Ambiguous language of hip-hop discourse demands reconsideration

I LOVE LANGUAGE. It̢۪s a powerful tool that helps us make sense of our world.

But sometimes I worry that words aren̢۪t exactly enough. I worry that we lack the strong definitions necessary for effective discourse.

Consider the issue of gender roles. I have recently come upon a serious problem with two English words for female gender roles that will put any freedom-loving American on edge.

These two words are used casually, often interchangeably, but they pin down important elements of a woman’s sexuality and socio-economic class, limiting her rights to self-definition. The words I am referring to are, of course, “bitches� and “hoes.�

“Bitches and hoes,� a phrase often employed in hip-hop music, is used to refer to a group of sexually liberal women.

I assume there must be at least two of each, otherwise we would have to use more accurate phrases such as “bitches and a ho� or “a bitch and hoes.�

But from slang dictionaries I̢۪ve gathered that there isn̢۪t any real difference between a bitch and a hoe.

As far as I can tell from music videos, there isn̢۪t even a way to tell a bitch from a ho on sight, though they can typically be spotted in clubs, in mansions (not their own mansions, mind you), and visiting their significant others in prison.

We therefore establish that these terms have similar sexual, economic, and (for the prudes) moral connotations.

That̢۪s good enough for me.

Well, it would be good enough for me, except for one little problem. The word “bitch� can also be used to refer to a woman lacking in compassion and social graces. Bitches of this sort are often described as “frigid� or “prudish,� and they can belong to any socio-economic group.

Now, what if I want to refer to a sexually liberal woman in a seedy club who is an excellent listener and happens to volunteer at a homeless shelter once a week? I couldn̢۪t rightly call her a bitch, could I?

Certainly not!

What if I want to refer to a woman who is, let̢۪s say, sexually conservative and has a successful upper-middle class family, but she pokes fun at her daughter for being fat and having acne and is known for talking on her phone during movies.

Can I really suffer the inaccuracy of not calling her a bitch?

I don̢۪t think so.

Even worse than this linguistic snafu is the confusion women suffer because of poor definitions.

If a woman is called a bitch, she has no way of telling if it was a compliment — “I feel that you belong in this club/mansion/trailer and I would like to engage in sexual congress with you,� — or an insult — “I frown upon your poor social demeanor, which, by the way, is very unbecoming of your current economic status.�

If a woman misinterprets these verbal signals, she may suffer some sort of identity crisis.

We have a serious problem. What should we do?

I propose a very simple solution. All we need to do is establish a standard definition for “bitch� and “ho.�

From now on “bitch� will only refer to women lacking compassion and social graces, and “ho� will refer to a sexually liberal woman.

We can just change the dictionaries and establish tougher standards for the words used in music, television shows and movies.

We don̢۪t necessarily need to go back and edit all the old media that have improperly used these words (though I would like to), but we certainly shouldn̢۪t allow the same mistakes to be made in the future.