omission, subordination and trivialisation stem from gender stereotypes and can reflect attitudes held across society.

Gender-neutral language is not gender-specific and considers people in general, with no reference to women or men. It is also called gender-blind language. Example of gender-neutral language: “People do not fully appreciate the impact they have on the environment.”

Language that promotes gender equality and steers clear of gender bias is known as gender-equal language. In order to avoid reinforcing gender stereotypes or continuing discrimination against people based on their gender, this type of language tries to use neutral or nonsexist terms and expressions. 

For example, gender-equal language would avoid using words like "man" or "he" as universal terms, and instead use gender-neutral words like "they" or "person." Additionally, gender-equal language would avoid gender-specific job titles, such as "stewardess" or "fireman," in favor of neutral terms such as "flight attendant" or "firefighter."

Using gender-equal language is important because it helps to challenge and change gender-based biases and promotes equality in the way people are addressed and referred to. This, in turn, can contribute to a more inclusive and equitable society.

Historical Survey of Gender Equal Text

The concept of gender-equal language has a long history and has evolved over time. Here is a brief overview of its development:

The women's rights movement: The earliest efforts to promote gender-equal language can be traced back to the women's rights movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Women's rights activists sought to challenge gender biases in language and create more inclusive and non-sexist language.

Second-wave feminism: During the 1960s and 1970s, second-wave feminists continued to challenge gender biases in language and introduced new gender-neutral words and job titles, such as "chairperson" instead of "chairman."

Non-sexist language guidelines: In the 1970s, organizations and governments began to develop non-sexist language guidelines to promote gender-equal language. For example, the German Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth issued a set of guidelines for non-sexist language in 1977.

The development of gender-neutral pronouns: In recent years, there has been a growing movement to create gender-neutral pronouns and to promote their usage. For example, the pronoun "they" has become increasingly common as a gender-neutral alternative to "he" or "she."

We can carry out some close analysis of the text in this perspective. Here are some aspects of gender-equal language that can be subject to close analysis. By analyzing these aspects of gender-equal language, we can better understand how language can reinforce gender biases and how gender-equal language can challenge and change these biases to promote equality.

Word choice: Gender-equal language is careful to choose words that do not reinforce gender stereotypes. For example, using gender-neutral terms like "chairperson" instead of "chairman" is more inclusive of all genders.

Grammatical gender: Some languages have grammatical gender, which can reinforce gender stereotypes. In these languages, gender-equal language seeks to use gender-neutral forms or eliminate gender markers altogether.

Job titles: Gender-equal language replaces gendered job titles with gender-neutral ones, such as "flight attendant" instead of "stewardess."

Pronoun usage: Gender-equal language avoids using pronouns with specific genders and instead uses pronouns like "they" or gender-neutral substitutes like "ze" or "hir."

Gender-equal language steers clear of expressions that support gender biases, such as presuming that all physicians are men and all nurses are women.

Why should I ever mention gender?

Because it can be difficult to determine where your language falls on the inclusive/exclusive spectrum in practice, you may decide that it is best to completely avoid mentioning gender.

In fact, there are times when we suggest using gender-neutral language to avoid using words that support stereotypes or downplay or ignore a gender. If we are treating women and men equally, gender is "irrelevant" to the discussion and shouldn't be explicitly stated. This is true in many cases, particularly when discussing professions.

Language that is gender-neutral may have the benefit of being more accepting of those who do not binary identify with one gender. The adoption of the pronoun "they" and the invention of new gender-neutral pronouns like "zhe" are additional steps in this direction.

Despite occasionally making sense, gender-neutral or gender-blind language has obvious disadvantages. It frequently bases its arguments on male viewpoints, which can obscure important distinctions between the requirements, conditions, and roles of women, girls, and boys. Gender-blind projects, programs, and policies do not take into account these various roles and needs. They might maintain the status quo and do little to change the unequal structure of gender relations. Only language that is gender-sensitive is likely to work in this situation.

Conclusion 

Overall, the development of gender-equal language reflects a growing understanding of the part language plays in supporting gender biases and the necessity of challenging and eradicating these biases in order to advance equality. We and society both use language to shape our perspectives. The way that gender is perceived by us varies across all languages. Languages can be either gendered, neutral, or genderless. The generic masculine is another option that many languages use. Descriptors for a group of mixed genders are frequently male by default. A good example here is Spanish. If there is a group of 10 women and 1 man the description word used will be the masculine. 

Although some will argue that the generic masculine makes it neutral, it still perpetuates the idea that men are superior to women in value and importance and pushes women and non-binary people out of people's minds because they are more likely to think of men in that situation. Strong opponents of these changes exist alongside ardent supporters of language that is inclusive of all genders. Some claim that words with gender-neutral spellings are less accurate and easier to read. Others say that we have grammatical rules we must stick to and should not invent something new. To begin with, aren't all languages made up? Language is also constantly changing. I'm relieved that we no longer use language from the fourteenth century. In many languages, including German, there have also been changes to the grammar over the years that people have managed to adapt to. Why then can't people adjust once more? No one truly benefits from sexist and exclusionary language. Making languages more inclusive and more gender neutral does not butcher a language. It makes it more diverse and equal which will benefit us all. While it might not solve gender inequality, it sure as hell won’t hurt.

Ardhendu De 

References:

1.Terms you need to know. (2023, January 1). European Institute for Gender Equality. https://eige.europa.eu/publications/gender-sensitive-communication/first-steps-towards-more-inclusive-language/terms-you-need-know

2. Mihira, Luh & Suwastini, Ni & Artini, Ni & Jayantini, I Gusti Agung Sri Rwa & Budiarta, I. (2021). GENDER INEQUALITY REPRESENTED IN ENGLISH TEXTBOOKS: A LITERATURE REVIEW. Jurnal Ilmu Sosial dan Humaniora. 10. 576. 10.23887/jish-undiksha.v10i3.39209.