essentialism
/əˈsɛn(t)ʃəˌlɪzəm/
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.19 in modern English
Meaning
noun
The view that all members of certain groups of people (such as those with the same race, gender, age, or sexual orientation) have common, essential traits inherent to the defining feature of the group; (also) behavior or statement(s) that reflect such a view.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The doctrine that there are certain traditional concepts, values, and skills that are essential to society and should be taught to all students.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
A lifestyle that seeks to minimize nonessentials in order to focus on what is important.
Countable; Uncountable
noun
The theory that human beings are by nature (i.e. essentially) good and that evil is the product of society.
Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "More problematic is the essentialism that interests modal logicians, namely "the view that some attributes belong to an object by necessity whereas others belong to it contingently.""
- "Opponents of essentialism argue that "essences" are simply creations of language and culture."
- "A closer examination of the components of essentialism is required for a better understanding of the relation between essentialism and prejudice toward the two social categories of interest in this dissertation, African Americans and gay men."
- "Like most of those who use the term, I continue to think essentialism a bad thing, but what exactly is wrong with it? Is it a matter of degree, a question of context or something that must be avoided at all costs?"
- "I think we need to sophisticate our understanding of cultural essentialisms, including gender ones, because it might help us deal better with issues of resistance."
- "Colonial discourse relied heavily on such essentialisms wherein a race or ethnic group was first represented as possessing certain key features and then those very features were 'applied' to all members of the group."
Etymology
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /əˈsɛn(t)ʃəˌlɪzəm/
- British English: /ɪˈsɛnʃəlɪz(ə)m/