Man-woman.

The use of the masculine gender in the names of professions is a reality in Montenegro. Such use has become so prevalent that led up to be accepted as normative and the only right path. Should the question of sexism and stereotypes in language be ignored? Language as a mean of communication is a living organism, which, according to its nature, changes over time. The concept of social beings includes the concept of linguistic beings, and the topic of the relationship between language and society becomes inexhaustible. Formed together, society and language can only survive like that, the possibility of existence of one without the other. Every human culture has the kind of language according to their needs, to effectively achieve the basic role of an instrument of society and culture. Any changes that are happening in society necessarily reflect in the language, especially in its lexical-semantic level.

Montenegrin society, with its linguistic determinants shows a high degree of discrimination based on gender division. Montenegrin culture, with its specific codes of behavior, which are deeply rooted in tradition, legends and myths in which women are considered to be subjected. That type of culture spawned the construction of man-woman a phrase used for the woman which is characterized by the best human characteristics. Female children in Montenegrin society are not children but šćeri (a word used in colloquial speech to say it’s a daughter), so in Montenegrin language phrase that has been established I have two children and three daughters (šćeri) for two sons and three daughters.

However, we are witnesses that in the media and in everyday life, more and more encounters with the use of the feminine gender forms to indicate titles and women. Also, various studies have shown that in recent textbooks strictly take into account that in the language, illustrations, texts, maintains the equality of the sexes. Gender-disaggregated orientation in textbooks reflected in his address to the students consistently in the forms of both male and female. Despite all the efforts to combat stereotypical determinants of language in Montenegro shows still resistance to this kind of expression. Many argue that such frequent use of certain terms of representing and forcing reliance on the emancipator trends, rather than a real need for these expressions. Again, there is a problem, many of these terms are not pronounced properly, so there is an even greater confusion, because everyone makes his own coin: prvoborkinja (a female which fought in a war), female surgeon, philosopher, academician, Secretary, Chancellor - many sound clumsy and strange. Names for female occupations are just one of them, but very visible. Psychologist with us or female surgeon in Croatian can cause great tonal repulsion due to the unaccustomed  use of these words. Hence qualifications that these words are clumsy and contrived can cause a real resistance.

People are not afraid of words, but because of what use of such a word symbolizes. So the word, it is not dangerous, but its metaphor. The use of such words, clumsy, or not, means something much bigger. Acknowledging the word, we recognize the woman. Acknowledging a woman, we change somewhat the order of things in the society. By changing the order of things in society, we are changing our universe. And, it is a large-scale earthquake. This earthquake is best controlled at its very root, that is, to accuse a word that is ugly, and that she herself is discouraged and to be withdrawn to the mothy, dusty dictionaries and books. Ideological background of linguistics is invisible, but it is an essential part of the story. Give the woman a word and find the word for a woman's occupation, means to empower women, and empowered woman, either economically, or professionally, either through their awareness, there lays the power, and can be potentially dangerous. By empowering women, in one radicalized form, it could mean to strengthen the enemy. Therefore, male vulnerability due to threat to their domination, becomes understandable only when interpreted in terms of power relations and distribution of power.

picture taken from www.cdm.me