What’s in a name? Not nearly as much as is in its honorific title. Especially where women are concerned.
The existence of Miss, Mrs. and Ms. has always struck me as strange, given the lone option of Mr. on the other end of the spectrum. However, and I’m slightly ashamed to admit this, it never struck me as sexist…until now.
All it took was a small town in France (and apparently all of Germany… Fräulein Maria you just didn’t know how degraded you were).
Cesson-Sévigné, a suburb of Rennes, France, recently won a battle to have the term “Mademoiselle” removed from all official documents.
The case of the women’s rights groups pushing for the change was that if a man’s title “Monsieur” and only “Monsieur” doesn’t call for specifying their marital status why should a woman’s?
I cautiously admit that I like the sound of mademoiselle more than madame, but it’s the principal of the matter. So au revoir mademoiselle. As of January 1, 2012 (truly a thing of the past) you shall grace legal documents originating from Cesson-Sévigné no more. I bid thee adieu.
Liberté, égalité, solidarité féminine!
p.s. one more question: What exactly is so feminine about a calculator? But I suppose that’s for another discussion.
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“Adieu to ‘Mademoiselle’: French Town Bans ‘Sexist’ Term”: TIME
…bi-daily smile…
