I probably should have revived the “lost words” thread, as this is somewhat related, but it’s gone now.
I’ve noticed increasingly on news interviews and the like that people will use the words “male” and “female” as synonymous with “man” and “woman”–e.g., “As a female, I was offended by that” or “We must find a way to improve the plight of urban African-American males.”
Now, even though I’m still relatively young (30), I’ve had some fairly conservative teachers both through high school and college who noted that “male” and “female” are adjectives, whereas “man” and “woman” are nouns. The intimation seemed to be (again, when I was in school) that calling someone a male or a female instead of a man or a woman depreciated their human dignity somewhat since plants and animals can also be described as male and female. It strikes me personally as somewhat dehumanizing since it smacks a bit of cop-speak–“The perp was a white male, approximately 5 foot 10.” I’ve noticed that although this usage seems to be getting more common everywhere, it’s heard most often from African-American speakers. However, I’ll also admit at the same time that the prof who had a big hang up about this issue had a bunch of other language foibles, including the notion that “only human beings are animals, all other creatures should be referred to as beasts,” and was about 80 at the time I had his class.
Anyone else have a problem with this? Is it imprecise speech? Is it just another sign of the language moving on? Am I missing something? Or am I just a victim of some overzealous English teachers? I wouldn’t go so far as to say I’m offended by it, I’ve just never quite understood that usage.
I remember going through that uncomfortable early-adulthood phase when I felt self-conscious about referring to myself as a “man” but knew that calling myself a “boy” just sounded stupid. That’s a time I would have used “male” in a construction similar to the one in which you used “female” in your first example.
Your second example touches a separate issue. The plight being described is that of both men and boys, but the term “boy” when referring to male persons of African ancestry has racial baggage that make it unacceptable. Therefore, “males” is the better catch-all term. I find in general that this is the most common usage of the terms in question, when the speaker/writer wishes to use one term to cover all ages.
It is overused, and used in a lot of inappropriate contexts (an performer in a play does not “play the part of a female”, ya idjit!!), but it has its legitimate denotative and connotative purposes.
Think of “male” or “female” as the hardware, “man” or “woman” as the prevailing operating systems. Most of the time to be male is to be a man and to be female is to be a woman. Most of the time if you’re using a Mac, you’re using the MacOS.
Until and unless the words “man” and “woman” cease to imply anything the biological hardware does not, there are times when it is useful and necessary to make the distinction.
Janet does not feel safe walking home through the park alone when she leaves work late at 11:30 PM because she is a woman. She menstruates because she is female. She says her coworker Tom was a real man, he’d walk her home. Tom says he has no interest in being a real man and the silly bitch can call a cab. Tom is a male of feminist sympathies who says he a male of the “race of Woman”. Tom has a draft registration card in his wallet. He would not have had to register if he had checked the box that said he is a female. Tom isn’t a female.
There’s no question that I’m male, but I recently spent fifteen or so years being a boy, not a man; and in some quarters, there’s still some discussion as to whether I qualify even now.
Incidentally, English seems to be the only language with cognates of “male” and “female” where it’s acceptable to use those adjectives to refer to a human. In French, for example, you cannot use the adjectives “mâle” and “femelle” to refer to male and female humans. You must use “masculin” and “féminin” (“la clientèle féminine” = “the female clientele”). “mâle” and “femelle” can only be used for animals. (“mâle” can be used as a slang term meaning virile or buff. “Un beau mâle” = “a real hunk”.) The story is exactly the same with “macho” and “hembra” in Spanish.
Ugh, I hate male and female when used as nouns and applied to humans, unless it’s in a specific biological/scientific context. It sounds strange and dehumanizing to me.
For a long time I thought one reason it rubs me the wrong way was that I only heard women referred to as “female,” but lately I’ve heard “males” used for men frequently.
My vague sense is that it’s more frequently used by uneducated people, like denizens of talk shows, who are trying to sound more formal. (Could it be, dare I ask, that it’s a more common usage amongst African-Americans? Shame on me if that’s true . . .)
I think you’re missing the point. “Male” and “Female” are not used as synonyms for “Man” and “Woman.” “Men”/“Women” are used as an age-specific subset of “Males”/“Females”. When the age group in question is ill defined, it’s more politically correct to use Males/Females. African Americans use “male” as opposed to “man,” because “man,” in slang, means, well, a whitey.
Tell this to the Army. You are either A male or A female. When in a camp situation, with co-ed barracks, it’s “males have the latrine.” Etc. It gets annoying after a while.
I second what IceQueen has said man/woman has a age factor in it while male/female has no age associated.
I think it is pretty darn obvious that we are talking about humans here (actually isn’t human the understood noun that male/female defines).
An intresting side topic * this is a hijack - I’m taking this thread to Cuba* my wife calls our cat ‘Chelsea Girl’ and I call her ‘Chelsea Cat’ (btw her name is Chelsea). I think the Chelsea Cat is a better discription as you would know (or suspect) we are talking about a feline even if you didn’t see/know her. If you heard Chelsea Girl - you would not even think of a cat unless you get it from context or know her.
Well she still calls her Chelsea Cat and I call her Chelesa Chicken now. *Ladies and Gentelmen (males and females) I must apoligise for the hijack, I had nothing against any of you. What you went through was very tramatic - I suggest you seek professional help if you feel you need it - good day *
While there are certain situations when using “male” or “female” instead of “man” or “woman” is more appropriate, in general I don’t care for it. It sounds a little, I dunno… Alien overlord, I guess. “Bring me the female! I will consume her first!”
You realize that male and female both take more than one part of speech, don’t you? They’re adjectives ** and ** nouns.
**male **(ml)
adj.
Of, relating to, or designating the sex that has organs to produce spermatozoa for fertilizing ova.
Characteristic of or appropriate to this sex; masculine.
Consisting of members of this sex.
Virile; manly.
Botany.
Relating to or designating organs, such as anthers or antheridia, that produce gametes capable of fertilizing those produced by female organs.
Bearing stamens but not pistils; staminate: male flowers.
Designating an object, such as an electric plug, configured for insertion into a recessed part or socket.
n.
A member of the sex that begets young by fertilizing ova.
A man or boy.
Botany. A plant having only staminate flowers.
**fe·male **(fml)
adj.
Of or denoting the sex that produces ova or bears young.
Characteristic of or appropriate to this sex; feminine.
Consisting of members of this sex. See Usage Note at lady.
Botany.
Designating an organ, such as a pistil or ovary, that functions in producing seeds after fertilization.
Bearing pistils but not stamens; pistillate: female flowers.
Having a recessed part, such as a slot or receptacle, designed to receive a complementary male part: the female section of an electrical outlet.
n.
A member of the sex that produces ova or bears young.
A woman or girl.
Botany. A plant having only pistillate flowers.
The funniest one of these was this… when we lived in Winnipeg, from time to time dr_mom_mcl had occasion to visit the Victoria General Hospital… And the bathrooms there didn’t say Men and Women, or Ladies and Gentlemen, or even those little glyphs… apparently in an attempt at scientific precision, they said Male and Female.
That’s right, folks, there was a male washroom and a female washroom at the Victoria General Hospital. I imagined them mating and the female washroom giving birth to lots of baby washrooms.
I like “male” and “female” over “man” and “woman”, personally.
I was raised to believe that the only difference between the sexes was whether they were an innie or an outie. “Man” and “Woman”, “boy” and “girl” otoh each have a gender connotation that I really don’t like to use most of the time.
For some reason, the one that I have the most problem with is “Man”. I hardly ever use that one. Males are either male, or dude or guy (or sometimes boy, if they’re under 15ish). I’m more likely to use their name than any of the above.
I agree that “male” and “female” make sense in contexts where age doesn’t matter. But it irritates me when they’re used in place of “man” and “woman” - I assume this is a case of people picking up on cop-speak filtered through reporters. For example (this is from the first Google hit I got for male + suspect):
I hate that crap. Also, “A pellet gun has been seized?” Come on.
