Gender-neutral language

An analysis based on the dialogic discourse theory

Abstract

Recently, the discussion about the use of a gender-neutral language, that do not promote the exclusion of people who do not identify themselves with the binary gender division in male and female, has been gaining space in society. Such theme has been the focus of discussions not only in the academic environment, for instance, with scientific papers and lectures about this form of linguistic expression, but also on the part of the population in general and, also, the Legislative Power, which proposed, in 2020, four projects regarding this subject. In view of the theme relevance nowadays, this study aims to reflect on the use of this form of language from the Bakhtin Circle’s perspective, using the concept of ideological sign proposed by these thinkers. Therefore, we have also analyzed some excerpts of the Law Project No. 5.385, that addresses the gender-neutral language, seeking to dialogue with the motivations and implications of this form of expression. Thus, we understand that such form of language is based on a re-accentuation of ideological signs, resulting from a change in reality, so that the signs become the scene of stress between groups which see the identity as binary and groups that do not.