Timeline for What are the origins of and is this use of the term "baby" sexist?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
8 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 24, 2023 at 14:25 | comment | added | barbecue | @ianw You're ignoring the context of the 1970s and applying your context of today. That's why you are confused by this. Context in this case means the slang usage popular in the time period. Baby as used in that time and in that style was common slang usage with no implications of weakness or infantility. The fact that the same word can have other meanings in other contexts is a feature of English, but applying the wrong meaning for a context is an error. | |
| Jan 23, 2023 at 21:35 | comment | added | Ian W | @barbecue, I never thought of any of the qualities of a baby as "empowering". drawing an inference between the qualities of a baby with that of "an empowered women", suggests it's denigrating the empowered woman. The context makes it sexist. | |
| Jan 23, 2023 at 21:31 | comment | added | Ian W | "You've come a long way, baby!" use in a cigarette ad was for "Virginia Slims, a brand marketed exclusively to women. While intended as a women's empowerment marketing slogan, definitely sexist. | |
| Jan 23, 2023 at 21:26 | comment | added | barbecue | @Ianw No, not sexist, because in the context of that time, it was applied to everyone regardless of gender. The marketing of the product may have been sexist but the word itself was not. | |
| Jan 23, 2023 at 21:24 | comment | added | Oldbag | @barbecue - Oops... Forgot about the lollipop man. | |
| Jan 23, 2023 at 17:14 | comment | added | barbecue | This usage extended into the 1970s as well. The TV detective Kojak called everyone "baby." This is the correct answer for the examples provided in the OP. | |
| Jan 22, 2023 at 5:58 | history | edited | Oldbag | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
added 2 characters in body
|
| Jan 22, 2023 at 3:32 | history | answered | Oldbag | CC BY-SA 4.0 |