Gender neutrality in English

Gender-neutral language is language that minimizes assumptions about the social gender or biological sex of people referred to in speech or writing.

Proponents of gender-neutral language argue that making language less biased is not only laudable, but achievable. Many people find non-neutral language to be offensive.

[There is] a growing awareness that language does not merely reflect the way we think: it also shapes our thinking. If words and expressions that imply that women or men are inferior are constantly used, that assumption of inferiority tends to become part of our mindset . . . Language is a powerful tool: poets and propagandists know this — as, indeed, do victims of discrimination.

Standards advocated by supporters of the gender-neutral modification in English have been applied differently and to differing degrees among English speakers worldwide. This reflects differences in culture and language structure, for example American English in contrast to British English.

Proponents of gender-neutral language argue that the use of gender-specific language often implies male superiority or reflects an unequal state of society. According to The Handbook of English Linguistics, generic masculine pronouns and gender-specific job titles are instances "where English linguistic convention has historically treated men as prototypical of the human species." Proponents also argue that words that refer to women often devolve in meaning, frequently taking on sexual overtones.

The Handbook of Non-Sexist Usage says that the words children hear affect their perceptions of the gender-appropriateness of certain careers. Men and women apply for jobs in more equal proportions when gender-neutral language is used in the advertisement, as opposed to the generic he or man. Some critics make the further claim that these differences in usage are not accidental, but have been deliberately created for the purpose of upholding a patriarchal society.

Various criticisms have been leveled against the use of gender-neutral language, most focusing on specific usages, such as the use of "human" for "man" and "he or she" for "he". Any other alternatives to gender-specific language are claimed to "lead one into using awkward or grating constructions" or neologisms that are so ugly as to be "abominations".

Others argue that the linguistic differentiation of women actually reflects women being "more" valued than men, not less. Opponents of gender-neutral language often argue that proponents of gender-neutral language are impinging on the right of free expression and promoting censorship. A few commentators do not disagree with the usage of gender-neutral language per se, but they do question the effectiveness of gender-neutral language in overcoming sexism.

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