I am preparing a talk on the ruination of our language due, in part, to political correctness. Here's part of what I want to say.
One way to
improve job status is to use politically correct terms. Note the following examples.
Body guards are now referred to as executive
protection specialists. Trash collectors are now labelled environmental
technicians.
Think about these terms, which have been generated to avoid offending groups of people.
a. people
of size (old term--fat)
b. chronologically
gifted (old)
c. alternatively
schooled (uneducated)
d. cerebrally
challenged (dumb)
e. client
of the correctional system (prisoner)
f. sobriety
deprived (drunk)
g. underhoused (homeless)
h. at
Stanford students are now given NP instead of F
i. you
may not use these terms in newspaper ads: ocean view, within walking distance,
master bedroom (can you figure out why?)
Then there are the terms made up to make a political statement. I'll let you figure out who they are referring to.
a. psychosocially
deprived
b. unable
to conform his conduct to the law
c. botanical
companions
d. stolen,
nonhuman animal products
e. member
of the mutant, albino, genetic-recessive global minority
f. pro-choice
g. visual
rape
h. intergenerational
intimacy
i. pet
guardian
j. economically
marginalized
k. motivationally
dispossessed
l. sex-care
providers
m. person
of non-color
n. processed
animal carcasses
o. undocumented
resident/workers
Are we hurt by such language bending? Maybe. I agree that there are some improvements in the words chosen recently. But do you see how many of these terms are used to express a political slant rather than simply tell the truth? Now we are using language to make us more comfortable with behavior we used to dislike. Ah, the world marches on.