5.0702 Terms for Dislike of Males (5/66)

Elaine Brennan & Allen Renear (EDITORS@BROWNVM.BITNET)
Wed, 19 Feb 1992 21:36:49 EST

Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 5, No. 0702. Wednesday, 19 Feb 1992.

(1) Date: Tue, 18 Feb 92 22:01:58 EST (13 lines)
From: Bernard.van't.Hul@um.cc.umich.edu
Subject: 5.0696 Man-hater v. Misandrist

(2) Date: Wed, 19 Feb 92 09:50:17 CST (5 lines)
From: Oliver Phillips <PHILLIPS@UKANVM>
Subject: RE: misandrist

(3) Date: Wed, 19 Feb 92 10:19:49 CST (28 lines)
From: (James Marchand) <marchand@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu>
Subject: misandrist

(4) Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1992 16:42 EST (12 lines)
From: "Mary Dee Harris, Language Technology"
<MDHARRIS@guvax.georgetown.edu>
Subject: Miscellaneous Sexual Biases

(5) Date: Mon, 17 Feb 92 18:26 PST (8 lines)
From: KESSLER <IME9JFK@UCLAMVS.BITNET>
Subject: Re: 5.0687 Terms for Dislike of Males (9/121)

(1) --------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 18 Feb 92 22:01:58 EST
From: Bernard.van't.Hul@um.cc.umich.edu
Subject: 5.0696 Man-hater v. Misandrist (2/60)

To Dennis Baron and Anne Erlebach:

Yes and of course it HAS "occurred to anybody" that *man-hater*
is a perfectly OK term for a hater of males.
But to me it seems that the groping for Greek and Latin "sanction"
doesn't exactly exemplify a "need to complicate things." The more
probable need is to aggrandize sense of self -- a project for the
sake of which clarity and economy and forthrightness are a small
price, zealously-ignorantly paid.
(2) --------------------------------------------------------------33----
Date: Wed, 19 Feb 92 09:50:17 CST
From: Oliver Phillips <PHILLIPS@UKANVM>
Subject: RE: misandrist


(3) --------------------------------------------------------------83----

"So my question is this: are there no "native" candidates for the new word you
seek, or must male-haters be clothed in the etymologically opaque fabric of
the word players? The term _man-hater_ has been around for some time."

Anne Erlebach says:

"Does it occur to anybody that English has a perfectly good term for a
man-hater: i.e., "man-hater"? This discussion is but another exam- ple of
academics' need to complicate things. When in doubt, simplify, and stick with
your English roots."

Brigitte Werneburg had asked for terms corresponding to "misogyny" and
"misgynist." That's what I and others gave here. We were all aware,
as was Werneburg, of "man-hater."

Oliver Phillips
Classics, U. of Kansas
PHILLIPS@UKANVM.BITNET

======================================================================== 39
Date: Wed, 19 Feb 92 10:19:49 CST
From: (James Marchand) <marchand@ux1.cso.uiuc.edu>
Subject: misandrist

It is interest that language is one of the most flamable of objects. We
attribute all kinds of attitudes to it, request people to use it in our way,
and it is in general that about which we argue most, one way or another.
Man-hater sounds ok to me, as does woman-hater; one hears all kinds of new
coinages, which one can scarcely discuss without being accused of being
parti-pris in some way, e.g. feminazi. It has always been thus.
Interestingly enough, our taboo words have now moved out of the bathroom and
into group designations. There are even countries which have censored
(removed from shelves, confiscated) dictionaries which were simply
registering usage. To register usage is to recommend it, one feels. It is
not true that misandrist is a new coinage, and I asked several people of my
acquaintance (non-academics) what misogynist meant, and they did not know.
I remember being on a doctoral committee where a full professor confessed
not to know the difference between misogamy and misogyny. I suppose if we
had used Anglo-Saxon, marriage-hating and woman-hating would have been
clear, but all words change their meanings, and the PCers among us tell us
that we must forego our native English in many ways. An aside: Looking at
Dennis Baron's note on the use of Anglo-Saxon, I should think that off-
center might be better for excentric than nutty. As an observer of
language and a whilom (quondam) linguist, I applaud all discussions of
language. As an idealist, I wish it could be carried on without motive-
mongering, but I doubt that will happen.
Jim Marchand
e-mail: j-marchand@uiuc.edu
(4) --------------------------------------------------------------35----
Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1992 16:42 EST
From: "Mary Dee Harris, Language Technology" <MDHARRIS@guvax.georgetown.edu>
Subject: Miscellaneous Sexual Biases


I noticed last night on the latest episode of "Star Trek: The
Next Generation" that the two sexually active women on the crew
are both aliens. I wonder if there's a word for that...

Matt

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(5) --------------------------------------------------------------237---
Date: Mon, 17 Feb 92 18:26 PST
From: KESSLER <IME9JFK@UCLAMVS.BITNET>
Subject: Re: 5.0687 Terms for Dislike of Males (9/121)

We need the term, since today thereis,it seems, in the West, at least, a
prepod nerance of MISANDRISTS. Oh, us poor guys, us lovers of gals.
Kessler