• Zozano@lemy.lol
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    2 months ago

    If we change the definition to “a woman is any person who identifies as such”, nothing changes for me.

    A circular argument involves multiple steps and loops back to the start. For example “God is infallible > the Bible says so > the bible is written by God > God is infallible”

    What I believe is this:

    If the definition of a woman is “a person who identifies as a woman”, then what that means is "a woman who is a person who identifies as a woman (a person who identifies as a woman (a person who identifies as a woman …)))

    So I feel right to call it a recursive linguistic issue.

    • LustyArgonianMana@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      It’s not recursive, did you read the example I linked? It’s more like this:

      A person has gone bankrupt when they declare bankruptcy.

      This definition is specifically highlighting the condition of declaration being necessary to achieve the word being defined, and who is doing it. The declaration is what makes it existant.

      Or

      Miss USA is the person who is awarded the Miss USA title by judges.

      Again here hilighting that it’s an awarded position and who is awarding it.

      If you think it can be more specific, go ahead, but you have been unable to give me any kind of satisfactory definition for woman yourself.

      A doctor is anyone who is declared a doctor by an educational institution.

      Hilights declaration and who is doing it.

      A woman is anyone who identifies themselves as a woman.

      Hilighting that identifying yourself is the key piece of this definition. A doctor isn’t anyone who calls themselves a doctor, right? Not just anyone can be a doctor just because they declare it. But indeed anyone can become a woman and that the entire point of the emphasis of this definition.