She was seen as free, vigorous, cold, impetuous, unsympathetic, wild, and beautiful. As she is the goddess of the hunt, she was often portrayed with a pack of hunting dogs and sometimes transformed into an animal herself. There may also be a connection between less literal senses of "bitch" and the Greek goddess Artemis. Franco argues, a "persistent symbolic connection" developed between dogs and women in Greek literature that expressed and reinforced women's subordinate position in society and their supposedly inferior nature. This could include shamelessness or lack of restraint, lack of hospitality, lack of loyalty, and indiscriminate or excessive violence, among other qualities. In ancient Greece, dog was often used in a derogatory sense to refer to someone whose behavior was improper or transgressive. "Dog" has long been used as an insult toward both women and men. It may have derived from the earlier Old Norse word bikkja, also meaning "female dog". History Literally, a bitch is a female dog as an insult, it originally compared a woman to a dog in heat.Īccording to the Oxford English Dictionary, the term bitch comes from the Old English word bicce or bicge, meaning "female dog", which dates to around 1000 CE. In a feminist context, it can indicate a strong or assertive woman and has therefore been reappropriated by some women. The range of meanings has expanded in modern usage (such as when applied to a man). Its original use as a vulgarism carried a meaning suggesting high sexual desire in a woman, comparable to a dog in heat. The term bitch literally means a female dog. The word is considered taboo in mainstream media, and euphemisms such as "the B-word" are used to minimize its negative impact. It has been characterized as "an archaic word demeaning women since as early as the 15th century" that seeks to control women. It has been used as a "term of contempt towards women" for "over six centuries", and is a slur that fosters sexism against women. The term bitch is one of the most common profanities in the English language. When applied to a man or boy, bitch reverses its meaning and is a derogatory term for being subordinate, weak, or cowardly. When applied to a woman or girl, it means someone who is belligerent, unreasonable, malicious, controlling, aggressive, or dominant. Pejorative slang word for a person or thing, mainly a woman The slang usage of the word bitch is apparent on the sign in this protest.īitch ( / b ɪ t ʃ/) is a pejorative slang word for a person, usually a woman.
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