Saturday, January 22, 2022

Language, Necessity, and Convenience

If we ever got to the point where the words man and woman (etc.) commonly denoted only one's subjective "gender identity" rather than the possession of one of two (and only two) kinds gonads and thus the potential to make one of the two (and only two) kinds of gametes required for reproduction, then people will spontaneously come up with other words to take the place of the redefined ones. Why? Because human beings clearly like having and even need such words to talk about what they clearly want to talk about and will keep on talking about no matter what. After millions of years of evolutionary natural selection and especially sexual selection, the two roles in reproduction color many subjects of human interest, even subjects that may seem remote from reproduction. That is why all languages and cultures likely have counterparts to our man, woman, and so on. They refer to salient human features of universal interest. 

So here's my question: if the linguistic change happens (and I doubt it ever will), will the trans activists/ideologues (I'm not talking about trans people who just want to live) then seek inclusion under the new labels and start the process all over again? Probably -- unless the ideological avant-garde gives up its commitment to compelling other people to validate their identities. People of course should be free to identify themselves in any way they choose, and of course they should never be subjected to aggression by the state or by private parties because of their peaceful choices. But they should not be free to force others through the state or directly to "see" them as they see themselves. The matter of identity (which is necessarily social) should be confined to the realm of persuasion.

Recommended Reading (to which I will likely add in the future)

"How Trans Identity Politics Imprisons Us All," Tim Black, Spiked Online

"The New Evolution Deniers," Colin Wright, Quillette

"Sex Is Not a Spectrum," Colin Wright, Reality's Last Stand

"No One Is Born in the 'Wrong Body,'" William J. Malone, Colin M. Wright, and Julie D. Robertson, Quillette

"J.K. Rowling Writes about Her Reasons for Speaking Out on Sex and Gender Issues," J.K. Rowling, jkrowling.com

"Why Self-Identification Should Not Legally Make You a Woman," Kathleen Stock, The Conversation

"Changing the Concept of 'Woman' Will Cause Unintended Harms," Kathleen Stock, The Economist

"How to Be a Heretic," Kathleen Stock, The Spectator

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