| Edition |
First edition. |
| Description |
291 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm |
| Contents |
Meet sociolinguistics : what all the cool feminists are talking about -- slutty skank hoes and nasty dykes : a comprehensive list of gendered insults i hate (but also kind of love?) -- wait... what does the word woman mean anyway? : plus other questions of sex, gender, and the language behind them -- "mm-hmm, girl, you're right" : how women talk to each other when dudes aren't around -- women didn't ruin the english language -- they, like, invented it -- how to embarrass the shit out of people who try to correct your grammar -- how to confuse a catcaller (and other ways to verbally smash the patriarchy) -- fuck it : an ode to cursing while female -- "cackling" clinton and "sexy" scarjo : the struggle of being a woman in public -- time to make this book just a little bit gayer -- cyclops, panty puppet, bald-headed bastard (and 100+ other things to call your genitalia) -- so... in one thousand years, will women rule the english language? |
| Summary |
"A brash, enlightening, and wildly entertaining feminist look at gendered language and the way it shapes us..."--From dust jacket, front flap. |
|
The word bitch conjures many images for many people, but it is most often meant to describe an unpleasant woman. Even before its usage to mean a female canine, bitch didn't refer to gender at all--it originated as a gender-neutral word meaning genitalia. A perfectly innocuous word devolving into a female insult is the case for tons more terms, including hussy--which simply meant housewife--or slut, which meant an untidy person and was also used to describe men. These words are just a few among history's many English slurs hurled at women. Amanda Montell, reporter and feminist linguist, deconstructs language--from insults and cursing, gossip, and catcalling to grammar and pronunciation patterns--to reveal the ways it has been used for centuries to keep women and other marginalized genders from power. Ever wonder why so many people are annoyed when women talk with vocal fry or use the word like as a filler? Or why certain gender-neutral terms stick and others don't? Or where stereotypes of how women and men speak come from in the first place? Montell effortlessly moves between history, science, and popular culture to explore these questions and more--and how we can use the answers to effect real social change. |
| Subject |
Sexism in language.
|
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English language -- Etymology.
|
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English language -- Etymology.
(OCoLC)fst00911149
|
|
Sexism in language. (OCoLC)fst01114717
|
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Sexism in language.
|
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English language -- Etymology.
|
| ISBN |
9780062868879 (hardcover) |
|
006286887X (hardcover) |
|
9780062868886 (paperback) |
|
0062868888 (paperback) |
|
9780062868893 (ebook) |
|
0062868896 (ebook) |
|
9781982663179 (audiobook) |
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1982663170 (audiobook) |
|
