Wikipedia:Gender-neutral language
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This page is a how-to guide detailing a practice or process on the English Wikipedia. |
Gender-neutral language avoids constructions that might be interpreted by some readers as an unnecessary reinforcement of traditional stereotypes. Gender-neutral language does not inherently convey a particular viewpoint, political agenda or ideal. Examples of non-neutral language that can easily be avoided are:
- male and female pronouns to refer to a generic person
- man to stand for both genders, either as a separate item (man’s journey into the unknown) or a suffix (fireman)
- grammatically marked items to represent one gender (actress, conductress, career woman and male nurse), with the possible implication that the participation of the other gender is the norm
- non-parallel expressions (man and wife can be "husband and wife"); others oppose this expression on the ground that it implies that only men can have wives.
The Manual of Style guidelines on gender-neutral language state, "Please consider using gender-neutral language where it can be done without loss of neatness and precision." This recommendation does not apply to direct quotations, the titles of works (A Man on the Moon), or where all referents are of one gender, such as in an all-female school (“If any student broke that rule, she was severely punished”).
There are a number of ways of avoiding the use of generic male and female pronouns; the following are examples.
- Pluralizing (not “A player starts by taking up his position”, but “Players start by taking up their positions”), although this can be problematic where the text needs to emphasize individuals, or where it creates a need to switch regularly between singular and plural.
- Using he or she (“Each politician is responsible for his or her constituency”), although this can be ungainly if repeated within a short space.
- Otherwise rewording (not “A pilot must keep his spacepod under control at all times; if he loses control, he must hit ‘new game’ immediately”, but “A pilot must keep the spacepod under control at all times; if that control is lost, the pilot must hit ‘new game’ immediately”).
- Using the singular they (“Each politician is responsible for their constituency”). The grammatical validity of this is widely disputed, although it is widely used.
Non-neutral usage can sometimes be avoided by careful word choice; for example, by using people or humanity (instead of man), layperson (layman), police officer (policeman), business owners (businessmen); in these cases, ensure that the basic meaning is preserved. Where the gender is known, gender-specific items are also appropriate ("Bill Gates is a businessman" or "Nancy Pelosi is a congresswoman").
