By protesting the term ‘mademoiselle,’ are French women successfully rejecting the subtle burdens of their culture or are they actually depriving themselves of that culture? In the NPR article “Feminists Say ‘Non’ to Mademoiselle,” Eleanor Beardsley explains that French feminists are trying to rid their language of ‘mademoiselle’ because they see the term as a way to separate women in a manner men aren't subjected to.
Though the campaign is said not to be a direct result of the attempted rape charges against of the former International Monetary fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the gender debate arose soon after that. The court case seems to have fueled French feminists’ resolve to remedy the injustices of France's male-dominated society. The French feminists have been accused of trivial semantics quibbling, but I think this is a topic worth addressing. Language constructs thought, and thoughts determine behavior.
However, by purging the title, would the French serve no purpose other than to homogenize their unique linguistic heritage?
In the French language, there is no equivalent to the word title ‘Ms.,’ and Mlle. is a title that some women do not find defining or relevant to their identity. Mademoiselle is not just to indicate marital status, but also age. Traditionally, it’s been assumed that if a woman is older, then she should be married, and thus be a madame. But this is 2011, some women don’t want a ring put on it, and that’s totally cool. This leaves them stuck in an awkward linguistic limbo, though.
According to the rest of Europe, France is behind on the times. The Germans dropped fraulein decades ago, and the Spanish don’t even offer the option of checking señorita on official forms anymore.
Traditionalists argue that the term should stay because it’s easier to have a title that communicates a woman’s relationship status right off the bat. Perhaps that would make sense if our only social encounters were at cocktail parties… Isn’t it more uncomfortable to explain personal relationships in a titular way? I imagine a series of introductions ranging from “My name is Never-been-in-a-meaningful-relationship Johnson” or “This is my boss It’s-way-too-complicated Jones.”
On the other hand, if we consider the term ‘mademoiselle’ offensive, then people will start using it offensively, and it shouldn’t be degrading to be a young, single woman. A compromise would seem to be to create a neutral word to indicate a woman’s gender, rather than denying a part of the French language. More options seem more empowering than fewer.
Power is manifested and reinforced through our language, but who would necessarily be strengthened by banning the mademoiselle?
