Les femmes à la tribune ! Vaincre la male-diction | Marlène Coulomb | TEDxTBSEducation

Quick Overview

The speaker argues that the silence imposed upon women who speak publicly—termed "male-diction"—is rooted in historical, social, and political structures that privilege male discourse, drawing parallels from ancient Greece to modern times where women's voices are systematically silenced or delegitimized, even when they possess expertise.

Key Points: The speaker recounts a personal anecdote from her youth where she felt completely outside of the spirit of an event because of the overwhelming male dominance in discourse. She references historical examples, such as the silences imposed on women in Ancient Greece and the silencing of women like Philomène and Péritous, to illustrate the long history of excluding female voices. The speaker cites research showing that in contexts like political assemblies, women's speech is often deemed less credible or relevant compared to men's, even when discussing the same subject matter. She highlights the concept of 'male-diction' (male-diction) as the systematic silencing or delegitimization of women's public speech, which she observed in historical texts and modern political discourse. Referencing Michel de Certeau's analysis of the 1648 Edict of Villers-Cotterêts, the speaker points out that even when women spoke, their words were often confiscated or dismissed by men in power. The speaker emphasizes that this silencing persists today, noting that in recent university settings, the ratio of male to female speakers was heavily skewed, and even when women spoke, their contributions were often undervalued. The core message advocates for actively encouraging and supporting women to take the floor, as their lived experiences and perspectives are crucial and often ignored by established masculine narratives.

Context: The speaker, Marlène Coulomb, delivers a TEDx talk centered on the systemic silencing of women in public speaking forums, which she metaphorically calls 'male-diction' (male-diction). She uses historical and contemporary examples from philosophy, politics, and academia to demonstrate how societal structures have historically favored male discourse, often leading to the dismissal or erasure of women's contributions, regardless of their knowledge or authority on a subject.