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man/manning

English translation: generally best avoided

GLOSSARY ENTRY (DERIVED FROM QUESTION BELOW)
English term or phrase:man/manning
Selected answer:generally best avoided
Entered by: Charles Davis

10:58 Dec 24, 2018
English language (monolingual) [PRO]
Bus/Financial - Business/Commerce (general) / Disaster Prevention Strategy
English term or phrase: man/manning
This is more of an opinion query. I'd like to know if it is still possible to use the verb "man/manning" without it being frowned upon as "sexist" by a considerable section of the English native speaking population.

For example in sentences like this "All machines are in working order and are manned by competent people".

NB: Please note that I am not looking for synonyms or alternatives, but opinions on whether it is still okay to use this particular verb or not.
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 15:57
generally best avoided
Explanation:
Obviously opinions are likely to differ on this one, and it will depend on who the text is aimed at, but I would say that "to man" is now likely to be frowned on by quite a lot of people: a significant if not considerable proportion of English speakers. Of course we all know that gender-related "political correctness" is a red rag to a bull for some people and is a factor in the rise of the populist right. Personally that makes me more inclined to avoid sexist language rather than less.

One problem is that there is no single substitute; machines can be operated, aircraft and spacecraft can be crewed, and so on. The Cambridge Dictionary offers "staff", "be at", "attend to":
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/peo...

NASA, for what it's worth, now refers to crewed and uncrewed flights/missions:
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/crewed_vs_uncrewed_...
Selected response from:

Charles Davis
Spain
Local time: 15:57
Grading comment
Thanks Charles, and to everyone for their thoughts on this :)
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



SUMMARY OF ALL EXPLANATIONS PROVIDED
4 +4generally best avoided
Charles Davis


Discussion entries: 1





  

Answers


1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
generally best avoided


Explanation:
Obviously opinions are likely to differ on this one, and it will depend on who the text is aimed at, but I would say that "to man" is now likely to be frowned on by quite a lot of people: a significant if not considerable proportion of English speakers. Of course we all know that gender-related "political correctness" is a red rag to a bull for some people and is a factor in the rise of the populist right. Personally that makes me more inclined to avoid sexist language rather than less.

One problem is that there is no single substitute; machines can be operated, aircraft and spacecraft can be crewed, and so on. The Cambridge Dictionary offers "staff", "be at", "attend to":
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/peo...

NASA, for what it's worth, now refers to crewed and uncrewed flights/missions:
https://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/files/crewed_vs_uncrewed_...

Charles Davis
Spain
Local time: 15:57
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 88
Grading comment
Thanks Charles, and to everyone for their thoughts on this :)
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks for your insightful and balanced response on this one. Actually, as "staff" is the verb in the sentence and the rest of the 27,000+ document is peppered with "operate/operators" I'm going to go ahead and use "manned"… and damn the torpedoes. I doubt any of the target audience will bat an eyelid anyway, but the notion that some people might find it inappropriate occurred to me in mid-translation and I have no-one around today to bounce ideas off of. Cheers to everyone for the comments too!


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Samuel Sebastian Holden Bramah: I have to agree, even though in the very marrow I really don't. Same is happening in Spain now with the use of the masculin for groups of people and it is driving me up the wall
6 mins
  -> Thanks, Samuel :-) To me they're different cases. I don't agree with the "niños y niñas" thing, and I find "personhole" ridiculous (it's meant to be; it's a joke), but in a case like "to man" there's usually an acceptable alternative.
agree  AllegroTrans: It's still in common use and like you say there isn't really a single substitute; the whole problem is that makind (I use the word to embrace everyone) has gone barmy with this pc nonsense and we need to fight back
55 mins
  -> Thanks, Chris. I sympathise with that view to some extent, but I wouldn't want to throw out the baby with the bathwater: there is a certain amount of easily avoidable sexism in language, and I think sensitivity to it has generally been a step forward.
agree  Jack Doughty: with AllegroTrans
1 hr
  -> Thanks, Jack. I prefer not to get into arguments on this! But without subscribing to the dogmatic excesses, there's certainly been a significant shift during my lifetime and I'm not altogether opposed to that.
neutral  Daryo: as you said, opinions differ - good intentions are one thing, results differ ... like in some other areas, where euphemisms are no longer euphemistic enough, and suddenly need their own euphemisms.
3 hrs
  -> The question, however, was not about whether we are in favour of using this verb; it asked for our opinion on whether it would be " frowned upon as 'sexist' by a considerable section of the English native speaking population". I say it would.
agree  jccantrell: Yep, in today's USA, it is best to avoid this sort of phrase. Why go looking for trouble when there are so many other paths?
5 hrs
  -> Thanks, JC :-) I agree.
neutral  Yvonne Gallagher: This one wouldn't bother me (and I'm a long-time feminist) I think some of this PC stuff is ludicrous, e.g the latest: take "man/men" out of "woman/women" >> "womxn". Are we supposed to rewrite all of literature?! Gender equality will come with laws.
9 hrs
  -> Many thanks, Yvonne :-) I think the "womxn" kind of thing, however well-intentioned, is very unfortunate, because it alienates even those sympathetic to the principle. Language won't produce equality, but it may help to promote the necessary mentality.
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