In My Wife's Opinion

As I was pondering this issue I thought to myself, "I don't have any authority on the subject of how the female population should feel when addressed by certain terms, or what term is best when refering to one of said females." (I have to say, this is only one of the many topics pertaining to the female gender that I claim no understanding.) So I talked it over with my wife and was surprised to realize how much a title can mean. Apparently it can mean more than just that to which it is refering. I also has connotations that can offend, commpliment, imply or describe the subject. My wife told me the story of the first time she was refered to as a "woman" by a stranger, and how old it made her feel. She felt like she should still be a "girl". I was surprised, although she didn't seem to be, that a title of respect and curtesy could be taken as practically an insult. I can only assume that it goes both ways; a woman might feel disrespected if refered to as a girl in a professional setting.It goes to show, just like we've been studying all semester, that words carry power and language is more than just words. I read a previous blog wherein a student said that this issue is basically irrelevent and a waste of time, I beg to differ. The debate of "woman" v. "girl" and how females feel about the use of these words is just a smaller version of the "N"-word debate. Granted these words don't have near the history of violence or offense, but it nontheless is an illustration of how words evoke emotion whether positive or negative and we should all be aware of the things we say even when we don't say them.