[Ads-l] Berkeley and gender neutral words

[ADSGarson O'Toole]

The list of Gender-Neutral Equivalent Words at Writing Help Central
suggests that some words containing "master" should be replaced.
http://www.writinghelp-central.com/gender-neutral.html

master - expert
master key - passkey
master plan - main plan, primary plan
masterful - skillful, expert
masterpiece - great work of art
master's degree - graduate degree

The denizens of Sesame Street anticipated this linguistic development
many years ago with a recurring segment called Monsterpiece Theater
hosted by Cookie Monster as Alistair Cookie.

(This is not a critique or sarcasm. I have always thought the wordplay
"Monsterpiece Theater" was funny.)

On Sat, Jul 20, 2019 at 10:27 AM Barretts Mail <mail.barretts at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> I just think it’s silly and careless to call a woman a flagman. It has nothing to do with protecting anyone. It’s just common sense and being respectful. BB
>
> > On 19 Jul 2019, at 22:01, Mark Mandel <markamandel at GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> >
> > *(Warning: Chinese quotation marks are used here to bracket a particularly
> > long and involved noun phrase.)*
> >
> > I disagree with Jonathan's scornful dismissal of the issue. ISTM that the
> > great majority of *「*the objectors to the use of female nouns for cases
> > where the referent's gender is irrelevant to the function*」* are motivated
> > at least as much by personal feeling as by a desire to protect other people
> > from the evil influence of «*"-man" words, which are dangerously,
> > irremediably sexist and malign.»* And he and I, as men, are unqualified to
> > judge the emotional and social effect these words may have on women.
> >
> > Mark Mandel
> >
> > On Fri, Jul 19, 2019, 9:16 PM Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at gmail.com>
> > wrote:
> >
> >> "Goddess" is somehow doing well.
> >>
> >> The neutrality craze is based in part on the elementary fallacy that a
> >> word's meaning is dictated by its etymology.  Another significant basis is
> >> the a priori belief that speakers of English are as sensitive to nuance as
> >> are a subset of people with Ph.Ds and must, in any case, be protected from
> >> "-man" words, which are dangerously, irremediably sexist and malign.
> >>
> >> JL
> >>
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

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The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org