A
      Column
      for
      the
      Politically
      Incorrect
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Coeditors:
      Peter
      Hanus
      &
      Joseph
      Murphy
     
    
   
   
    
     
      A
      Journey
      ThroughA
      Feminist
     
     
      Dictionary
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Throughout
      the
      power
      struggles
      that
      have
      resulted
      in
     
     
      the
      patriarchal
      suppression
      of
      women,
      and
      its
      subse-
     
     
      quent
      uncovering
      by
      feminists,
      much
      of
      what
      we
      have
     
     
      taken
      for
      granted
      has
      been
      revealed
      to
      us
      to
      be
      tools
     
     
      that
      have
      been
      used
      to
      suppress
      women.
      This
      in-
     
     
      cludes
      the
      standard
      English
      dictionary.
      Thus
      femi-
     
     
      nists
      Cheris
      Kramarae
      and
      Paula
      A.
      Treichler,
      who
     
     
      have
      “‘acknowledged
      the
      sociopolitical
      aspects
      of
     
     
      dictionary
      making,’
      have
      devised
      of
      A
      Feminist
     
     
      Dictionary
      (Pandora,
      1985)
      asa
      ‘‘balance
      to
      the
     
     
      weight
      of
      dictionaries
      in
      men’s
      favor.’’
      To
      do
      this,
     
     
      they
      took
      the
      definitions
      of
      ‘‘some’’
      feminists
      (the
     
     
      bibliography
      is
      72
      pages)
      and
      presented
      them
      in
     
     
      encyclopedic
      form.
      The
      following
      are
      some
      excerpts
     
     
      from
      this
      dictionary,
      none
      of
      the
      definitions
      presented
     
     
      here
      are
      taken
      out
      of
      context
      or
      ‘‘made-up.’’
      Allare
     
     
      direct
      quotes.
      If
      you
      don’t
      want
      to
      take
      our
      word
      for
     
     
      it,
      then
      check
      it
      out
      for
      yourself.
      A
      Feminist
      Diction-
     
     
      ary
      is
      available
      in
      the
      reference
      section
      of
      the
      library.
     
     
      Its
      callnumber
      is
      REF
      HQ
      1115
      .K73
      1985.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      ABOMINABLE
      SNOWMEN.OF
      ANDROCENTRIC
     
     
      ACADEMIA:
      Scholars
      dominated
      by
      male-centered
     
     
      traditions.
      |
     
    
   
   
    
     
      ADAM:
      Mate
      of
      Eve;
      alleged
      father
      of
      two;
      an
      easily
     
     
      led
      male.
      History’s
      first
      nonfunctioning
      head
      of
     
    
   
   
    
     
      he
      usehold.
      ..
     
    
   
   
    
     
        
     
     
       
     
     
       
     
     
          
     
     
        
     
     
           
     
    
   
   
    
     
      BELCHING:
      A
      disruption
      which--along
      with
      yawns
     
     
      and
      farts--can
      be
      seen
      as
      jolly
      shows
      of
      power
      against
     
     
      thority....It
      may
      be.a
      peculiarly
      male
      type
      of
     
    
   
   
    
     
      gressiveness
      and
      hostility
      toward
      authority.
      If
      it
     
     
      ould
      evercome
      into
      women’s
      repertoire,
      however,
     
     
      will
      carry
      great
      power,
      since
      it
      directly
      undermines
     
     
      e
      sacredness
      of
      women’s
      bodies,
      a
      cornerstone
      of
     
     
      sir
      suppression;
      and
      it
      will
      consequently
      command
     
    
   
   
    
     
      eater
      retaliation,
     
    
   
   
    
     
      January
      30,
      1992
     
    
   
   
    
     
      BREEDERS:
      A
      term
      used
      in
      the
      Chicago
      lesbian
     
     
      community
      to
      label
      heterosexuals.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      CASTRATION:
      One
      of
      the
      surgical
      methods,
      my-
     
     
      thologies
      suggest,that
      men
      used
      (before
      they
      under-
     
     
      stood
      their
      reproductive
      role)
      to
      try
      to
      ‘‘make
     
     
      women’
      of
      themselves
      in
      the
      hope
      of
      achieving
     
     
      womanlike
      fertility.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      DICTIONARY:
      A
      dictionary
      is
      a
      word-book
      which
     
     
      collects
      somebody’s
      words
      into
      somebody’s
      book.
     
     
      Whose
      words
      are
      collected,
      how
      they
      are
      collected,
     
     
      and
      who
      collects
      them
      all
      influence
      what
      kind
      of
      book
     
     
      a
      given
      dictionary
      turns
      out
      to
      be
      and,
      in
      turn,
      whose
     
     
      purpose
      it
      can
      bestserve.
      Though
      thousands
      of
     
     
      dictionaries
      exist
      for
      many
      different
      purposes,
      men
     
     
      have
      edited
      or
      written
      virtually
      all
      of
      them...
     
    
   
   
    
     
      EGO-TESTICLE
      WORLDVIEW:
      Men’s
      point
      of
     
     
      view
      on
      all
      issues.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      EVE:
      The
      brave
      one
      in
      the
      biblical
      story.
      Perhaps
      the
     
     
      serpent
      was
      Adam
      masquerading,
      in
      his
      intense
      desire
     
     
      for
      the
      forbidden
      fruit,
      and
      lacking
      the
      courage
      of
      his
     
     
      conviction!
      ...
     
    
   
   
    
     
      FARKSOO:
      A
      language
      invented
      when
      she
      was
      a
      child
     
     
      by
      the
      U.S.
      writer
      Barbara
      Newhall
      Follet
      (1914-39)
     
     
      to
      be
      spoken
      on
      her
      imaginary
      planet
      Farksolia.
      A
      -
     
     
      sample
      utterance
      from
      the
      nairheen
      Farksoo
      (farksoo
     
     
      grammar):Na
      oparil
      ‘‘the
      greatest
      dream
      of
      my
      life
     
     
      would
      be
      to
      go
      there.’’
     
    
   
   
    
     
      HERLAND:
      A
      feminist
      utopia
      created
      by
      Charlotte
     
     
      Perkins
      Gilman
      in
      1915.
      Herland
      is
      ‘‘like
      a
      pleasant
     
     
      family--an
      old,
      established,
      perfectly-run
      country
     
     
      place.’’
      The
      women
      in
      Herland
      have
      no
      enemies;
      the
     
     
      success
      of
      the
      society
      is
      due
      to
      “‘sister
      love’’
      or
     
     
      ‘*mother
      love.’’
      There
      is
      no
      illegitimacy
      because
      all
     
     
      children
      have
      mothers.
      All
      children
      are
      female.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      HETEROSEXISM:
      The
      dominant
      perspective
      of
     
    

    
     
      patriarchal
      culture
      which
      defines
      wimmin
      as
      sexually,
     
    

    
     
      intellectually,
      and
      emotionally
      inferior
      to
      males,
     
    

    
     
      prescribes
      that
      the
      proper
      conduct
      for
      wimmin
      is
     
    

    
     
      passivity,
      servility,
      domesticity,
      and
      maintains
      social
     
     
      '
     
    
   
   
    
     
      institutions
      which
      insure
      the
      economic
      dependence
      on
     
     
      males,
      either
      through
      husband
      or
      fathers.
     
    
   
   
    
     
      HETEROSEXUALISE:
      The
      process
      of
      directing
     
     
      women
      into
      heterosexuality.
      The
      making
      of
      women
      is
     
     
      the
      breeding
      of
      eunuchs,
      the
      breeding
      of
      slaves,
      of
     
    
   
   
    
     
      Page
      9