Re: Mixed Message

[Eric Haddock <eric -at- ENGAGENET -dot- COM>]

>---
But the problem with the ending -man is that its meaning never did
change.
What changed was that some people misunderstood its meaning and confused
it with another word and therefore objected to its use.
>---

   I disagree--the meaning has changed. The only thing I can show as
support for my argument is my own experience. When I was learning the
language, I always thought "-man" meant someone who was male, not inclusive
of both genders. When I first heard about the debate over this issue I was
in high school. I remember being completely surprised that some people were
saying that "-man" actually meant women too. That was alien to my
experience and I couldn't help wondering what was going through these
peoples' heads. It turns out those other people were thinking the same
thing about my perspective.


   I was brought up to do the following:

Chairman = male
Chairwoman = female
     each of these used to address the individual specifically
Chairperson or Chair= the position
     used when gender isn't relevant



   Doesn't consistent use constitute defacto meaning of a word? How do
meanings of words change if this isn't the case?




-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Haddock ------ http://www2.corenet.net/moonlion (updated 10.27.96)
    Technical writer
Engage Networks, Inc. ----- http://www.engagenet.com
    in the Historic Third Ward of Milwaukee, WI

    There is but one process that cannot be documented:  Chocolate