Examples Of Sexism In English Language

In English language, there are numerous words, which are unmistakably male-orientated in that they contain the component "— man" while they can in fact apply to both sexes. “Sexism in language is also showed in that the noun of feminine gender can only be obtained by adding a certain bound morpheme to the noun. Some English words, especially the name of some professions, are basically of common gender, namely, they can be applied to both sexes. However, people usually will habitually associate them only with male. Consequently, we have to add “woman” before those names if we want to refer to female of those professions. (Women in Literacy and Life Assembly, 2002)”

One possibility includes words that are plainly limited inorientation to one

“The man in the street” and “ The woman in the street” is in the same situation, yet the former one just shows that the man is an ordinary person, the latter one can indicates that she is a prostitute.

“Stereotyped images of men and women are based on oversimplified generalizations of what women and men should be and how they should behave. Such images are often not only inaccurate but also severely hamper the representation of the changing roles of the sexes in society. Some examples of such language are: a man and his wife, man and wife, John's widow. In expressions such as these, women are described and defined in terms of their relationship to men. Men, however, are hardly ever described in terms of their relationship to women.

In the following sentences, women are primarily described in terms of their physical appearance. This concentration on physical attributes to the exclusion of other features seldom occurs in the description of men. Male and female stereotyping occurs frequently in relation to occupations and gender roles. Women who are employed outside the home are still described in terms of being the 'wife of', 'mother of' or 'daughter of'. Portrayals of men in their professional roles seldom describe them as 'father of', 'husband of' and the like. (WILLA,

This kind of sexism is apparent in the English language, for example through the generic use of masculine words such as “spokesman” or “chairman” (Mills 1995:87). Mills (1995:87-89) states that the most common examples are when “he” and “man” are used for referring to both women and men. The word “man” is also used as an affix in generic terms such as “policeman”, “postman” or “manpower” (Mills 1995:91).

The titles used to name people and occupations often reflect inequitable assumptions about males and females. Identify men and women in the same way. Diminutive or special forms to name women are usually unnecessary and often sexist. In most cases, generic terms such as doctor, judge, or actor include both genders. Only occasionally are alternate forms needed, and in these cases, the alternate form replaces both the masculine and the feminine titles and makes the writing