AnAnalysisofSexismintheEnglishLanguage淺析英語(yǔ)中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象[Abstract]Languageplaysanimportantroleinsociety.Asaphenomenonofsociety,languagereflectsallthesidesofhumansocietynaturally.Sexismisaphenomenonthattakesamale-as-normattitude,trivializing,insultingorrenderingwomeninvisible.Asaspecialsocialphenomenon,sexismisinevitablyreflectedthroughlanguage.

Tostartwith,thethesistracesthereasonsfortheoccurrenceofsexismintheEnglishlanguage.Innature,sexisminlanguagereflectssexisminsociety.Thetwoarecloselyrelated.SocialconnotationsofsexisminEnglishtelltherelationshipbetweenphenomenonofsexisminlanguageandessenceofsexisminsociety.Thenthethesisanalysessexismintermsofthegenericmasculine,wordorderandsemanticderogationofwomeningreaterdetail.Finally,alargepartofthethesisiscontributedtohowtochangesexisminEnglish.Theauthorofthethesisthinksthekeytotheproblemis:(1)solvetheproblemofgenericpronouns;(2)neutralizelexis;(3)striveforbalancednamingandaddressingsystem;(4)coinnewcorrespondingwords.Theeliminationoflinguisticsexismliesinsocialchange.Onlybychangingthesocialstructure,thatis,womenandmenownreallyequalstatus,canlanguageequalitybetrulyachieved.[KeyWords]sexism;Englishlanguage;lexicalneutralization;feminism

[摘要]語(yǔ)言在社會(huì)中所處的地位尤為重要。作為一種社會(huì)現(xiàn)象的語(yǔ)言，必然會(huì)反映出人類社會(huì)的各種社會(huì)觀念。性別歧視作為這其中的一種，是指把男性視作社會(huì)規(guī)范和中心，輕視，侮辱女性或使她們顯得微不足道。而這一特定的社會(huì)現(xiàn)象必然會(huì)在語(yǔ)言中折射出來(lái)。

論文首先剖析了英語(yǔ)中性別歧視現(xiàn)象形成的根源。從本質(zhì)來(lái)說(shuō)，語(yǔ)言中的性別歧視是社會(huì)中性別歧視的體現(xiàn)。兩者緊密相連。性別歧視的社會(huì)內(nèi)涵反映的就是這種語(yǔ)言中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象與社會(huì)中的性別歧視的本質(zhì)的關(guān)系。接著論文從陽(yáng)性詞泛指，詞序，詞義的貶降等方面對(duì)英語(yǔ)中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象進(jìn)行了詳細(xì)的分析。最后論文還著力探討如何改變這種歧視。作者認(rèn)為，改變性別歧視主要解決以下幾個(gè)問(wèn)題：(1)避免陽(yáng)性代詞的泛指；(2)詞匯的中性化；(3)命名與稱謂的對(duì)等；(4)創(chuàng)造新的對(duì)應(yīng)詞。語(yǔ)言中的性別歧視的最終消亡取決于社會(huì)變化。只有改變社會(huì)結(jié)構(gòu)，即男女真正擁有平等的地位，語(yǔ)言中的平等才能真正實(shí)現(xiàn)。消除語(yǔ)言中的性別歧視的根本在于實(shí)現(xiàn)男女的平等的社會(huì)變革。[關(guān)鍵詞]性別歧視；英語(yǔ)語(yǔ)言；詞匯中性化；女權(quán)主義1.

Introduction

Asthepeculiarresultofthedevelopmentofhumansociety,languageisakindofsocialphenomenonandreflectsallthesidesofhumansocietynaturally.Itsexistenceanddevelopmentarecloselylinkedwiththesocialattitudesofhumanbeingsandtoagreatextentareaffectedbytheirsocialviewsandvalues.Historicallyandsociologically,oursocietyisman-orientedandman-centered.Women,regardedasaweakergenderinsociety,arediscriminatedforalongtimeandcompletelysubordinatedinpoliticallife,economiclifeandevenfamilylifeinthesocietydominatedbymen.Unavoidably,thiskindofphenomenonhasbeenembodiedinlanguages.Inlinguisticaspect,languageisbias-basedandwomensufferfromlanguagesexism.Gender-differentiatedlanguageusecanreflectandhelpperpetuatethesubordinatestatusofwomeninsociety.

Since1960s,feministsstrivefortheeliminationofgenderdiscrimination,forthegreaterrecognitionofwomen’scontributionstosocietyandaimtochangemanyculturalandsocialcustomsthatperpetuatepatriarchalvaluesystems.Manyfieldsoflifearoundtheworldhavebeen,orarebeing,affectedbythismovement.Oneofthemanyimpactsfeminismonsocietyisitsimpactonlanguage.Languagewasandisseenbymanyfeministsasapowerfulinstrumentofpatriarchy.

2.TheFactorsofSexismintheEnglishLanguage

SexisminEnglishisnotformedinoneday,butbuiltupinthelongperiodofthedevelopmentoflanguage,whichleadstothevarietyofthecauses.WhatcausesthesexismintheEnglishLanguage?Therearefourfactors:culturalfactor,physiologicalfactor,socialfactorandpsychologicalfactor.(1)Culturalfactor

IntheHolyBible(TheBooksofTheOldTestament):“SotheLordGodcausedadeepsleeptofallupontheman,andheslept;thenhetookoneofhisribsandclosedupitsplacewithflesh.AndtheribthattheLordGodhadtakenfromthemanhemadeintoawomanandbroughthertotheman.Thenthemansaid,‘Thisatlastisboneofmybonesandfleshofmyflesh;thisoneshallbecalledWoman,foroutofManthisonewastaken.’”[1]

Mancametotheworldfirstwhilewomanmadefromoneofman’sribswascreatedjustasahelpmeetforhim.Andshewasnotcreateduntilallotheranimalsfailedtomeetthesatisfactionoftheman.Fromtheorderofthebirth,itisobvioustoseethedifferentimportanceofmanandwoman.Andmanandwomanarenotequalatallbecausewomanisonlyapartofman,whichitselfisthediscriminationagainstwomen.ItissaidintheHolyBiblethatthefirstsinisalsocommittedbythewoman.Shewasseducedbythesnakeintoeatingthefruitofthetreeoftheknowledgeofgoodandevilandhavingthemaneat,too.Atlast,thewomanwaspunishedtobringforthchildreninpainandwasruledoverbytheman.Fromabove,thesuperiorityofmenandinferiorityofwomenisclearlyseen.TheHolyBibleisactuallyabookofmen.AsChristianityissuchapowerfulreligioninWesterncountries,itisunreasonabletodenythatthishelpstosetandconsolidatetheinferiorityofwomen.

(2)Physiologicalfactor

Forextendedworkandlifetogether,peoplerealizedthatmenaretallinstature,stronginmuscleandrobustinphysique.Incontrarytomen,womenaresmallinstature,weakinphysiqueandhavemorefatandlessmusclethanmen.Womenalsomaturemorerapidly.[2]Inaword,menarestrongerthanwomen.Thisdeterminesthatmenplayamoreandmoreimportantroleinsocialandeconomiclives.Aman’sjobistoworkoutsidebutawoman’sjobistostayathome,dothehouseworkandtakecareofthechildren.Womenaretreatedastheweakeronesandtheyrealizetheirownvaluesthroughtheirmarriagestomen.Atlast,womenarelowerinstatus.Theyhavetoleechontomenandaredominatedbymen.Gradually,peoplebegintodiscriminatewomenandthinkthattheyareinferiorinintelligence.Thiswrongperspectiveformsslowlyandreflectsinlanguage.

(3)Socialfactor(Labordivision)

Feministsallclaimthatweliveinapatriarchalsociety:asocietyofmen,ruledbymenandformen.Patriarchydepictsmenastheperfectnormagainstwhichwomenaremeasuredandfoundlacking.

BoththeWesternandEasternsocietiesusesex,toonedegreeoranother,inallocatingtasks,activities,rights,andresponsibilities.Asforthejobdonebymenandwomen,thereisalong-stereotypednotionofwhattheycando.Inhistory,therehasbeenadivisionoflabor--adivisioninwhichwomen’splacewasrestrainedathomeforhouseworkandchild-carewhilemenworkedoutsidebeingthebreadwinner.Atlast,menhaddominanceoverwomen,andwomenhadtobedependentonmen.Thiswastheturningpointforwomen.Fromthenon,inpaternalsociety,slaverysocietyandcapitalistsociety,womenhadbeenonthebottomofsociety.Inlongandendlesscourseofhistory,sexismagainstwomenhasbeenaccumulated.Itisduetodifferentlabordivisionthatleadstodifferentsocialstatus.Thishasbeenclearinancientandmodernsociety.Later,inadditiontodomesticwork,womenbegantoenterthepaidworkplace.However,eventhoughhalfofwomenareemployedoutsidethehome,thebeliefpersiststhatwomanismainly,andprimarily,intherolesofwifeandmother.

Duetowomen'srelativephysicalweaknessandlowereducationalbackground,theydoprimarilythelow-status,low-payingjobs.Althoughmenalsohavefamilyroles,theyaredefinedprimarilybytheireconomicoroccupationalposition.Thusthesexisminthesocietyhasbeeninexistence,theembodimentofwhichisnecessarilythesexismoflanguage.

(4)Psychologicalfactor

Becauseofthesocialandculturalfactors,womenarealwaysconsideredtobetheweak.Peopletreatwomenasinferiortomen.Theyeducatementobemanly,decisive,andbravewhilewomenarerequiredtobepolite,conservative,obedient,andgentle.Becausewomenareinsubordinatestatusinthesociety,theyhavetoconstraintheiremotionandgiveuptheirownneedtomeetthesatisfactionofmen.Astimepasses,whenspeakingwomenpaymoreattentiontotheeleganceandstandardoflanguagethanmen.Theyusemorepleasantandpolitewordsinthehopethattheycanreceiveother’sapproval.Andtheyaretaughttospeaksoftly,toavoidcontradictingothers,tobeobedientincommunication,andtobeawareofgivingcuesofstrongconfidence.Theymouldthemselvestobeinferiorintheirpotentialsubconsciousness.[3]Therefore,womentrytheirbesttostrengthentheirsocialstatusthroughtheirspeechthanmendo.Thelowerwomen’spositionis,themorepolitetheyareinthefaceofothers.Andthestandardlanguagetheyusecanshowtheirsubmissionandpoliteness.Thisalsosuggeststhatwomenareinalowerpositioninthesociety.

3.PhenomenaofsexismintheEnglishlanguage

3.1Thegenericmasculine

Sexisminlanguageingeneralcomesinthreemajorforms:languageignoreswomen;itdefineswomenaslesssignificantthanmen;anditcompletelyopposeswomen.Theycanbelocatedinthegenericmasculineterms.3.1.1Genericpronouns

Genericpronounsarepronounsthataresaidtorefer,withequallikelihood,towomenandmen.ButtheEnglishlanguageignoreswomenbyallowingmasculinetermstobeusedspecificallytorefertomalesandcommonlytorefertohumanbeingsingeneral.Thegenericpronoun“he”isperhapsthemostwellknownexampleofthegender-specificofsexistlanguage,andisfrequentlyreferredtobe“he/man”language.Themostsignificantmanifestationofthesexismisintheuseofgenericmasculinepronouns“he”anditsvariants“his”,“him”and“himself”insuchsentencesas:

(1)

Hewholaughslastlaughsbest.

(2)

Everyonemustdohishomeworkwell.

(3)

Ifanyonecalls,tellhimIwillbebacklater.

(4)

Everyoneshouldlearntosolveproblemshimself.

Intheaboveexamples,“he”,“his”,“him”and“himself”areusednotsex-specifically,butgenerically,thatis,althoughthepronounsrefergrammaticallytothesinglemalecitizen,theyshouldbetakentorefertobothmaleandfemalecitizensingeneral.Ontheformaloccasions,‘he’,‘him’or‘his’canbeusedtorefertosuchindefinitepronounsaseach,everyone,everybody,noone,someone,anyoneandsoon.While‘she’,‘her’,‘herself’don’thavesuchusages.3.1.2Genericnouns

Anotherwell-knownexampleofgenericmasculinetermsis“man”.Thedefinitionsof“man”inOxfordAdvancedLearner’sEnglish-ChineseDictionary(Extendedfourthedition)areasfollows:①adultmalehumanbeing;②humanbeingofeithersex;person③[sing](withouttheora)thehumanrace;mankind.Therearesomeexamplestakenfromthedictionary.①Allmenmustdie.②Growingoldissomethingamanhastoaccept.③Manismortal.[4]Fromthesedefinitionsandexamples,itiseasytoseethat“man”,and“men”canbeusedgenericallytorefertobothmaleandfemale.But‘woman’and‘women’cannotbeemployedinreferencetomen.

ThisalsoremindspeopleofthefamoussayingfromtheUSDeclarationofIndependence:“Allmenarecreatedequal.”Shouldpeoplearguethatthe“men”doesnotincludewomenbecausewomenwerenotgiventherighttovoteintheeighteenthcenturyAmerica?[5]Aclearexplanationofthisphenomenonmaybefoundinsentencelike:

(1)Manisasocialanimal.

(2)Menremakenature.

Whenseeingthethreesentences,speakersofEnglishareabletoreadilyinterpret“man”and“men”asmeaning“thehumanrace”;“humankind”.Ifnot,thetwosentencescouldbechangedinto

(3)Womanisasocialanimal.

(4)Womenremakenature.

Ofcourse,theyaregrammaticallywellformed;semantically,however,thethirdsentencehasthedefectofbeingpartial,andthefourthsentenceisveryridiculous.

Fromabove,onecanknowthatinEnglishusing“man”or“men”toindicate“thehumanrace”,neglectsthefactthatmenandwomenareequalinthesociety.Bycontraries,theytreatmanasthecenterofsociety,anembodimentofcriterionandtotallyignoretheexistenceofwoman.[6]Therearemanyothergenericmasculinetermssuchasman-to-man,prehistoricman,brotherhood,chairman,andpoliceman.

3.1.3Womenbeingattachedtomen

TheEnglishlanguagedistinguisheswomen’scourtesytitlesonthebasisofmaritalstatus,butnotthoseofmen.Thereisonlyoneformofaddressformen,Mr.,regardlessofmartialstatus.However,themartialstatusofwomenisdistinguishedbyMissandMrs.,reflectingthenotionthatwhetherornotawomanisinamarriage.Thisdiscriminatorypracticeissaidtomarktheavailabilityofwomenintermsofmarriage(sex)andreinforcestheviewthatawomanisthepropertyofaman(eitherherfatherorherhusband).Whenawomanhasbeenmarried,peopleaddressheras“Mrs.plusherhusband’ssurname”.Thatistosay,ifawomanismarriedtosomebody,shehasnorighttobetreatedlikeanunmarriedlady.Astoaman,that’sadifferentmatter.Forexample:InEnglish-speakingcountries,youcanoftenhearsomeonecallthewifeofJohnSmith“Mrs.JohnSmith”.ThereisnoexceptionoffamousMadameCurie,Mrs.Thatcher,andMrs.Gandhi.[7]Mrs.ThatcheristheformerPrimeMinisterinUK.However,fewpeopleknowherownfamilynames.[8]Mr.Clinton’swife,HilaryClinton,asaliberatedwoman,kepthernameHilaryRodhamaftermarriage.Butinordertohelpherhusbandintheelection,shehadtochangehername.Fromtheaddressofmenandwomen,onecanclearlyseethesubmissivepositionofwomenandwomenaremerelyanextensionoftheirhusbandsorpartoftheirhusbands’estate.Thisalsoreflectsinthelanguage.3.1.4Femaleasanexception

Englishitselfhasnodifferenceofgender.Butinthisman-centeredsociety,peopleisusedtobelievingthatprestigepersonarealwaysmales.However,awomanwhooncereceivesgreatpopularityisregardedasaspecialexception.

Manyprofessionalssuchasdoctor,professor,engineer,lawyer,pilot,judge,surgeoncanbeusedtoindicatebothmalesandfemales.Butwhenindicatingfemale’sposition,professional,etc.,thesewordsarecreatedbyaddingaboundmorphemeorbycombiningthemwithawordreferringtofemale.[9]Becausethesesatisfactoryjobsaretraditionallyviewedasonesqualifiedonlybymales.Womenarejusttheappendanttomen.Thewordsbelowcanbestillustrateit:Commongender

Masculinegender

Femininegender

waiter

waiter

waitress

hero

hero

heroine

pilot

pilot

womanpilot

doctor

doctor

womandoctor

surgeon

surgeon

femalesurgeon

lawyer

lawyer

ladylawyer

Interestingly,whenwehearotherpeoplesay“Mycousinisalawyer.”,mostpeoplealwaysconcludethatmycousinisamale.Mostofthetime,wheneverwerefertoawoman,wehavetoelaboratelyaddwoman,femaleorladybeforemanyprofessionals.

Butotherprofessionalslikesecretary,nurse,typist,receptionist,dressmaker,areoftenusedtoindicatefemales.Whentheyareusedtorefertomales,youshouldaddmaleormanbeforethem,suchas:malenurse,maletypist,andmalesecretary.Itmakesclearthatmenmonopolizethehighstatusprofessionals.Womencanonlydoserviceworkorlowsocialstatuswork.

Englishisakindofsupermasculinelanguage.Thiscanbeeasilyseenincompoundwordsformedbywordplusmanstructure,suchaschairman,businessman,congressman,newsman,statesman,salesman,mailman,policeman,andspokesman.Fromthesewords,wecaneasilyknowthatmalesarethecenterofthesociety.Thesejobsarecertainlytakenbymalesandwomenarecompletelyexcluded.

Inaddition,therearesomefemaleprofessionalsformedbyaddingtheboundmorphemesuchas–ess,-inetotheroot.Forexample:

Male

Female

poet

poetess

prince

princess

god

goddess

count

countess

hero

heroine

Thiskindofword-formationseemstotellthatwomenarederivedfrommenandattachedtomen.Thesediscriminatorypracticesoftenmakewomeninvisibleandtreatthemsecondary.3.1.5Wordorder

Sexisminlanguageisalsoreflectedinwordorder.Whenmenandwomenarepresentedtogether,usuallywordsdenotingmalesexareputinfrontoffemalesex.Makingfemalescomesecondreflectsthesexistattitudethatmenaresuperiortowomen.Itisnothardtofindmale-femalewordorderpairsinEnglishliterature,newspaper,magazinesaswellasinspeech,suchasmaleandfemale,husbandandwife,fatherandmother,boysandgirls,hisandhers,sonanddaughter,brotherandsister,hostandhostess,kingandqueen,AdamandEveandsoon.Nomatterinbooksoronradio,evenindailydialogue,wecanoftenreadandhearsuchwords:

(1)

Goodmorning,boysandgirls!

(2)

Theywouldhaveallowedmalesandfemalestogotoschooltogether.

Suchalanguagephenomenonseemstoappearsounquestionablynaturalastobewidelyacceptedasalanguagenorm.

However,therearealsocasesinwhichmale-femaleorderisreversed,forexamplebrideandgroom,andladiesandgentlemen.Theformershowsthatmarriageisimportanttowomenandthelatterisinfluencedbythenotionthatmenshouldprotectwomen.Puttingladiesbeforegentlemendoesn’tshowthatwomenaremoresuperiortomenorladiesfirst,butindicatesthatinmen’smind,women,thesameaschildren,aretheweakerones.[10]3.2Semanticderogationofwomen

Languagehasatendencytoneglectwomen,treatwomenassubmissionandalsodemeanwomen.[11]Theprocessofwordsthatrefertowomenacquiringdemeaningorsexualconnotationshasbeenwidelyobserved,andhasbeencalledsemanticderogation.【3.2.1Non-parallelsemanticdevelopmentsofpairedterms

Manysociolinguistshaveclaimedthatwordsbecomenegativewhenshiftedintothefemalesphere,whilemalehasremainedpureandneutral.Forexample:

(1)Kingandqueen

Oneismasculine,theotherfeminineandbothmean“rulerofanindependentstate”.Kinghasretaineditsinitialmeaning,butbesidesthecoremeaningofqueen,queenisalsousedas“adisparagingtermforagayorhomosexualman”.

(2)Masterandmistress

Bothofthemindicate‘someonewhopossessesand/orhaspoweroversomeoneorsomethingelse.Forexample:“Heismymaster.”usuallymeans“Heismyboss.”or“Hehasmorepowerthanme.”While“Sheismymistress.”ismorelikelytobeinterpretedasmeaning‘Sheismyillicitlover.’Mistressoriginallyreferstoawomaninapositionofauthority,control,andownership,astheheadofahouseholdlikeahousekeeper,butitimpliesawomanwhohasacontinuingsexualrelationshipwithausuallymarriedmanwhoisnotherhusbandandfromwhomshegenerallyreceivesmaterialsupport.

(3)Wizardandwitch

Bothofthemcanbeusedtorefertopeoplewithevilmagicpowers.Wizardalsohasameaningofpersonwithextraordinaryabilities,whilewitchmeansanuglyoldwoman.

(4)Sirandmadam

Sirandmadambothcanbeusedtorefertohighstatuspeople.Madamisusedformerlyasacourtesytitlebeforeawoman’sgivennamebutnowusedonlybeforeasurnameortitleindicatingrankorofficeorusedasaformofpoliteaddressforawoman.Unlikesir,madamisalsousedtorefertoabrothelkeeper.Therearealsomanyotherexamplessuchaslordandlady,governorandgoverness.Theexamplescitedabovedemeanwomenratherthanmen.3.2.2Semanticcollocationandchange

(1)Semanticcollocation

InEnglish,awordmayhavedifferentconnotationswhenitisusedtodescribedifferentsexes.Forexample:

①imposing

a.

Heisimposing.

b.

Sheisimposing.

Sentenceameans“Heisimpressiveandadmirable.”Whilesentencebcouldbeinterpretedtomeanthat“Sheisdisgustingandapathetic.”Whenthesexchanges,sodoesthemeaning.②loose

Looseseemsaneutralwordforbothmaleandfemale.But“aloosewoman”remindspeopleof“awomanconsideredtobesexuallypromiscuous”whereas“alooseman”justmeans“acasualman”.[12]

③tramp

Itisdefinedas“apersonwithnohomeorjob,whowandersfromplacetoplace”or“awomanconsideredtobesexuallyimmoral(esp.inAmericanEnglish).”Intheexample,He/Sheisatramp.Forthemale,trampreferstoavagrantwhereasforthefemaleitcanmeanthatsheispromiscuous.

Fromtheabove,wecanseethatthesamewordshiftsfrombeingpositivetobeingnegativeonceithasmovedfromreferringtoamaletoafemale.[13]

(2)Semanticchange

Besides,words,whichbeginwitheitherneutralorpositiveconnotationsovertime,acquirenegativeimplicationsandfinallyendupas“sexualslurs”.Forexample,thetermhussyderivesfromOldEnglishhuswif(“housewife”),whichmeans“thefemaleheadofthehouse”.Thetermgraduallydeterioratedto“arusticrudewoman”andfinallycomestomean“anindecent,impudentwomanorprostitute”.[14]3.2.3Metaphor

Languageexiststoallowustocommunicatewithoneanother.Tothisend,languageservestwopurposes:tocommunicatewhatourrealityisandalsowhatwewishittobe.Soifweidentifyatraitinalanguage,suchassexismorotherformsofprejudice,thisonlyrevealsaprejudicethatexistsinsociety.Language,inparticularmetaphor,helpsformsocialreality.Therearemanymetaphorstodescribeafemale.Butoftenithasatotallydifferentmeaning.

(1)foodmetaphor

Somefoodwordscanalsobeusedtorefertofemales,suchascheesecake(奶酪蛋糕——裸體女畫(huà))，cherry(櫻桃——處女)，cookie(點(diǎn)心——可愛(ài)的女人)，crumpet(松脆餅——性感女人)，tart(果餡餅——妓女)，tomato(西紅柿——漂亮女人),honey(蜜糖——寶貝、親愛(ài)的),piece(點(diǎn)心——女人)，peach(桃子——漂亮女人)andsoon.Menoftenusethesewordstoexpresstheirappreciationtowomen.Itevenincludesthemeaningthatmentreatwomenasdolls.[15]

(2)animalmetaphor

Therearealsomanywordsshowingcontemptforwomen.Theyembodysexualdiscriminationbutstillenjoygreatpopularity.Forexample:chick(小雞——少女)，kitten(小貓——活潑年輕的姑娘)，bitch（母狗——潑婦），cat(貓——丑婦、賤婦、討厭的女人)，dragon(龍——倔強(qiáng)的女人)，hen(母雞——愛(ài)管閑事的女人),cow(奶?！优嗟呐?、妓女)，crone(老母羊——干癟的丑老太婆)andmare-horse(母馬——粗聲大氣、肥胖固執(zhí)的女人)andsoon.[16]Theseareallpejorativetermsforwomen,becauseanimalsareconsideredtobeinferiortohumanbeingsontheearth.Sousinganimalstorefertofemalesindicatesthatfemalesareinferior.

Thesemanticderogationofwomenhelpstoconstructfemaleinferiorityandbecausewomenareconfinedtonegativeterms,womencontinuetobedevalued.

4.SignsofthefadingofsexismintheEnglishLanguage

Languageisnotonlyusedtoexchangeideas,conveyinformation,butalsousedtosetupandmaintaintheharmoniousrelationshipbetweenhumanbeings,createandkeeptheeffectivecommunicationenvironmentamongsocialmembersandgroups.Anyformofsexistlanguage,whetheronpurposeornot,willprobablystandofforoffendsomesocialmemberorgroup.Languageandlanguageusemirrorsocialattitudesandstereotypesandbias.

Alongwiththewomen’sliberationmovement,peoplebegantorealizetheimportanceofthelanguagereformanddesexismbecomesnecessary.Then,shouldsexistlanguagebechangedoravoided?Theanswerisdefinitelypositive,buthow?Themainstrategiesheretoachievethisgoalareavoidingtheuseofgenericmasculine,changingsomenamingandaddressingterms,coiningnewwordsandadvocatingsomeneutralwords.4.1Avoidingusinggenericmasculinepronouns

LinguistsengagedinstudyofsexismintheEnglishlanguagearenotsatisfiedwithmerelypointingouttheproblem.Asasolutiontotheproblemsthatthegenericmasculinecancreate,anumberofproposalshavebeenmade.Amajorcategoryamongthesesolutionsistoavoidusinggenericmasculine.Somealternativestoavoidgenericmasculineareofferedasfollows:

(1)Thegenericmasculinehe,his,himshouldbereplacedwithheorshe,hisorher,himorher,andthelike,whichexpresslyindicatethatwomenareincludedintheantecedentofthepronouns.Thisstrategycanbeillustratedwiththefollowingsentence:Everygoodcitizenshouldlovehisorhercountrymorethanhimorherself;heorsheshouldbereadytodieforitiftheneedarises.

(2)Thegender-neutralthirdpersonpronountheyanditsvariantsshouldbeusedwithasingularmeaning.Theproposalmakesitpossibletosay:Everygoodcitizenshouldlovetheircountrymorethanthemselves;theyshouldbereadytodieforitiftheneedarises.

(3)Changingthewholesentenceintopluralformcanalsohelptoavoidsexism.Lookatthesentence:Anyonecantakepartinthepicnicifheisinterested.Itisdiscriminatory.Sowecanchangeitintoanonsexistone:Allpeoplecantakepartinthepicniciftheyareinterested.

(4)Sometimesthefirstandsecondpronounsareusedtoreplacehe.Listanexample:Onehastobecarefulwhenhecrossestheroad.Obviously,itusehetorefertoapersonwhosesexisunknown.Wecanchangeitinto“Youhavetobecarefulwhenyoucrosstheroad.”toavoidthediscrimination.

(5)Ifpermitted,thesentencecanbechangedintopassivevoicetobenonsexist.Insteadofsaying“Oneshouldnotloseheartwhenheisbeateninamatch.”,onewouldbeabletosay“Oneshouldnotloseheartwhenbeateninamatch.”

(6)Droppingthemasculinepronouncanalsobeseenasausefulwaytoescapefromgenderbias.[17]Thefollowingsentencecanhelptoknowthestrategybetter.Anybodycanattendthemeetingifinterestedinit.Beingdiscriminatory,itiswritteninto“Anybodycanattendthemeetingifheisinterestedinit.”

Feministsregardmasculinepronounsasbeingambiguousanddiscriminatoryagainstwomenbecausetheycanbeinterpretedasbeingmasculine-specificorneutralandthus,insomecases,beinterpretedasnotreferringtowomenatall.Soitistimethatmasculinepronounswerechanged.Theabovearesomestrategiesusedtoavoidgenericmasculine.Thesestrategiesaresousefulthattheycanhelptheimprovementofsexisminlanguageinsomeextent.Andsexisminlanguageiscloselylinkedwithsexisminsociety.Soitisgoodtotheeliminationofsexisminsocietyinthefinalanalysis.4.2Lexicalneutralization

Lexicalneutralizationisalsoregardedasthemajorcategoryamongsolutionstosexistlanguage.AboveIhavecitedsomeexamplesthatsomeprofessionsareusedtorefertomen.Whentheyareusedtorefertowoman,femaleorwomanorladyisoftenused.Infact,peopledonotneedtodesignatethesexofanoccupation,forexample,womanpsychologistormalenurse.Ifyouarequotingaqualifiedpsychologistornurse,shoulditmakeadifferenceiftheinformationiscomingfromamanorwoman?Generally,Isumupfivesolutionsoflexicalneutralization.

(1)Trytoavoidusingman/menormankindtorefer