An Introduction to Sexism in English Language

Chinese Abstract Sexism exists to varying degrees in different social systems and countries. And as a general social phenomenon, it will naturally be refracted in language. This paper introduces the various manifestations of sexist language in English, analyzes the social and cultural causes of this phenomenon, and summarizes the ways to eliminate sexism in the process of English language use. Keywords: English language; sex discrimination; causes; elimination methods

Abstract Sex discrimination exists in all the social systems and countries, and as a mon social phenomenon, it is surly reflected in language. This paper lists out different forms of sex discrimination in English, *** yses the social and cultural causes of such phenomenon and summarizes the corresponding methods of eliminating it. This paper lists out different forms of sex discrimination in English, *** yses the social and cultural causes of such phenomenon and summarizes the corresponding methods of eliminating sex discrimination in English speaking.

Key words: English; sex discrimination. causes; methods of eliminating

Introduction

In social life, language treats men and women equally, but language is a carrier of culture, which is gradually enriched and developed in the process of people's continuous use. As a region, a national convention of a way of expression, language is bound to reflect certain social values and national way of thinking. Sexism is a social discrimination phenomenon based on gender,? Longman English Dictionary The Longman Dictionary of the English Language explains "sexism" as "discrimination based on sex, especially male prejudice against women. The American Heritage Dictionary defines it as "discrimination by members of one sex against members of the other sex, especially by men against women". Although it can manifest itself as discrimination by men against women as well as by women against men, "sexism" is a term used to describe discrimination by men against women. However, "sexism" is usually discrimination against women and is a reflection of prejudices against women and the unequal status of men and women in society. "For a long time, women have been regarded as the weaker sex/the second sex, the companion and subordinate of men. This is true even in developed Western countries that boast human rights and equality. And the situation of the roaring development of the modern feminist movement is a revolt and reflection of this inequality." [1]P80 Thus, in language, a wide variety of sexist language has emerged, and English is no exception.

I. Sexist Language Phenomenon (1) Interpersonal Terms Intimate Terms In the West, male supervisors can use some nicknames to indicate intimacy when addressing their female subordinates, such as sugar, darling, sweetie, girlie; on the other hand, female subordinates can't use these nicknames for their supervisors, and female supervisors can't use them for their male staff, however, female supervisors can't use these nicknames for their male staff, and female supervisors can't address their male staff in this way either, but the unfamiliar ones can't use these nicknames. However, men who are strangers or not in a close relationship can use these nicknames to address women, which shows that women in Anglo-American society have a lower social status than men and receive less respect than men. [2]P74 Name Appellation In the West, a woman usually uses her father's name before marriage and changes to her husband's name after marriage, for example, at a Western wedding, when the bride and groom enter the church, the priest announces: "I now pronounce you man and wife. The married man remains a man, while the married woman becomes a wife from Miss. This phenomenon is not uncommon among feminists and working women." [2] P74 Hilary Rodhamon, wife of then U.S. President Bill Clinton, also argued in favor of the idea that married women should not only be labeled with their husbands' last names, but only their husbands' last names, and should not continue to be labeled with their fathers' last names. Although Hilary Rodhamon herself was a feminist activist, she changed her name from Hilary Rodhamon to Hilary Rodhamon Clinton and then to Hilary Clinton, depending on her husband's and her own political needs. However, no change can be made beyond the option of taking either the father's name or the husband's name. The use of the husband's name indicates that the woman becomes the private property of her husband and belongs to him, and therefore does not have equal rights with her husband. An unmarried woman is called Miss by her father's name, and a married woman is called Mrs. or Lady by her husband's name. Referential titles 1) When referring to a man and a woman, they are not on an equal footing, but the man is prior to the woman. King and queen, brother and sister, father and mother, boys and girls, hu *** and and wife, Adam and Eve, man and woman, Mr. Lucas and his wife Louise. 2). Some words which have no masculine signification in their form are customarily regarded as masculine. People in English and other English-speaking countries are accustomed to think of professor, doctor, lawyer, surgeon, barrister, magistrate, etc., as masculine, and when we hear someone say: My cousin is a professor, most of us will conclude that professor is masculine. If you want to show that these words are female, you can usually add woman, lady, female and other modifiers in front of them. Such as: woman professor, lady doctor, female worker, etc., these so-called neutral word usage from a side to reflect the old society in the higher status of the profession for the monopoly of men, on the contrary, teacher, nurse, secretary, model, etc. people generally think of women, such as male to add male or man, etc. in front. On the other hand, teacher, nurse, secretary, model, etc. are generally regarded as female, and when they are male, they have to add male or man in front of them, e.g.: male nurse, man teacher. （First of all, the meanings of words that appear to be corresponding are often positive to men and negative to women. In English, gender discrimination is often achieved through the deterioration of feminine nouns. Almost all female nouns have derogatory meanings, such as queen, lady, mistress, madam, etc., whose derogatory meanings are "female cat", "mistress", and "bawd", etc., while "female cat", "mistress", and "bawd", etc., have derogatory meanings, such as "female cat", "mistress", and "bawd". "etc., and its corresponding words king, lord, master, father, etc., such as capitalizing their initial letters can be upgraded to "God", "Christ", "Lord", "God" and so on. Secondly, some animal names are often used in English to refer to certain women. For example: bat bitch, ugly woman, ***; dog ugly woman, bitch, no achievement of the woman, ***; chicken meet ripe young woman; cat evil woman, hidden evil woman, can be inferior woman; cow children of women, fat and untidy woman, often pregnant woman, ***; mutton slutty woman, to do the girl dressed up old women, ***. The English language also has a number of words with a light touch. Moreover, there are some other words in English which are used to refer to middle-aged and old women with contemptuous coloring. For example: trot old woman; hen nosy or broken mouth of middle-aged women; warhorse coarse voice, fat stubborn woman; crone shriveled wrinkled skin of the old woman; hag love to do bad things to the old ugly woman; witch the old ugly woman; biddy long-tongued woman; harridan face withered, grumpy old woman. (C) the use of proverbs Rational class Song Dynasty Huang Liuhong "Fuhui Quanshu, get the name of the Department" contained: "women water sex poplar flowers, how can not be moved", denigrating the woman "with love is not dedicated", "lack of rationality", in the English language, it is a good example of the use of proverbs. "There is a similar proverb in English. Long hair and short wit. When an ass climbs a ladder, we may find wisdom in women. 若要女子有才智，除非毛驴攀上樹 言及女子 "感情游移"，"二三其德"。 "A woman's mind and winter wind change a lot. Women, wind and fortune are ever changing. (女子，风向和命运，翻天覆地无常常) Marriage A fair face is half a portion. (姿色艳，嫁妆半) When the candles are out, all women are fair. (烛燈熄熄，无妍女) Daughters and dead fish are no keeping wares. Daughters and dead fish are no keeping wares. Marry your son when you will, your daughter when you can. There are many good women, it's true; but they are in their graves. There are many good women, it's true; but they are in their graves. He that has a white horse and a fair wife never wants trouble. Shakespeare once said, "Frailty, your name is woman" (Frailty, your name is woman). The typical image of a weak woman is characterized by "tearfulness". Woman is made to weep. Nothing dries so fast as a woman's tears. (Easy to dry but a woman's tears.) Woman is made of glass. (Woman is brittle and weak, like glass goods.) Glass and lasses are brittle wares. Glass and lasses are brittle wares. (少女嫩脆，瓷杯易碎) (4) Sexism in Occupations Many nouns indicating occupations, such as engineer, pilot, scientist, writer, doctor, pilot, scientist, engineer, pilot, etc., are applicable to both men and women, and are originally gender-neutral words. , with no sexual distinction per se. "Because of the long history of male dominance in society, people used to associate them with men." [3] P210 When it is necessary to specifically refer to women in the same occupation, female, woman lady is often added in front of it, so as to make female occupational nouns "iconic" in their external form, such as woman doctor, female pilot, woman scientist, woman lawyer and so on. woman doctor, female pilot, scientist, woman lawyer and so on. The names of professions with male markers do not conform to the linguistic conventions, except for male nanny and male nurse. Only some lower status professions, such as nurse, secretary, etc., are traditionally associated with women and not with men. This custom, apart from being related to history and reality, can also be described as a kind of sexism.

Second, the reasons for the phenomenon of sexism in the English language (a) Historical reasons In the western cultural tradition, men have always been considered to be rich in creativity. In the Bible, Jehovah who created the world is a male, and Adam created by Jehovah is also a male, and Adam's wife, Eve, is only a derivative of Adam's rib, the traditional concept of creativity is fixed on men, and the later people have the saying that "male qualities are the gift of creativity". And the myth of God's creation of man in the Bible's Book of Genesis became the basis for the association of the doctrine of the origin of language. "In their view, since God created Adam, the first man in the world, the category of 'sexuality' in language should prioritize the masculine. To reverse the order of the two would be inconsistent with the language." [4] P.L.C. " [4] P132 English grammar does not provide for "male first, female second" order, but people in the long-term speech habits, most of the male first, female second, female can only be the second gender following the male. The word order of man first and woman second is so common that it is uncomfortable to say the other way around, such as woman and man, she or he, and so on. （The roots of sexism can be traced back to the gender roles played by men and women in prehistoric times. Since men were more muscular than women and did not bear children, they took up the roles of hunting and farming, while women were weak and had to bear children, so they were responsible for taking care of the children, taking care of the household, and gathering food, etc. At that time, although the roles of men and women were different, they were not the same. At that time, although the roles of men and women were different, there was no notion that one was more valuable than the other. "As the productivity of society continued to develop, men gradually became more involved in agricultural activities and dominated, and the status of women declined as their ability to provide food decreased." [5] P113 By the medieval period, women became the valuable property of landowners' husbands because of their ability to bear children and produce legitimate heirs for landowners. In order to keep women in such a position, the rulers used the law to subjugate women to their husbands, and thus various social norms and customs began to be formed to restrain women. In the long patriarchal society, the idea of women's inferiority, dependence on men and subjection to men became entrenched and taken for granted. Until the twentieth century, the status of women improved considerably, but socialization prejudices are acquired in the process of socialization through social groups, parents, relatives, friends, associates and the mass media (radio, cinema, television, newspapers). Discrimination and prejudice against women are also acquired directly from parents, relatives, friends or group interactions, or through the mass media. In English, influenced by traditional ideas, linguistic discrimination against women has become a vicious circle. For example, when people see or hear the words "virgin" and "prostitute", the first thing that comes to mind is "virgin" and "***". "***" meaning, but little thought that they can also be used to refer to "***" and "male prostitution". (iii) Physiological reasons It has been written that in hospital nurseries, every new-born baby has a gender marker on its cot, which clearly reads: "I am a boy" or "It is a girl". Here the boy is referred to as I, while the girl is referred to as it, and the cultural and linguistic imprint is y imprinted on babies before they even know what language is. The male possessive pronoun his is used in English to refer to anyone, including women. For example, Has everyone pleted his assignment, and Everyone should do his best on the exam. Although women enjoy the same rights as men in employment, voting, education and so on, women are still on the margins of society, considered the weaker sex and the other; men are always in a dominant position. dominant position." [6] P210 According to 1980 United Nations statistics, men own 99% of the world's resources, while women own less than 1%. "Thus, discrimination and prejudice against women have long historical roots in society." [6]P219 [6]P219 III. Ways to Eliminate Sexism in the English Language With the development of society and the continuous improvement of women's social status, especially with the upsurge of the feminist movement in the United States, there are more and more calls for the elimination of sexism in language. There are two core issues in this: how to directly eliminate sexist words (sexist words) from the language; and how to eliminate the problem of sexism caused by the generalization of third person pronouns. We will introduce and discuss the ways of converting sexist words in English and how to choose appropriate personal pronouns to eliminate sexism. (I) Conversion of Sexist Words into Non-sexist Words 1 Try to use words that include both genders, i.e. non-sexist words, such as: immigrant, voter, officer, coach, church member, grandparent, employee, testee, patriot, customers, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee, employee. Testee, patriot, customers, dealer, clerk, civilian, politician, tutor, etc. 2. Words ending in the feminine suffixes -ess, ette, rix and enne should be avoided and replaced by non-sexist suffixes -or, an, er or ist. e.g. For example: actress →actor, administratrix →administrator ,suffragette →suffragist, usherette→ usher ,edienne→ edian . 3. When writing a letter, if you don't know the specific gender of the addressee, you'd better not use the traditional Dear Sir, Dear Gentleman, Dear Madam, but use the job title instead to avoid mistakes. For example: Dear friends of the library, Dear Madams and Sirs, Dear personnel officer, Dear mittee Member, Dear Agent, Dear Director. (2), to avoid the third person pronouns referring to the problem of sex discrimination caused by the generalization of the problem Countermeasures to avoid the problem of sexism caused by the generalization of the third person pronouns 1. Adopt the plural form Sexist: When bathing a baby, never leave him unattended. Revised: When bathing a baby, never leave them unattended. 2. Rewrite the original sentence with We/us/our Sexist: From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs. Revised: From each of us according to our abilities, to each of us according to our needs. 3. Revised: From each of us according to our abilities, to each of us according to our needs. 3. second person Sexist: No man knows his true character until he has run out of gas, purchased something on the installment plan and raised an adolescent. No man knows his true character until he has run out of gas, purchased something on the installment plan and raised an adolescent. Revised: You don't know what your true character is until you have run out of gas, purchased something on the installment plan and raised an adolescent. 4.Change to passive voice Sexist: One who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses both. Revised: One who, when given the choice of two evils, chooses both. 5. He and she/ his and her , but they should not be used too often or they will become cumbersome. 5. s/he can only be used in memos, notes, or informal conversations. 6. replace with a noun or a synonym used in the context Sexist: To find a friend one must close one eye, to keep him, two. Revised: To find a friend, one must close one eye, to keep a friend, two. 7. Use alternating masculine and feminine to achieve balance e.g. A young child is often persuaded by advertisements to buy what he sees on television. When the child does shopping with a parent, she sees the product on the shelf, remembers it, and asks to have it. (3) The Role of English Language Teaching (ELT) The role of the school and the teacher in the acquisition of language and the transfer of culture cannot be underestimated. Linguistic reform is also an important part of changing negative attitudes towards women. Language teachers also have a sacred mission. In English language learning, teachers should first standardize their language and avoid gender-biased statements in the classroom. Then, the teacher should teach the students the new words and usage in English after the feminist movement according to the teaching content, consciously strengthen the ideological education of gender equality, and let the students understand the social changes and language dynamics in English-speaking countries. It should be emphasized that women should not be neglected. Women still play a great influence in their lives every day. Without women there would be no success for men. Women use their intelligence to do their best to make every family life more colorful.

Fourth, the conclusion of the use of the above methods, responses, we must grasp a "degree", the specific use of the method, response depends on whether it can make our writing, the conversation goes smoothly and achieve the desired results. "As feminist thinkers have argued in the past, women have been alienated from language for too long, and from their feminine experience for too long, so that they are unable to symbolize their experience." [7] P331 Traditional standard syntax and defined textual categories represent patriarchal discursive structures. Therefore feminism tries to find new languages and new literary forms to reflect women's reality. They criticized and drastically changed the existing language, boldly conducted creative experiments, used new words, new spellings, new grammatical structures, new imagery and new metaphors in order to move away from the authoritative structure of the patriarchal language and to seek a new discursive space for women. One of the slogans of feminism is "women's total liberation through language". Moreover, "language is a mirror of society, and the gender differences and sexism reflected in language are not determined by the natural attributes of language symbols themselves, but are the inevitable reflection of the values of a particular society and the national way of thinking in the language." [8] P287 Language itself is neutral, but language users can give language a certain color according to their social concepts and values. If we want to eliminate sexism in language including interpersonal terminology system, we need to eradicate the sexist concepts in the society firstly, and the change of language can only be realized on the basis of social change. From the above discussion, we can see that women have to make unremitting efforts in order to obtain real liberation and inequality for themselves. The reflection of language on society has gone through a long process. After the old discrimination is removed, new discrimination will be reflected in the language. The real elimination of sexism in language can only be achieved by the real equality of men and women in social reality. "Saussure believed that language is not only a tool for communication, but also a carrier of thought, without language as a carrier and a tool, human thinking can not develop." [9] P267 The change of sexism can not wait for the male power's alms, it is necessary for women's self-awakening, and women's own participation. In the intersection of strong and weak cultures, it is also necessary for the weak cultures to make their own efforts. It is necessary to emphasize the importance of gender differences, but it is only transitional; women cannot speak only as women, and men cannot speak only as men. The way out of the misunderstanding of sex discrimination lies in the neutralization of language, and the realization of the neutralization of language lies in the continuous improvement of language awareness. Therefore, "if the women's movement is to make substantial progress, it cannot be accomplished by women themselves, but requires not only the solidarity of women worldwide, but also the support and cooperation of men as the other half of mankind, making it all the more necessary to strengthen communication and consultation with men." [10]P113

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