ozarque ([info]ozarque) wrote,
@ 2007-09-04 08:01:00
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Recommended link; "WordGirl"....
Mark Liberman has a post at Language Log -- http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/004878.html#more --
that fits perfectly into our ongoing discussion of the effects of language choices. It's titled "GendergapGirl," it's about the new "WordGirl" YouTube feature from PBS, and here's a sample:

"The quality of the jokes aside, it seems that WordGirl teaches vocabulary mainly by correcting other people's word choices, or using (and condescending to explain) a rare and formal word when a commoner and less pretentious one would have worked just as well. This reinforces the idea that knowledge serves mainly to one-up or impress other people. It also reinforces the idea that intellectuals are snarky and obnoxious."

Highly recommended; I'd be very interested in your reactions.

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[info]lizthefair
2007-09-04 01:48 pm UTC (link)
I watched several of clips of "WordGirl" on YouTube--and I guess I could be off base, but I certainly wouldn't call the words she's using pretentious. (In fact, "pretentious" is a much more advanced word than the ones she us using--distracted, vicious, etc.) As for condescending--the impression I get is that it's an educational show--of course she's defining the words for her audience.

I'm hoping I've missed something, but as for the article in the link it reminds me a bit of what it was like to be that age. I remember wanting to use exactly the right word to express myself, and being told I should use "easier" ones so people would know what I was talking about--never mind that I would no longer really be saying what I meant. If this show in any way makes it "cool" or even just "acceptable" for kids to use the words they know than I'll be happy.

The last piece about boys who use big words being called "WordGirl" as a slam is also upsetting, because being called a superhero is usually a compliment--but wait, it's also being called a girl, and that can't be good

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[info]idiotgrrl
2007-09-04 02:16 pm UTC (link)
Dennis the Menace's Margaret. Lucy Van Pelt. That's the image these people are setting up, and considering the background of these writers, I can only think they're doing it on purpose. How long before we're back to Philip Wylie's sexist screed "Generation of Vipers"?

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[info]gramina
2007-09-04 02:16 pm UTC (link)
I agree with [info]lizthefair -- and I have to say, I wish there had been even the least beginning of a possibility of a female superhero whose skill was *using the language* when I was that age. It probably wouldn't have made those years *good,* but it might have moved things in the general direction of "somewhat less horrible."

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[info]voxwoman
2007-09-04 04:47 pm UTC (link)
If it wasn't gender, it would be class, or some other delimiter. It seems that one can't feel good about themselves without putting someone else down. Although that does seem to be de rigeur for 5th grade and beyond.

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[info]archangelbeth
2007-09-04 04:52 pm UTC (link)
I just want something that will generate suitable scorn for all the semi-literate twits in World of Warcraft chat who use "gay" as the all-purpose put-down. If bigger, more suitably snarky words show up there, it will make the insult matches far more interesting to watch.

(I still recall a barrens chat where we discussed whether the goblin airships were actually zeppelins or blimps. I believe they're blimps, though they're not called that. There was recourse to dictionary.com!)

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[info]sapience
2007-09-04 08:09 pm UTC (link)
Her super-enemies are almost all adult males....If it's not clear to you why WordGirl is any way problematic, try to imagine the reaction to a show where MathBoy defends the world against villains like Ms. BadAd, a PR consultant who doesn't understand percentages, and CheckoutGirl, who is too dim to make change correctly.

I can understand this concern. However, most villains in most cartoons of this sort are adult males. While that may be a problem unto itself, "WordGirl"'s adherence to this standard is not equivalent to the "MathBoy" example offered, which introduces negative stereotyping by upsetting the standard. A female protagonist who uses traits other than beauty and deception to defeat the normal cast of cartoon villains is a step in the right direction.


So I wonder: how long will it take, after the pilot airs at 4:30 this afternoon, before the first schoolboy with an interest in reading and writing is nicknamed "WordGirl" by his classmates? My bet is on the morning recess at school tomorrow, in those areas where the schools are already in session.

This statement illustrates a more serious problem. If we want to narrow the educational gender gap, we shouldn't do so by denying girls a heroine who draws upon a strength many of them will already identify with. Rather, we should make it acceptable for boys to identify with female protagonists.

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[info]lizthefair
2007-09-04 09:01 pm UTC (link)
This statement illustrates a more serious problem. If we want to narrow the educational gender gap, we shouldn't do so by denying girls a heroine who draws upon a strength many of them will already identify with. Rather, we should make it acceptable for boys to identify with female protagonists.

Preach it. You made this point much better than my snarkiness did. Thank you.

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