Feminine Form Research Articles

Can Gender-Fair Language Reduce Gender Stereotyping and Discrimination?

Gender-fair language (GFL) aims at reducing gender stereotyping and discrimination. Two principle strategies have been employed to make languages gender-fair and to treat women and men symmetrically: neutralization and feminization. Neutralization is achieved, for example, by replacing male-masculine forms (policeman) with gender-unmarked forms (police officer), whereas feminization relies on the use of feminine forms to make female referents visible (i.e., the applicant… he or she instead of the applicant… he). By integrating research on (1) language structures, (2) language policies, and (3) individual language behavior, we provide a critical review of how GFL contributes to the reduction of gender stereotyping and discrimination. Our review provides a basis for future research and for scientifically based policy-making.

Does Gender-Fair Language Pay Off? The Social Perception of Professions from a Cross-Linguistic Perspective.

In many languages, masculine forms (e.g., German Lehrer, “teachers, masc.”) have traditionally been used to refer to both women and men, although feminine forms are available, too. Feminine-masculine word pairs (e.g., German Lehrerinnen und Lehrer, “teachers, fem. and teachers, masc.”) are recommended as gender-fair alternatives. A large body of empirical research documents that the use of gender-fair forms instead of masculine forms has a substantial impact on mental representations. Masculine forms activate more male representations even when used in a generic sense, whereas word pairs (e.g., German Lehrerinnen und Lehrer, “teachers, fem. and teachers, masc.”) lead to a higher cognitive inclusion of women (i.e., visibility of women). Some recent studies, however, have also shown that in a professional context word pairs may be associated with lesser status. The present research is the first to investigate both effects within a single paradigm. A cross-linguistic (Italian and German) study with 391 participants shows that word pairs help to avoid a male bias in the gender-typing of professions and increase women's visibility; at the same time, they decrease the estimated salaries of typically feminine professions (but do not affect perceived social status or competence). This potential payoff has implications for language policies aiming at gender-fairness.

SOCIOLINGUISTIC ASPECTS OF THE FEMINISATION OF NAMES OF PROFESSIONS IN THE CONTEMPORARY FRENCH LANGUAGE

The access of women in all fields of activity has provoked fierce linguistic polemics on feminisation of names of professions which has represented a wide range of linguistic investigations in France and in many French-speaking countries such as Canada, Belgium and Switzerland. This paper aims to examine the manifestation of the process of feminisation of names of professions in the French press, in other words, to observe how feminisation of names of professions in the French written media discourse is applied, knowing the fact that the press represents a favourable environment in which two areas conjugate, namely, society and linguistics. Therefore, this study is part of a sociolinguistic framework and will follow two approaches, one regulatory, related to linguistic habits and the other, innovative, revealed by the actual language-based practices that concern the visibility of women on the linguistic level. This micro research is justified by the assumption already advanced that the media has a very important role in the enrichment of languages, accompanying the evolution of the society by familiarizing the readers with new forms denoting new realities, thereby facilitating their further use. The objectives of this study are the study in the French press of the feminine forms used to designate women, comparing these forms to those indicated in the feminization guides and the Dictionary of the French Academy, which is the linguistic norm. The second part of the study is dedicated to analysing the procedures used to create the feminine form, in case of finding a lexical variation, but also explaining the factors favouring the option of using a form or another. Keywords : French, sociolinguistics, feminisation, names of profession.

Gender agreement of neuter nouns with formant -ica in the Serbian language speakers

This paper explores gender agreement of neuter nouns with formant -ica referring to persons of male sex. We used a two-part questionnaire in the research. The first part aimed to test the usage of two types of gender agreement, while the second one assessed how natural the sentence constructions were after these types of agreement occurred. The questionnaire comprised a list of eighteen neuter nouns with formant -ica divided into three classes. In the first part, participants were tasked to fill in the blanks and complete forty-four sentences, while in the second, they were asked to assess how natural 136 sentences sounded on a Likert scale ranging from 1 to 7. Analyses were based both on participants and stimuli (F1xF2) for each questionnaire part separately and the data was statistically processed in SPSS. The results obtained from 156 monolingual speakers of Serbian show that agreement is significantly more frequent in feminine forms, which is why speakers assess it better. Furthermore, they show that the presence of an additional masculine determiner does not increase the frequency of agreement in masculine forms or conduce to better assessment. The results also highlight the relevance of classifying these noun groups based on the criterion of presence/absence of an alternative morphological reference medium for persons of male sex who possess traits expressed by these nouns.

Hegemonic femininity in Tamil movies: exploring the voices of youths in Chennai, India

The media often showcase culturally normative forms of masculinity and femininity. This paper explores the portrayal of femininity in Tamil movies and examines the youths’ views on these portrayals. The data for this paper came from a content analysis of 40 movies (1961–2012) and 30 face-to-face interviews with undergraduates in Chennai, India. Women’s roles in Tamil movies can be regarded as secondary in nature, and meant for the male gaze. These roles emphasize traditional feminine ideals. Tamil movies are cautious about challenging the deeply rooted traditional feminine ideals of Tamil society. The strong maintenance of traditional femininity is one of the reasons why it is seen as a form of hegemonic femininity: that is, a form of femininity that holds ascendancy when compared to other forms of femininity. Youths sometimes question the stereotypical portrayal of women, but are not always able to resist them.

Algunos apuntes sobre enfermedades y remedios de Teresa de Jesús

In the 5th centenary of Teresa de Jesus’ birth (1515-2015), let’s take a tour of the more everyday reality of her life and of her environment: illness and therapeutic remedies. Through reading and commentary of a selection of her writings, will analyse the ailments and healing of 16th-century feminine convent life forms, in the concrete context imposed by the material conditions of the perpetual closure, such as climate, habitat, food, and clothing. The mystical experience of Teresa is radically linked with the experience of the disease, who accompanied from before profess in Carmel.

Paradigm uniformity and the locus of derivation: The case of vowel epenthesis in Hebrew verbs

This study examines vowel epenthesis in Hebrew verbs with stem-medial glottals. The stem-internal epenthetic vowels of these verbs colloquially display variation in 3rd person feminine forms in some verb templates. While the normative epenthetic vowel in these cases is a, there are cases where it is colloquially e. We provide empirical evidence for the variation (or lack thereof), accounting for the differences 2 among verb templates and the variation by appealing to paradigmatic faithfulness constraints, and grammatical components deriving verbs. We argue that vowel selection is motivated by competing faithfulness to three different paradigms: other feminine 3rd person forms, base forms, and the general inflectional paradigm. The component of the grammar deriving verbs, lexicon vs. syntax, as well as the way verbs are stored in the lexicon, determine which paradigmatic relation is relevant in different cases. The results of this study show the importance of paradigm accessibility in morpho-phonological processes. In addition, they point to a high correlation between the degree of variation in such processes and the locus of application and storage.

O rodno osjetljivom jeziku

This paper focuses on changes in Croatian language that either have happened or are possible to happen in order that male dominance in language and gender inequality are reduced. The research concentrates on the use of gender-sensitive language for job titles and occupations of female persons. The study demonstrates the lack of stability in the use of feminine forms, as it has not been integrated into the Croatian language practice yet.

Hvor konservative er polske norskstudenter i sin språkbruk? Hunkjønnsmarkering i norskinnlæreres tekstproduksjon

Abstract The paper examines the phenomenon of the feminine gender, which in Bokmål is optional. The choice between the masculine and feminine forms is nevertheless not without meaning. It has been proved that if some nouns appear in feminine form earlier in a text, it implies the use of feminine gender on other nouns (Dyvik, 2012). Hence, the appearance of feminine marking on different words is mutually related, and may be shown to be consistent or not. The paper analyses texts written by Polish students of Norwegian on three different levels of language command (A2, B2/C1 and C2+) and investigates their use of feminine marking. The results show that the feminine gender is most often used by beginner learners, which confirms the initial hypothesis. Contrary to expectations, the most advanced students show inconsistency in their choice of feminine marking at least as often as beginner learners. The general conclusion is that the majority of Norwegian learners are not fully aware of the implications which come with the use of the feminine gender.

Baudelaire and Feminine Singularity

This article revisits the representation of gender and femininity in Baudelaire’s poems about the city, arguing that these works reveal a vision of femininity that cannot be reduced to the particularity through which the nineteenth-century individual is codified. While feminine figures abound in Baudelaire’s œuvre, most critical readings of the poet have concentrated on the tendency towards objectification, and even denigration, in his portrayal of women. By contrast, in its early stages this article reads ‘A une passante’ in conjunction with Baudelaire’s observations from Mon Cœur mis a nu, Fusees , and Le Peintre de la vie moderne , suggesting that a form of femininity that I shall call ‘feminine singularity’ crystallizes in his work, and that it resists collectivization under the broader tenets of urban capital and political liberalism. The subsequent stages of the article discuss ‘Les Sept Vieillards’ and ‘Les Petites Vieilles’, arguing that there is a redrawing of gendered individuation in the Tableaux parisiens . Both of these poems approach gender ironically, using a grotesque mode of serialization to dissolve a conventional understanding of sexual difference predicated on binaries, reproduction, and heterosexual desire.

Gender flexible pedagogy in early childhood education

Early childhood education (ECE) has long been recognized as one of the most gendered professions. This paper aims to examine how far ECE can become a space to deliver ‘gender flexible pedagogy’, a concept that incorporates ideas about staff modelling of alternative forms of masculinities and femininities, the value of a mixed gender workforce, and explicit gender teaching within curricula. The theoretical underpinnings of this concept are discussed drawing on data collected in discussions with pre-school teachers in order to understand the potential of this principle and identify how it can be practiced. The paper is based on two different interview based studies, one conducted in an Indonesian kindergarten and the other with Swedish preschool pedagogues. The findings suggest that gendered practices in ECE are rooted in teachers’ implicit gender beliefs influenced by larger socio-political discourses. Early childhood educators must develop an explicit gender consciousness before they can deliver a gender conscious pedagogy.

Capturing socially motivated linguistic change: how the use of gender-fair language affects support for social initiatives in Austria and Poland.

Gender-fair language consists of the symmetric linguistic treatment of women and men instead of using masculine forms as generics. In this study, we examine how the use of gender-fair language affects readers' support for social initiatives in Poland and Austria. While gender-fair language is relatively novel in Poland, it is well established in Austria. This difference may lead to different perceptions of gender-fair usage in these speech communities. Two studies conducted in Poland investigate whether the evaluation of social initiatives (Study 1: quotas for women on election lists; Study 2: support for women students or students from countries troubled by war) is affected by how female proponents (lawyers, psychologists, sociologists, and academics) are referred to, with masculine forms (traditional) or with feminine forms (modern, gender-fair). Study 3 replicates Study 2 in Austria. Our results indicate that in Poland, gender-fair language has negative connotations and therefore, detrimental effects particularly when used in gender-related contexts. Conversely, in Austria, where gender-fair language has been implemented and used for some time, there are no such negative effects. This pattern of results may inform the discussion about formal policies regulating the use of gender-fair language.

Creating and consuming the heartland: Symbolic boundaries in representations of femininity and rurality in U.S. Magazines

Scholars of rural studies have investigated a range of places and subcultures to identify varieties of rural masculinity—both new and old—and to understand how they shape social relations (e.g., Bell, 2004; Campbell, 2000; Hennen, 2008). Yet a similarly energetic effort to understand rural femininity and its consequences on social life is lacking. Simultaneously, while cultural studies of boundary-making processes have intensified in recent years, more work is needed to understand how “cultural narratives” shape gendered boundary-making processes (Lamont and Molnar, 2002). In this article we ask: how do representations of rural femininities vary across different media sources? And, how do symbolic boundaries in these representations work to valorize specific rural femininities? Drawing in part on the recent emergence of a hip, countryside consumerism, we analyze gender on the symbolic and cultural level, making use of images and language to understand how representations of rurality and femininity intersect. Analyzing content from two magazines in different genres, Successful Farmer and Country Living, our findings revealed that rural femininities are contextual and depend on multiple and often shifting understandings of both rurality and femininity. We specifically identified two distinct forms of rural femininity, which we refer to as productivist rural femininity and transformative country chic. Further, we found that in both magazines symbolic boundary-making relied on the gendered division of labor to construct rural femininities, but that Country Living tended to use symbols of social class to portray desirable rural femininity, more so than Successful Farming. The article concludes with a discussion of further directions for the study of rural femininities and symbolic boundaries.

Escaping femininity, claiming respectability: Culture, class and young women in Turkey

Synopsis Drawing on interview-based ethnographic research in Ankara, this article studies formations of femininity across social classes in urban Turkey. It centers on four young women, who have unequal access to economic resources and different cultural meanings. Through their biographies, this paper examines the effects of social class on experiences of gender and negotiations of femininity, on the one hand. And on the other, it demonstrates common narratives that young women employ in negotiating gender. While they commonly escape certain forms of femininity, which they frequently describe as traditional, backward, or submissive, they also employ alternative narratives such as independence, career success, moderation, chastity, and religiosity to attest self-value and respectability. Studying young women's experiences of gender and their negotiations of power provides fertile ground for further exploration of the construction of gender and class in relational terms.

The ‘problem’ with single women

Despite increased acknowledgement of gender equality as a social good, there are some areas where the practice of women’s autonomy is apparently inconsistent with the normative prescriptions of a new ‘empowered’ form of femininity. Sexuality and personal relationship status are sites where women are positioned within neo-liberal and post-feminist discourse in such a way that their choices are subject to questioning. A model of gender hegemony is useful for understanding how and why choosing to be single may still constitute a ‘problem’ for women, despite the intensification of messages which also address women as autonomous, sexualized subjects. In cultures dominated by an ideology of marriage and family life, single women’s identity work resolves contradictions in the current gender order and in the process reinstates heteronormativity.

Chechen women in war and exile: changing gender roles in the context of violence

The article analyzes Chechen women's everyday experiences of war and violence and outlines their multiple effects on women's roles and identities. Particular attention is paid to how these effects are shaped by generational differences. The study is based on 35 oral history interviews with Chechen women in Austria, Germany, and Poland. The experience of two Russo–Chechen wars reinforced domesticated forms of femininity. It also exposed women to intensified nonmilitary forms of gendered violence. At the same time, some of the traditional roles were transformed, for example, when women became the main breadwinners for their families. Women's heightened realization of their importance in securing the well-being of their families and communities empowered them and created a sense of solidarity and responsibility reaching beyond their households. This has generated a level of insecurity among some sections of Chechen society and the Moscow-backed Chechen administration of Ramzan Kadyrov puts considerable effort in instructing women about their “proper place.” In exile, women's ability to continue fulfilling their gendered responsibilities in a new environment serves as an important coping mechanism. Different generations of women adopt distinct adaptation strategies that relate to their roles during the war as well as to the conditions of their socialization.

Forms of Femininity at the End of a Customary Marriage

This paper explores women’s daily practice of resistance built into the racialized and gendered social structure of customary marriages in South Africa. I argue that women resist, accommodate, adapt, and contest power and authority in the decision to leave the marriage, in negotiating the exit from the marriage, and in their approach to the financial consequences of the separation. By using the myriad of daily practices as evidence for resistance, the study identifies three forms of femininities that emerge from the data: Emphasized femininity characterizes women’s compliance with women’s subordination, ambivalent femininity describes a complex combination of compliance and resistant activities in women practices, and alternative femininities typifies the rejection and resistance with women’s subordination. The paper discusses how these different forms of femininity emerge in their specific cultural, class, and temporal context. The findings reveal that the resistance practices are accompanied by more general ideological awareness of how gender, seniority, and lineage shape the lives of these women at this time of transition.

Diferentes formas de ser uma menina na escola: apontamentos sobre feminilidades e os processos de inclusão/exclusão

Through ethnographic research in the daily life of a public school, we intend to discuss, on the basis of the recognition of the differences between the subjects, how inclusion/ exclusion processes were present in relation to the different forms of femininity expressed by female students of the classes of a primary school. The analysis and discussion of the data, based on cultural studies, studies on gender and on inclusion in education, we found that the differences between the students showed the existence of multiple femininities in school, as well as the plurality of and in the gender identities, and were constantly permeated by the inclusion/exclusion processes during the development of the research project. Thus, we also note that the inclusion and respect for differences are an ethically viable way for a world of changes, both in the school space and in society as a whole. Keywords: difference of gender, femininities, educational inclusion.

“Having it All” on Social Media: Entrepreneurial Femininity and Self-Branding Among Fashion Bloggers

Against the backdrop of the widespread individualization of the creative workforce, various genres of social media production have emerged from the traditionally feminine domains of fashion, beauty, domesticity, and craft. Fashion blogging, in particular, is considered one of the most commercially successful and publicly visible forms of digital cultural production. To explore how fashion bloggers represent their branded personae as enterprising feminine subjects, we conducted a qualitative analysis of the textual ( n = 38 author narratives) and visual ( n = 760 Instagram images) content published by leading fashion bloggers; we supplement this with in-depth interviews with eight full-time fashion/beauty bloggers. Through this data, we show how top-ranked bloggers depict the ideal of “having it all” through three interrelated tropes: the destiny of passionate work, staging the glam life, and carefully curated social sharing. Together, these tropes articulate a form of entrepreneurial femininity that draws upon post-feminist sensibilities and the contemporary logic of self-branding. We argue, however, that this socially mediated version of self-enterprise obscures the labor, discipline, and capital necessary to emulate these standards, while deploying the unshakable myth that women should work through and for consumption. We conclude by addressing how these findings are symptomatic of a digital media economy marked by the persistence of social inequalities of gender, race, class, and more.

Gender disparity in Polish science by year (1975–2014) and by discipline

Abstract The production and impact of male and female authors in Poland over the period 1975–2014 have been studied. The method is based on a special property of Polish last names, namely several popular last names have separate masculine (-ski, -cki) and feminine (-ska, -cka) forms. In this respect Polish is different from most other languages, in which the last name has only one form independent of the gender. A set of 56 634 unique publications of authors bearing one of 26 most popular -ski or -cki names was analyzed. The male dominance was observed over the entire studied period, yet it became systematically less significant over the period 1995–2014, especially in terms of production.