In reading “Identity terms” I truly appreciate the listing and definition of these Identity terms. I found that many times people and myself Included would use one term for the meaning of another. An example of this would be the “people of color/African American/Black. Although they oftentimes fall into the minority category, understanding the definition of each term determines the context in which each term is used. Another example of this are the terms transexual and transgendered. Whenever I use to hear these terms I use to think they were being used interchangeably. Identity terms allow us to be considerate, aware, and less ignorant of other people.
In the reading “Feminist Philosophy of language”, the theory that stood out for me besides “Male as norm” is “Maleness of language”. I found it very interesting when the text stated that English is considered to be in favor of men. I never realized it in the was I’ve noticed it in other cultural languages, however, I’ve always thought of English to the language of control, patriarch, and colonialism. English commands you to speak it not matter your background, in a similar way men have protruded and taken up in spaces that have made women/POC oppressed and uncomfortable. This reading reminded me of the literary work, “Reason, Gender and Moral Theory” by Virginia Held where the professor of philosophy addresses and examines the concept of the male philosophic perspective. One example from this text is when she states, ” The history of philosophy, including the history of ethics, has been constructed from male points of view, and been built on assumptions and concepts that are by no means gender-neutral.” In other words, women were not considered and most often excluded from the development of literature and social advancement and English is just one example of this.
