Gender-Based Language Reform and the Social Construction of Meaning

Abstract

In this article we consider the implications of the social construction of meaning for the possibility of language reform. Since meanings are socially determined and since the dominant culture is sexist, it is not surprising that women's meanings are often appropriated by that culture and that gender-based language reform is not always successful. Based on an analysis of attempts at gender-based language reform in Canada and in particular at York University, we consider relative success in terms of the support they have received in a given speech community. In so doing, we identify those factors which promote (e.g. being situated as part of a larger sociopolitical goal such as the achievement of employment equity) as opposed to those which hinder (e.g. being left to the discretion of individuals within an organization) language change.