"Harry Potter and the Linguist's Pickle"

“Words have failed us.” – Joss Whedon at Make Equality Reality

“Duality is an essential, isn’t it?” – Ursula LeGuin, The Left Hand of Darkness

Emma Watson made a compelling speech, but I think we are still missing the mark slightly. Other than her questionable choice in conjuring ‘Edmund Burke,’ who advocated gradual change and thought prejudice was gnarly, her words were well-chosen, and her sentiments thoroughly agreeable (the Burke quote was a good one, in fairness). However, I think we are still failing to address the problem with the word ‘feminist,’ and to fully interrogate the roots and consequences of the man/woman binary in order to find a solution to inequality.

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