CARIMAC Times 2016: The JREAM Edition Journalists Reviving Awareness of what Matters | Page 124

and that men were “accepting homosexuality”,
using it gave the speaker “a sense of power …
you identif[ied] yourself as being a masculine
person” and avoided “repercussions for you
around yuh bredrin dem [male friends]. [sic]”
She noted that words such as ‘fish’ and ‘two’,
both English words, have taken on new meanings.
They are used to refer to homosexuals. The
word ‘few’ is often used in place of ‘two’.
Oshane Grant, no relation to Jordon Grant, is a
24-year-old student in the Institute for Gender
and Development Studies (IGDS) at UWI, Mona.
He told CARIMAC Times that he too has to be
mindful of his use of language.
“I rather to speak patois based on the environment
that I am in, the situation that presents itself. I
decide then which of the vocabulary best suits
the occasion … There are times when usage
of the vernacular improves my standing in
the society and makes me appear to be more
masculine.”
Grant is part of a long tradition of hegemonic
masculinity that is exemplified by the population
of males who reside on Chancellor Hall, the
only all-male student residence at UWI, Mona.
He shared examples of the vocabulary which
best suits their expression of manliness and
those that detract.
“‘Manz’ is a word that we use in patois to convey
masculinity. We use also, ‘lash’, ‘chap [chop]’,
‘tugs [thugs]’, ‘mi general’, ‘shellings’ …”
There was a certain level of conviction and
forcefulness as he shared the examples.

He said these and other words/phrases in patois
come with a requisite level of aggression that
the English Language is less likely to provide.
“There are some English words that can make
you appear less masculine based on certain
situation. Say for instance the term in English
that could convey a sense of femininity, ‘guy’.
You don’t want to say ‘men’ … You don’t want to
be overly in touch with your emotions, so you
say ‘hard’ or ‘soft’. You don’t want to say, ‘I have
a gentle touch’. You tend to stick to words that
can sound rough. So you won’t find every young
man pronouncing ‘three’; he will say ‘tree’ …”
Grant maintained that if the words ‘weak’, ‘soft’,
‘gentle’ are used to describe a male, that person
will appear less masculine because “it’s not so
much about you using the word …”
But Jordon Grant said it has everything to do
with how words are used, who uses them, and
the additives such as gestures and expressions
that come along with it.
“If you come to me now and you’re using the
English Language to me and then while using
it, you’re going to ‘wring up yuh neck’ [move
your neck in a circular motion repeatedly and
dramatically] or draw your words or maybe
the way you do your mouth, then I am going
to wonder [about your sexuality].”
Asked what standards are there around using
the English Language. He could not respond.
Instead, he beseeched that the interviewer see
the merit in his argument about the implications
of having too much gesticulation and drawing
words while speaking in English as a man.

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