Emmanuel Macron called on Monday October 30 to “not give in to the times” when it comes to the French language, and to “also keep the foundations, the bases of its grammar, the strength of its syntax”. “In this language, the masculine makes the neuter. We don’t need to add dots in the middle of words, or dashes or things to make it readable,” he added, asserting, during a speech given on the occasion of the inauguration of the International City of the French Language in Villers-Cotterêts that the French language “forges the nation”.
The Head of State spoke while the ban on inclusive writing is the subject of a bill examined in the Senate on Monday evening. The text of Senator Pascale Gruny (Les Républicains, LR) plans to ban certain elements of inclusive writing “in all cases where the legislator (and possibly the regulatory power) requires a document in French”. A wide range is targeted: instructions for use, employment contracts, internal company regulations, but also legal acts, which would then be considered inadmissible or void if the measure were to be applied.
The senators ask for a ban on grammatical words constituting neologisms such as “iel”, a contraction of “he” and “she”, or “celleux”, a contraction of “celles” and “those”. The bill also plans to include the ban on inclusive writing in the education code, while its use is already prohibited in schools by a circular from the former Minister of National Education Jean -Michel Blanquer from 2021.
“Contrary to inclusion”
For Cédric Vial, rapporteur of the text attached to the LR group, these elements of inclusive writing constitute “a practice which is precisely contrary to inclusion”. He added to Agence France-Presse (AFP) that “those most impacted by its use are in fact people with disabilities and illiteracy, or those suffering from dyslexia. This is an additional constraint. To include, on the contrary, the language must be simplified.”
Adopted and even strengthened in committee on Wednesday, the text arouses the indignation of part of the left. “It is an unconstitutional, retrograde and reactionary text, which is part of a long-standing conservative trend in the fight against the visibility of women,” is offended by socialist senator Yan Chantrel.
The ban on inclusive writing currently exists in a 2017 circular from former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe. This “invited” ministers, “in particular for texts intended to be published in the Official Journal of the French Republic, not to use so-called inclusive writing”.
The bill has a good chance of being adopted given the domination of the right and the center in the upper house. But there is no guarantee that it will subsequently be taken up by the Assembly: a similar proposal from the National Rally was in fact withdrawn during examination in October as it was heading towards rejection.
