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Why can't the word "man" be used to apply to both sexes when it is clear that it is being used in the sense of "person", ie "The tools and tech I used to run a
by vfclists 5y ago
Why can't the word "man" be used to apply to both sexes when it is clear that it is being used in the sense of "person", ie "The tools and tech I used to run a one-person hardware company."
The title somehow implies that some of the choices are a consequence of the author's gender when they are in all likelihood purely technical.
Women should use "man" to refer to themselves in such instances. If it starts bothering "men" aka males, then the need to switch to "person" becomes more obvious.
A point to note, there are many languages where the term to express "one man" is gender neutral. Perhaps languages like English should rethink their usage of such language.
- the_only_law 5y ago> The title somehow implies that some of the choices are a consequence of the author's gender when they are in all likelihood purely technical. This implication reads as pure projection in your part. There is absolutely nothing else in the title or article to substantiate it. The author as a woman more likely just used the term as she is a woman and indeed the sole founder/worker of the company.
- vfclists 5y agoFFS. This is not pure projection or anything. The simple fact that is in English language "man" is often used to apply to both sexes, the most common one being "Man"kind, another example being "Chairmanship". A company being run by a single person is understood to be a "one-man" company even if it is run by a woman, because the emphasis is on the fact of being run by a single person rather than a single person of a particular sex. PS. Have HN users become a downvote happy bunch in recent years, or is it just my imagination?
- HeyLaughingBoy 5y agoOr, you know, she could just refer to herself however she sees fit.