Detachable Pronouns and Bridging Nouns

Apart from worrying about the words, we need to focus some attention on the spaces between the words. We need to look at how words are linked to one another. For many the link between the words “woman” and “she” is a strong two way equivalence: the noun and the pronoun. They are referring to the same thing. This group includes both radical feminists who believe that a woman is an adult human female and gender believers who have a different view of the definition of woman (anyone who identifies as a woman). Both groups agree that the pronoun refers to the same meaning.

Some, however, argue that woman means adult human female and the pronoun that goes with woman is “she” but that sometimes, in order to be kind, or respectful, or to get published, the pronoun she can be used for a male who says he is a female. Sometimes the noun and pronoun mean the same thing, but sometimes they don’t.

This breaks apart the links between words and adds uncertainty to communication. This is part of the ongoing fragmentation we are living through. She has become a “detachable pronoun”.

Gender language also makes much use of “bridging words” which function to move meaning from place to place. The word gender is the ultimate bridge. A man, adult human male, can use the word gender to transport himself into womanhood. He says his sex (male) is now his gender (male). At this point he will say sex equals gender so it’s fine to use the words interchangeably. Then he declares that he identifies himself as female (this backed up by a form of extreme individualism and societal support for self expression - a support that floats into play here for him, but dissolves again in many other circumstances). He crosses over using the bridging word “gender” and calls himself a woman - and at this point can claim again that gender equals sex, so his sex is female.

For many, this manoeuvre is enough. For some who smell a rat and question the logic, there is cancellation, ostracisation, the accusation of bullying the most victimised in society etc. Added to this, most people cannot do more than three steps of logic, or don’t expect anyone else to really be able to do them, so they give up worrying about it.