Gendered Slang/Language

Colloquialisms and even basic, formal words in many languages are most certainly gendered. The grammatical rules of certain foreign languages I have studied are heavily based on gender, more so than in the English language. Many words, specifically nouns, in Italian end in either -o or -a, and this signifies the "gender" of the word. We see that even inanimate objects are associated with either the male or female gender, and the structure of phrases is constructed according to this property. In the English language the prevalence of gendered words and grammatical rules is not as common, but we still do see the presence of gender. Pronouns like "he" or "she" carry with them many presumptions about what is being referred to, simply because these pronouns stand for two separate genders and all the stereotypes associated with them. Many other common words in the English language have gendered meanings, regardless of whether we are conscious that they do. For example, the word "nurse" is a simple word which describes a certain profession. However, the majority of English speakers in this country think of females when they think of a nurse. This gendered meaning to the word is based on a widespread view that has come to be a stereotype in American culture. On another note, one would rarely describe a man as "chic" or "stylish." We associate these words with females and use them to describe women's fashion, especially fashion that is considered to be above and beyond the norm but not in too much of an unusual or unique sense. Would you describe a man as "beautiful?" What about a female as "handsome?" These are two of the most obvious examples of common words with gendered meanings that I could think of. The most heavily gendered colloquialisms in the English language, in my opinion, are obscenities. "Slut" brings to mind a female; almost every definition listed in Urban Dictionary contains the word "female," "girl," or "woman." The true implications of the word have to do with distasteful sexuality and sexual practices, but it has been shaped to include "female" as part of its definition. The same story goes for the derogatory term "bitch." The gendered meaning of this word is evident by the personal offense men take when they are called this word. This also exhibits the prevalent sexism in our society; women are not as insulted when somehow being compared to a type of male--the dominant gender. On the other hand, a derogatory term which almost always is associated with males is "dick," which probably has much to do with the fact that the term also describes male genitals. As we can see, gendered meanings are pervasive in the English language.