Talk:Gender in Bible translation
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[edit] Three tags
Three tags have just been added to the page, which really should be backed by specific points for improvement on the talk page.
Since I agree with the tags, I'll just note that here.
The specific tags that have been added are:
- Lead too short.
This, of course, is not a minimum word requirement, the problem is that the lead currently only paraphrases the title of the article. Instead, a summary of content is needed. This need not await a finished product in the rest of the article, it can be written in such a way as it actually describes a framework for the rest of the article.
I propose something like:
- The biblical languages are inflected in ways that specify gender of referents.
- On the one hand, many people who regularly use the Bible believe in a doctrine of divine inspiration of the original texts.
- On the other hand, there has been widespread prescription of gender neutral language in government, academic and other institutions, particularly in English speaking countries, since the late 20th century.
- This has produced debates within Bible using organizations regarding which ideal is higher — precise rendering of original gender marking, or realistic rendering into modern language.
- Moral arguments are also offered for and against each option — inclusiveness versus complementarity.
- Bible publishers have found themselves responding to a changed market, one in which there is demand for both kinds of translation.
Regarding original research and essay tags, I think POV could be added to this. There is a long and sustained advocacy of gender neutral Bible translation, which is unsupported by references and misleadingly described as though it is the only view. In fact, it is possibly the minority view (I'm not sure unless I see stats).
Much of the text is repetitive opinion, so I expect I shall delete most of it at some point, now it's been tagged. But I'll leave sufficient to cover single statements of each opinion, and add a "cite required" tag. If no-one else supplies those cites, I'll get around to it eventually myself.
Anyway, there's a plan for this article. Looking forward to any help others may offer.
- The gender neutral Bible controversy is a book that gives an inside look at how some denominational leaders and publishers addressed the issues in an early 1990s US context.
- The front matter of many versions of the Bible explain the publishers' rationales in gender related translation issues.
- There are many sources on Bible translation principles articulated independently of this issue
- Likewise there are many sources regarding rationales for gender neutral or inclusive language (and these last two terms are not synonymous).
If I don't get around to doing all this work myself, I hope the information above can be useful for improving the article. Alastair Haines (talk) 01:00, 8 May 2008 (UTC)
