The F Word

Someone called me feisty tonight. Feisty!!!

I hate that word.

I hate it because it is always (in my experience) used to describe women who are not afraid to own and voice their opinions.

I challenged him. 'Would you call a man with a strong opinion feisty'? I asked. He thought about it and said no. He said he would call him opinionated.

Gender inequality exists in speech. It takes its form in the words we use to describe people. It takes form in the way we express our thoughts about people.

Do we accuse women of being irrational or emotional when we accept men shouting in the same situation without batting an eyelid?

Do we think an opinionated woman is being arrogant when she stands up for what she believes at home or at work but shrug at the same response from a man?

I can think of so many situations where the same behaviour accepted in men is vilified in women. Also note that women are as bad as men in using language to keep the system of inequality going strong.

At the end of our conversation, my friend thanked me for opening his eyes to something he wasn't aware of until it was pointed out to him.

Let's keep up the good work and challenge the causes of gender inequality where we find them.