RHETORICAL GENDER;

ITS RELATION TO 2ND AND 3RD PERSON

PROPOSITIONS IN THE QURAN

U. QIRBEE

Authored: 04/12/2016
 CONTENTS
Introduction………………… 03
Body Text………………….. 04
Conclusion…………………. 10
References………………….. 11
 RHETORICAL GENDER

INTRODUCTION

A common misconception persists among some circles that the Quran is a text with a male-
dominated tone that assumes males to be the primary audience. The charges levelled against the
Quran are that it neglects to address the other half of the human race and that it is, therefore,
characteristic of the misogynistic society in which it was written.

This short paper explores the role of rhetorical gender and how the use of masculine verbal forms
and pronouns apply to both genders in Classical Arabic.

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BODY TEXT
1. There are essentially two important bases to this discussion:—
1.1. grammatical gender, and
1.2. rhetorical gender.

GRAMMATICAL GENDER

2. Grammatical gender signifies the masculinity or femininity of the person or thing addressed,
or spoken of, through the use of the relevant verb forms or pronouns (implicit or expressed).

3. Grammatical gender is either—

3.1. proper, or
3.2. linguistic.

4. Proper gender applies only to rational and irrational beings because their masculinity or
femininity is real; as man and woman, dog and bitch, bull and cow.

5. Linguistic gender applies only to inanimate objects because their masculinity or femininity is
merely perceived; as sun, earth, and axe, all of which are regarded feminine in Classical
Arabic; and as book, pen, and ink, all of which are regarded masculine in Classical Arabic.

6. Grammatical gender strictly complies with the use of verbal forms or pronouns that exactly
reflect the proper or linguistic gender of the subject or object. Therefore, when addressing a
male, one would say ۡ ۡ‫ َأن‬You [masculine] are righteous [masculine], and a female ۡ ۡ‫َأنۡت‬
ۡ‫ت ۡصۡالۡح‬
ۡ‫ صۡالۡحۡة‬You [feminine] are righteous [feminine]. And, when speaking of a masculine inanimate
object, one would say ۡ‫ القۡمۡرۡ ۡ ۡواض‬The moon is clear [masculine], and a feminine inanimate
object ۡ‫ الشَّ مسۡواِضة‬The sun is clear [feminine].

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7. These rules are immutable. They may not be broken, for if they were, it would constitute a
violation of the rules of Classical Arabic syntax.

RHETORICAL GENDER

8. Rhetorical gender signifies the masculinity or femininity of the person or thing addressed, or
spoken of, being non-conformable to the verb forms or pronouns used (implicit or
expressed).

9. Rhetorical gender is hypothetical, and applies to the subjunctive mood, that is, it applies to
discussions that are theoretical.

10. Rhetorical gender applies mostly to rational beings because the subject matter in which it is
prevalently used assumes intelligence on behalf of the listener; or at least intelligence enough
to comprehend a subjunctive discourse.

11. Rhetorical gender occurs in the Quran mostly in ordinances or absolutist statements because
they refer to matters that are not subsisting but can subsist if the conditions relating to their
subsistence come to pass.

12. Let us explore some Quranic examples of rhetorical gender:—

12.1. And he who kills a believer intently, his requital is Jahannam 4:93. Here, the words
―he‖ and ―his‖ are not limited to males but apply to all people of both genders. We
notice also that this sentence is an ordinance that is not subsisting but can be subsisting
if someone were to kill a believer.
12.2. Who is he that will lend unto God a goodly loan, so that He may double the recompense
of it? 2:245. This sentence is also subjunctive in that it only becomes subsisting when
the aforesaid qualifying conditions are met. In this sentence, the first ―he‖ is a reference
to all people and is not limited to males, and the second ―He‖ is a reference to God
(‫ۡوثعاىل‬ ‫)س بحانه‬. On a separate note, one can make the argument that all masculine

pronouns and verbal forms that relate to God are rhetorical in nature and are not

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grammatical, that is to say, God (‫ )س بحانهۡوثعاىل‬is not a male. However, I will not explore

this subject further because it is beyond the scope of the title of this paper.
12.3. And if there be [masc.]1 an indigent [masc.] debtor, let there be a grant of delay until a
time of plenty. And that you should be charitable [masc.] in forfeiting the debt is better
for you [masc.] 2:280. These sentences contain verbal forms and pronouns that are all
masculine in the original Arabic. This is yet another ordinance that speaks in the
subjunctive mood, notwithstanding this, the address is not limited to males; it includes
both genders of the human race.

13. Rhetorical gender is also used to the same effect in statutes. Statutes also speak in a
hypothetical tone in that the matters they discuss are not subsisting but become subsisting
when the necessary conditions are met.

14. Let us explore some examples of rhetorical gender in statutes:—

14.1. Murder is when a man of sound memory and of the age of discretion, unlawfully killeth
within any county of the realm any reasonable creature in rerum natura under the
King’s peace, with malice aforethought, either expressed by the party or implied by
law, so as the party wounded, or hurt, etc. die of the wound or hurt, etc. within a year
and a day of the same. (Institutes of the Law of England, 1797) Here we note the use of
the masculine noun ―man‖ in Sir Edward Coke‘s legal definition of murder. The use of
―man‖ in no way precludes the inclusion of females to his definition; it is simply an
example of rhetorical gender.
14.2. The Visitor may whenever he shall think fit visit the College and exercise at any such
visitation all powers lawfully belonging to his office and may at any time make
inquiries and require an answer in writing on any matter relative to the due observance
of the Statutes. (College Statutes, St. Hugh‘s College, University of Oxford, 2014) The
clear use of the pronouns ―he‖ and ―his‖ in this college-governing statute is not a
limitation to the role of females as ―Visitors.‖ Interestingly enough, the document from
which this excerpt was extracted is prefaced with the following: Any reference in these

1
Masculine verbal forms and pronouns are indicated by ―[masc.].‖

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Statutes to the feminine gender shall be taken to include the masculine and any
reference to the masculine gender shall be taken to include the feminine.
14.3. A manager of premises commits an offence if he suffers the premises to be used for the
sale of unmarked products. (Tobacco Products Duty Act, 1979) If the manager were a
female, would the reach of the law fall short of prosecuting her if she were guilty of the
offence stated? Clearly not. Thus, the use of ―he‖ in this statute is an example of
rhetorical gender.

CAUSALITY

15. The relationship between rhetorical gender and subjunctivity is not, I believe, purely
causative. The preference of the use of masculine pronouns and verbal forms to serve the role
of rhetorical gender probably arises from the perceived societal dominance of masculinity
over femininity; whereas, its extension to females probably arises from its theoretical nature
in allowing the masculine pronouns and verbal forms–within theoretical clauses—to apply to
females also.

LANGUAGE-SPECIFIC RULES

16. In Classical Arabic, when addressing, or speaking of, a group—

16.1. of males, one should use masculine verbal forms and pronouns; and
16.2. of females, one should use feminine verbal forms and pronouns; however,
16.3. that consists of males and females, one should use masculine verbal forms and
pronouns, this holds true even if the group consist of 9 females and 1 male.

17. I will not get into a discussion of the fairness or unfairness of perceived societal male
dominance and the effect this has on human languages; I will only go so far as to say that
these are the rules of Classical Arabic and such is its construction.

IMPLICATIONS

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18. The implications of all the above, in terms of the Quran‘s discourse, are that—
18.1. every 2nd and 3rd person plural address and non-subjunctive proposition in the Quran
using masculine verbal forms or pronouns that is not further qualified by a delimiting
noun, adverb, or proposition is an address to, or proposition about, both genders and is
an example of grammatical gender; as2—
18.1.1. O [masc.] ye who [masc.] believe [masc.], seek help [masc.] in patience and in
prayer 2:153 (2nd person address),
18.1.2. Now, verily it is they [masc.], they [masc.] are the corrupters [masc.] but they
sense [masc.] not 2:43 (3rd person address), and
18.1.3. Verily God is with the patient [masc.] 2:153 (non-subjunctive proposition);
18.2. every unaddressed subjunctive proposition in the Quran using singular or plural
masculine verbal forms or pronouns is inclusive of females and is an example of
rhetorical gender; as—
18.2.1. And he that [masc.] has spoken the truth [masc.] and believed it [masc.], those
[masc.], they [masc.] are the pious [masc.] 39:33 (singular proposition with
enallage to the plural),
18.2.2. Verily they that [masc.] disbelieve [masc.], alike will it be to them [masc.]
whether thou have warned them [masc.], or have not warned them [masc.], they
will believe [masc.] not 2:6 (plural proposition), and
18.2.3. Verily they that [masc.] disbelieve [masc.] and die [masc.] whilst disbelievers
[masc.], they [masc.], upon them [masc.] shall be the curse of God, and of the
angels, and of the people, altogether [masc.] 2:161 (plural proposition).

19. Notwithstanding point 18, there are examples of gender-specific addresses in the Quran; as—
19.1. O wives [fem.] of the prophet, ye are not [fem.] like any one of the women [fem.] 33:32,
19.2. God did not cause to be for a man [masc.] 2 hearts in his chest [masc.], and did not
cause your [masc.] wives with whom ye forbid yourselves to lie [masc.] to be your
mothers [masc.] 33:4. Interestingly enough, the first clause of this verse (God did not
cause to be for a man 2 hearts in his chest) is not that which delimits this verse to a
reference to men because the subjunctive nature of the verse allows us to construe Man

2
Masculine verbal forms and pronouns are indicated by ―[masc.].‖

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to be a hypothetical reference to Human so long as we interpret Heart to be a spiritual

heart and not a physical one, it is then only with the succeeding clause that we
understand that the reference is exclusively to men.

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CONCLUSION
The difference between grammatical and rhetorical gender rests on the use of subjunctivity.
Notwithstanding this, both may be used to address or speak of both genders using only masculine
verbal forms or pronouns.

In light of the arguments and evidence presented above, it is hoped that it would now be clear to
the reader that the Quran is not a gender-specific document dominated by a male-oriented tone
that is characteristic of the prevailing misogyny of 6th-century Arabia.

It is, in fact, a document directed to, and is about, both males and females equally, and the
gender-specific addresses and propositions that do exist in the Quran constitute less than 2% of
its 6000 or so verses.

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REFERENCES
Howell, M. S. 1883–1911. A Grammar of the Classical Arabic Language, Translated and
Compiled From the Works of the Most Approved Native or Naturalised Authorities.
Allahabad: Oudh Government Press.
Lane, E. W. 1863–1893. An Arabic English Lexicon. Beirut: Librairie Du Liban.
LawTeacher. 2016. Homicide — Murder [Online]. Available at:
rd
http://www.lawteacher.net/cases/criminal-law/murder.php [Accessed: 3 December 2016].
The National Archives on Behalf of Her Majesty‘s Government. 2012. Tobacco Products Duty
Act, 1979, Section 8H [Online]. Available at:
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1979/7/pdfs/ukpga_19790007_en.pdf [Accessed: 3rd
December 2016].
The Quran, Modern Saudi Print, Reading of Ḥafṣ via ‗Āṣim. Medina: King Fahd Complex for
the Printing of the Holy Quran.
University of Oxford, St. Hugh‘s College. 2014. College Statues [Online]. Available at:
http://www.st-hughs.ox.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Statutes.pdf [Accessed: 3rd
December 2016].

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