Jean does the dishes while Marie fixes the car: a qualitative and quantitative study of social gender in French syntax articles

2019 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-72 ◽  
Author(s):  
Célia Richy ◽  
Heather Burnett

ABSTRACTThis article addresses the question of gender bias observed in constructed examples of French syntax articles. Drawing our inspiration from Macaulay and Brice (1997) and Pabst et al. (2018)’s studies of English, we investigate the way women and men are depicted in constructed examples in syntax articles in French. We looked at grammatical functions, thematic roles and lexical choices and found a strong male bias in the use of gendered noun phrases (i.e. more references to men than to women; men are more likely to be in a subject position as well as being referred to via pronouns, and more likely to be agents and experiencers). Furthermore, women and men are not related to the same lexical choices. Besides, since French is a grammatical gender language where masculine gender can also be intended as gender neutral, we designed a second study to investigate masculine marked noun phrases (ambiguous masculines, AMs). When we compared AM noun phrases to female and male arguments in terms of grammatical functions and thematic roles, we found that, in production, they were different than true masculines. We discuss the implications of our results for the meaning of ‘gender neutral masculines’ and for practices anchoring gender discrimination.

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Turabian Jose Luis ◽  
Minier-Rodriguez Luis Enoc ◽  
Moreno-Ruiz Sandra ◽  
Rodriguez-Almonte Francis Eliant ◽  
Cucho-Jove Raul ◽  
...  

2016 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 140-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Silvia Tommaso ◽  
Carlo Cavallotti ◽  
Antonio Malvasi ◽  
Daniele Vergara ◽  
Antonio Rizzello ◽  
...  

2012 ◽  
Vol 19 (1, 2 & 3) ◽  
pp. 2011
Author(s):  
Sarah E. Hamill

2010 saw the twenty-fifth anniversary of two important legal developments in Canada: Bill C-31, which significantly amended the existingIndian Act, and the coming into effect of section 15 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.1 Section 15 was partially responsible for the introduction of Bill C-31. The Canadian government introduced Bill C-31 to address, among other things, gender discrimination in the system of Indian status. Bill C-31, however, fell short of its goal of introducing a gender-neutral system of Indian status under the Indian Act.


Behaviour ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 151 (12-13) ◽  
pp. 1663-1686 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kasey D. Fowler-Finn ◽  
Emilia Triana ◽  
Owen G. Miller

When mating interactions are influenced by multiple sources of selection, they may involve multiple stages of mate assessment. At each stage, a different set of morphological and behavioural traits may be important in determining the outcome of the interaction. Here, we test the potential for multiple sources of selection to shape mating interactions in Leiobunum vittatum harvestmen, commonly known as ‘daddy longlegs’. We provide a qualitative and quantitative study of mating interactions, and investigate the influence of multiple morphological traits on each of several distinct stages of their mating interactions. Mating interactions start with a struggle between males and females during which the male attempts to secure the females in a mating embrace. Success at this stage depends on the length of the male’s clasping pedipalps: those with shorter pedipalps (and thus greater mechanical advantage) were more successful. Male size relative to the female determines how quickly males achieve this embrace. Mating interactions then proceed to tactile exchanges between males and females, indicating the potential for mutual mate choice and/or peri- and post-copulatory selection. We found no morphological predictors of the timing of these later stages of the mating interactions, and suggest that the exchange of a nuptial gift is important for the dynamics of these stages. Overall, our results highlight L. vittatum as a potentially highly informative group for studying how traits involved in mating are shaped by the interaction of selection across multiple stages in mating interactions.


Author(s):  
Christine Mallinson

Centering on the English language reform movement, this chapter describes three main strategies through which feminists have targeted language, both as an object to reform and a platform for revolution. First, it describes the strategy of challenging man-made language forms, exemplified in debates over masculine generics. Second, it discusses the strategy of creating and institutionalizing egalitarian naming practices in order to reclaim the power to name and define. By tracing such forms as Ms., it becomes evident that even small shifts in language use can contribute to cultural change. Third, it describes the strategy of linguistic disruption, illustrated through such neologisms as herstory and womyn, gender-neutral forms such as singular they, and third-gender forms such as zie and zir. By using language creatively and sometimes radically to reject patriarchal language, respond to gender bias, and empower women, feminist activists and everyday speakers alike can employ linguistic practices to promote equality.


2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 1074-1082
Author(s):  
Baghdad Science Journal

The present study conducted to study epipelic algae in the Tigris River within Baghdad city for one year from September 2011 to August 2012 due to the importance role of benthic algae in lotic ecosystems. Five sites have been chosen along the river. A total of 154 species of epipelic algae was recorded belongs to 45 genera, where Bacillariophyceae (Diatoms) was the dominant groups followed by Cyanophyceae and Chlorophyceae. The numbers of common types in three sites were 47 species. Bacillariophyceae accounted 88.31% of the total number of epipelic algae, followed by Cyanophyceae 7.14 % and Chlorophyceae 4.55%. A 85 species (29 genera) recorded in site 1, 103 species (34 genera) in site2, 112 species (35 genera) in site3, 96 species (32 genera) in site4, and 85 species (29 genera) in site5. Spatial and temporal distributions of epipelic algae were noticed in this study. The higher total number of epipelic algae (91504.01cell cm-2) was recorded at site 5 in spring 2012, while the lower was (37017.98cell cm-2) in summer 2012 at site1. Some genera have recorded higher number species during the study period; these genera were Nitzschia, Navicula, Cymbella, Gomphonema, Synedra, Achnanthes, Oscillatoria, and Lyngbya. The study revealed that Bacillariophyceae were more prominent within all study sites and followed by Cyanophyceae, while a few numbers of Chlorophyceae was appeared.


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