pc@hplabsb.UUCP (Patricia Collins) (12/10/83)
I cannot understand anyone's refusal to call me what I prefer to be called. As an example, my name is "Patricia." I have always gone by that name; even my family calls me "Patricia." For some reason, when I meet someone new who asks my name and I say, "Patricia," I almost invariably get called "Pat" sometime during the conversation. That's not too bad, but sometimes the person calls me "Patty" or "Patsy" which I do object to. In my experience, the people who make the leap from "Patricia" to "Patty" ALSO tend to be condescending in their communications with me. These are the people who will tell me they think it's "neat" that I can design electronic circuits (with the inference that what's remarkable is that I'm a woman (girl?) AND an electrical engineer) or who assume that I am the department secretary. My sister is a clinical chemist in medical technology. This is a field in which the lowest paid positions are almost exclusively filled by women and the upper ranks are almost exclusively filled by men. The women do the work and the men make decisions. My sister often refers to the women she works with as "the girls." Although this hits a dischordant note for me, she is quite comfortable with it. I believe that her reference implies a "sisterhood" and may also reflect an unconscious acceptance of their status in the organization. I don't like to be referred to as a "girl." I'm a woman. It seems that lacking any other evidence, one should use the "proper" term when referring to a particular female or group of females: If they're children and gender is relevant, call them "girls." If they are adults and gender is relevant, call them "women." If a woman tells you she prefers to be called a "girl," you needn't concern yourself further with what the dictionary says she REALLY is. Patricia Collins hplabs