Is douchebag an anti-feminist word?

Interesting thoughts from Ann at Feministing and Dodai at Jezebel about that.

I have to admit, I use the word “douchebag” pretty regularly. To me, the word conjures up some really specific traits (sleazy, cheesy, self-obsessed) that just aren’t captured by other insults like “jerk” or “asshole” or even “dick.”

Wikipedia describes the perjorative as a “metaphor of identifying a person as a douche is intended to associate a variety of negative qualities, specifically arrogance and malice.”

Sidenote: One of the many competing definitions on Urban Dictionary is “One who feels the need to over-editorialize in their Urban Dictionary submissions.” Hehe.

We could argue that the word evolved to have a whole new definition that no longer has anything to do with feminine hygiene. But then again, isn’t it possible that the word’s very specific connotations of oozy yuckiness have everything to do with its original connection to vaginas?

It reminds me of a conversation I had with a disability blogger after I had used the phrase “crippling shortage” in a blog post. I found myself wondering if it was offensive, and asked for her opinion. Here’s what she said:

I tend to find “crippling” a very human term — probably because of being unkindly targeted with the use of “cripple” in the past — and so it feels like an anthropomorphic use that relies on disability stereotypes when applied to inanimate objects. I don’t believe in categorically saying metaphors relying on disability should not be used since language is so ripe with sensory descriptions. And I think language should be able to employ words about bodily experience, but with attention paid to whose experience a word or phrase uses — is it your own? Another person’s? Or is the word use just convention?

There are no easy answers when it comes to terminology, and I’m certainly not in a position of telling people what they should and shouldn’t say. But I think it’s good to keep in mind that often, the reason a word is so powerful is precisely because it is related to an oppressed group.