The Gender of Human Rights: the French Debate over “les droits de l’Homme”
Résumé
The author offers a much-needed summary of the problem French speakers face when translating the phrase “human rights”, the problem being that the use of the masculine generic (“droits de l’Homme [Man’s rights]” standing for humanity) has been increasingly disputed by defendants of a more inclusive writing, who aim to give more visibility to women so that they may benefit more largely from human rights. The chapter traces back the narrative that led the masculine to be seen as the expression of universality in both grammar and law. It also accounts for the way contemporary feminist mobilisations challenge this institutional discourse. For that purpose, the author draws upon Pierre Bourdieu’s field theory (especially his idea of symbolic violence) as well as the concept of performativity.