Mother Tongue

The Surprising History of Women's Words

Author: Jenni Nuttall
ISBN: 9780593299579

“A fascinating look at how we talk about women. . . . Dense with information and anecdotes, Mother Tongue touches on the hilarious and the devastating, with ample dashes of an ingredient so painfully absent from most discussions of sex and gender: humor.” ―Lisa Selin Davis, The Washington Post “[Nuttall] examines the origins of words used over many centuries to describe women’s bodies, desires, pregnancies, work lives, sexual victimhood, and stages of life. . . . Her research is comprehensive enough that even longtime word enthusiasts will find plenty of new trivia.” ―The New YorkerAn enlightening linguistic journey through a thousand years of feminist language—and what we can learn from the vivid vocabulary that English once had for women’s bodies, experiences, and sexualitySo many of the words that we use to chronicle women’s lives feel awkward or alien. Medical terms are scrupulously accurate but antiseptic. Slang and obscenities have shock value, yet they perpet

Publisher: Penguin
Publish Date: 2023-08-29

Subjects: Language Arts & Disciplines / Linguistics / Historical & Comparative, History / Women, Biography & Autobiography / Personal Memoirs

This book is available in the following Community Centers: Women's Center (Location: Communication)