Words Are Powerful
Language and word choice have a tremendous impact on what we think of
ourselves and others.
of violence experience the impact of negative words every time someone
questions their actions or doubts about their experience.
We often underestimate the importance of choosing an appropriate language
to discuss violence against women and girls. We should find new
ways to talk about this issue; for example, we say, “She is a battered
woman” when instead we should change the subject of the instigator “He
beat her.” We say, “Why does she stay?” instead of “Why does he hurt
her?”.These phrases miss neglect the truth by redirecting the focus from
the perpetrator to the victim, placing the responsibility on the wrong
party. To make it clear that a person chooses to be violent to a woman or
family, we should train ourselves to correctly identify the cause of the
problem. In this work, there is a gradual change in four frames from a
passive phrase to an active sentence that informs us of the malevolent
person and reveal our long-practiced habit of obscuring the one who
generates the situation.