neutering neuter – grammatical gender and the dehumanisation of women in German

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Damaris Nübling ◽  
Miriam Lind
Keyword(s):  
Historical Development ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Gender Performance ◽  
Arbitrary System ◽  
Gender Assignment ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Person Reference ◽  
German Dialects ◽  
Contemporary Standard

Grammatical gender in German has traditionally been described as a rather arbitrary system (Helbig and Buscha 1988). This is not the case in regard to terms of person reference, where natural gender assignment is the norm: Masculine and feminine grammatical gender largely correlate with the extralinguistic assignment of male and female gender. Neuter gender predominantly denotes inanimate entities (Köpcke and Zubin 1996, 2009). The use of neutral gender in reference to women nevertheless has a long history in German, usually with pejorative connotations (Köpcke and Zubin 1996, 2009). Historically, this can be illustrated in relation to nouns, pronouns and articles: 1 By neuter nouns denoting ‘socially incomplete’ women, e.g. das Weib ‘woman (archaic), hag, n.’, das Luder ‘hussy, n.’ and in the increased use of neuter eliciting diminutives in reference to female individuals, e.g. das Mädchen ‘girl, n.’, das Fräulein ‘miss, n.’ (Nübling 2017). 2 Through the use of neuter pronouns and neuter articles in combination with female names in a number of German dialects, e.g. das Emma, es ‘the (n.) Emma, it’ (Busley and Fritzinger 2018). In contemporary standard German, the use of neuter articles and pronouns instead of feminine ones seems to be used as a discursive tool to denigrate and dehumanise women whose gender performance does not conform with hegemonic concepts of femininity. This paper focuses on the intentional manipulation of grammatical gender in reference to women as a tool of degradation and dehumanisation and outlines the historical development of neuter forms of reference in contexts where feminine would be expected.

scholarly journals Annali, Ruedi, Mami.

2021 ◽  
Vol 107 (2) ◽  
pp. 177-208
Author(s):  
Helen Christen ◽  
Gerda Baumgartner
Keyword(s):  
Gender Assignment ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Literary Works ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Swiss German ◽  
German Dialects

Data of the dialect research project “Das Anna und ihr Hund. Weibliche Rufnamen im Neutrum” indicate the important role of diminutive names in terms of the historical develop-ment and consolidation of the onymic neuter gender assignment. The focus in the present arti-cle lies therefore on the forms and the use of diminutive names (e. g. Anneli, Ruedi) in Swiss-German dialects. Based on diachronic evidence from literary works and regional dictionaries, differences in the diminution of male and female names are historically traced and substantiated. It is for prag-matic reasons that female kinship names (e. g. Mami) are crystallized to be the last bastion for the neutral gender assignment which opens up new perspectives on the diachronic emergence of this phenomenon. The consideration of further onymic suffixes in the outlook brings up a debate on the disagreement of gender and sex which is considered to be a possible objective of the suf-fixation itself.

scholarly journals Neutrales Rufnamengenus zwischen Grammatik und Pragmatik

2021 ◽  
Vol 107 (2) ◽  
pp. 125-144
Author(s):  
Simone Busley ◽  
Julia Fritzinger
Keyword(s):  
Present Article ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Personal Pronouns ◽  
Gender Agreement ◽  
Gender Assignment ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Gender Variation ◽  
German Dialects ◽  
And Gender

In numerous German dialects and in Luxembourgish, female first names can take on both feminine and neuter gender agreement, thus leading to gender variation on a paradigmatical level and gender mismatches on a syntactical level. This is contradictory to canonical conceptions of gender systems and can be interpreted as a case of degrammaticalization. Here, grammatical gender has been refunctionalized as a socio-pragmatic marker which indicates the age and status of the woman referred to as well as the speaker’s relationship to her. In some varieties, regrammaticalization of gender assignment resulted in female first names always taking neuter agreements. The present article focusses on the reconstruction of the stages of degrammaticalization and regrammaticalization of gender assignment based on data of the research project “Das Anna und ihr Hund – Weibliche Rufnamen im Neutrum”. Analyses of the data indicate that personal pronouns as the targets most prone to differing agreement played a key role in this process.

Chronic physical stress differences between genders in a military training on the Amazon jungle

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-21
Author(s):  
Y.R. de Souza ◽  
F.B. Feitosa
Keyword(s):  
Plasma Levels ◽  
Scientific Literature ◽  
Military Training ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Physical Stress ◽  
Male Gender ◽  
Normal Range ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Normal Limits ◽  
Before And After

This study aimed to investigate the gender difference in the manifestation of physical stress in a strenuous military training on Amazon jungle, using alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), creatine kinase (CK) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) markers, measured before and after an adaptation to jungle training. The sample consisted of 49 military volunteers, 35 male and 14 female, recently moved to the Amazon region. All plasma levels rose after the training. Serum ALT (male and female) and AST (male and female), although borderline, remained within normal limits. Already plasma levels of CK (both male and female) and LDH (male and female) largely exceeded the normal range. The average of all markers listed in female gender remained below the levels of the male gender. However, significant differences in biomarkers ALT, AST and CK between genders were found. The study points out that, in a jungle environment, biometric markers ALT, AST, CK and LDH are efficient for monitoring chronic physical stress in both genders, when used in combination. The influence of the weather on the occurrence of physical stress in unacclimated people of both genders, and the lower responses in the levels of ALT, AST, LDH and CK in females were discussed basing on the scientific literature.

scholarly journals How consumers' values influence responses to male and female gender role stereotyping in advertising

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 893-913 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah De Meulenaer ◽  
Nathalie Dens ◽  
Patrick De Pelsmacker ◽  
Martin Eisend
Keyword(s):  
Gender Role ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Gender Role Stereotyping

scholarly journals Advertising Gender Performance: How Femvertising Represents Women

Inter ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-88
Author(s):  
Elizaveta Panarina
Keyword(s):  
Gender Stereotypes ◽  
Social Problems ◽  
Domestic Work ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Gender Performance ◽  
Communication Strategy ◽  
Gender Representations ◽  
Self Confidence ◽  
Female Image ◽  
New Generation

The article analyzes the phenomenon of femvertising as a marketing and communication strategy aimed at women, ideologically inspired by feminisms, destroying gender stereotypes. It is contrasted with advertisements that exploit the female image, sexualize women or show women in the context of only domestic work. Based on the works of E. Becker-Herbie, M. Mendenez, K. Linder, as well as I. Goffman, the article analyzes female gender displays in advertising for the Russian audience. The repertoire of analyzed gender representations in advertising demonstrates the content of femvertising: from a set of social problems that oppress women to a broadcast discourse of strength, independence, solidarity and self-confidence. The question that remains open is whether femvertising can sell as well as it can mobilize a new generation of forward thinking.

Consumer Perception of Ready-To-Eat Fruits Sold in Ogun and Lagos, Nigeria During the Covid-19 Pandemic

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wasiu Ayodele Abibu ◽  
Abdul Wasiu Sakariyau ◽  
Gafar Bamigbade ◽  
Amos Kolawole Oyebisi ◽  
Isqeel Ogunsola
Keyword(s):  
Online Survey ◽  
Tertiary Education ◽  
Control Point ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
The Body ◽  
Consumer Perception ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Critical Control Point ◽  
Ogun State ◽  
Lagos State

Covid-19 pandemic is a global health issue that adversely affected every sector of the world’s economy. Fruits are known to be a source of vitamins providing the body with necessary defense against infections (inclusive of Coronaviruses). Nigerians prefer to buy ready-to-eat (RTE) fruits than whole fruits due to their high prices. Consumer perception of RTE fruits sold in Ogun and Lagos, Nigeria during the Covid-19 pandemic months in 2020 and within January and March 2021 via an online survey were compared. Ogun and Lagos states were selected because they represent major entry routes for land and air travel into Nigeria respectively. 500 respondents were obtained with 49.7% each as male and female respectively in Ogun state while Lagos had 49.5% and 50.5% of the male and female gender. In addition, the predominant age group that responded to the questionnaire falls within 21 – 30 with 49.7% in Ogun state and 54.1% in Lagos state. 96.1% of the respondents in Ogun state had a tertiary education while 99% was recorded to possess tertiary education in Lagos state. 34% respondents took RTE fruits 2- 3 times a week, 31.2% less than once a week while only 2.8% took RTE fruits 4 – 5 times a week. From the survey, 84% of the respondents were aware that fruits possess needed vitamins to fight infections while only 87.4% of the respondent were aware of fruit borne poisoning and have knowledge of fruit borne pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Klebsiellaspp, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Penicilliumspp, Aspergillusnigerand Rhizopusstolonifer. This study shows that fruit consumers neglected health consciousness in the purchase of RTE fruits in Ogun and Lagos in the first 3 months of 2021 compared to 2020. This negligence may result in a spike of another Covid-19 wave in Ogun and Lagos if the necessary food and health regulatory authorities fail to act timely. Also, the application of an effective hazard analysis and critical control point (HACCP) application reduces the chance of contamination of ready- to- eat fruits.

Gender

2015 ◽  
pp. 31-48
Author(s):  
Emily Hughes
Keyword(s):  
Gender Roles ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Gender Performativity ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Masculinity And Femininity ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
Male Nurse ◽  
Gender Characteristics ◽  
Opposite Gender

This chapter evaluates how Pedro Almodóvar's Talk to Her (2002) plays with the idea of gender being a fixed attribute and sees gender instead as something flexible and fluid. Gender roles in Talk to Her are arguably represented as a socially constructed rather than innately determined with characters in careers typically assigned to the opposite gender. Lydia is a female bull fighter in a typically chauvinist industry and Benigno is a male nurse in a very female heavy environment. Almodóvar's blurring of the strict rigid definitions of masculinity and femininity can be viewed as postmodernist. The chapter then considers gender performativity in relation to Almodóvar's body of films. In Talk to Her, Lydia, Marco, and Benigno can be seen to perform both male and female gender characteristics at different times.

scholarly journals De-gendering in the use of e-learning

2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 27 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernd Remmele ◽  
Matthias Holthaus
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Educational Institution ◽  
Basic Structure ◽  
Female Students ◽  
Gender Performance ◽  
Doing Gender ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Gender And Technology ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
E Learning

The starting point of the paper is the co-construction of gender and technology, that is, the theory that the usage of and the attitude to certain kinds of technology are a way to “do” one’s gender. A survey is presented that supports the assumption that with the routinization of e-learning in higher education e-learning loses its character as a technology, which can be used for gender performance. With the routinization of its usage e-learning is becoming a gender-neutral tool with no outstanding technological appeal. However, though doing gender may disappear in certain fields the co-construction of gender and technology is still valid as basic structure. Furthermore, the results show that e-learning meanwhile supports the attitude we call <em>study as consumption</em>, that is, the expectation that the main e-learning features are usual services to be provided by the educational institution. This attitude is to be found among male and female students alike.

Assignment of grammatical gender by native speakers and foreign learners of French

1999 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 479-506 ◽  
Author(s):  
V. M. HOLMES ◽  
B. DEJEAN DE LA BÂTIE
Keyword(s):  
Native Speakers ◽  
Explicit Instruction ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Real Word ◽  
Gender Assignment ◽  
Written Production ◽  
On Line ◽  
Gender Attribution

This study compared the skill in gender attribution of foreign learners and native speakers of French. Accuracy and fluency of gender attribution by the foreign learners were assessed in spontaneous written production. Both groups performed on-line gender assignment to real nouns whose gender was regular or exceptional, given their ending, and to invented nouns with nonword stems and real-word endings. The pattern of results indicated that the native speakers' gender attributions were primarily based on rapidly evoked lexical associations, with gender-ending correspondences playing a significant but subsidiary role. The foreign learners were less able to summon lexical associations, relying heavily on ending-based rules. Overall, none of the foreign learners attained the same level of performance as any of the native speakers. We conclude that instruction in which students learn nouns in the context of distinctive lexical associates could profitably be supplemented by explicit instruction in gender-ending regularities.

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