[Marxism] Re: on sexist language

["paul illich" <paul_illich@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

On the word 'slut' etc...

Here's a "marxist" response, I hope.

The word is intended to suppress liberated sexual behavoir of women.
Co-opting it to use for men too doesn't work anyway, as they take it
as praise. But if it did, this would perhaps also merely be extending the
prescriptive censure of women for being sexual to men as well. Hardly,
in my view, an advance.

If a woman is sexual society has a nasty habit of labelling her negatively,
if a man is, it rarely does so. This is hypocrisy. And misogeny.

Nothing radical or new here, but I think we might have lost perspective
somewhere in the recent series of threads on this, so perhaps you'll
forgive me for bothering to say it.

As to 'whore', the same applies more or less. A term of abuse for someone
'reduced' (yeah, I know it is claimed some women enjoy the job, perhaps
it's so, whatever) to selling sex for cash - in a sexist system that is also
classist and that can't help but widen the gap between rich and poor.
Nice that those reduced by the system get demeaned and abused by
the system, and this is often done via language. So we are obliged to
at least try and watch our language.

That this type of crap is rearing it's head here is slightly astonsihing,
but there we are...

Paul



________________________________________________
YOU MUST clip all extraneous text before replying to a message.
Send list submissions to: Marxism@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Set your options at: http://lists.econ.utah.edu/mailman/listinfo/marxism