How a “Hypermasculine” Hydrology Can Suffer from ED (Explanatory Dysfunction)

Water can “get hard” (as ice, of course). It can also “get soft” by melting or, when already liquid, water is called “soft” if low in certain dissolved salts. These phrases (and how we assume our readers involuntarily interpreted them) illustrate how our perceptions of water are often steeped in gendered language. This anthropomorphic lens dates to our earliest narratives about the world around us, such as the Babylonian creation myth, the Enuma Elish. In this ancient tale, the universe began at a point “when the heavens above did not exist, and Earth beneath had not come into being”, with nothing but chaotic waters swirling and churning in the void. A transformation began when these primordial waters were divided into two entities: Tiamat, the goddess embodying saltwater and the feminine, and Apsu, the god of freshwater and the masculine. From their harmonious union sprang a host of deities. At this point, the unity of feminine and masculine waters gives humanity a celestial pantheon and, with them, a mental framework rich in concepts for understanding nature’s workings.