第一篇:淺談?dòng)⒄Z語言中的性別歧視
陳 賀
(宿州學(xué)院 外國語學(xué)院,安徽 宿州 234000)
摘 要:從英語語言出發(fā),分析其中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象:視男性用語為主體,女性用語為變體或附屬;兩性詞語在詞義上不對(duì)稱;詞匯排序上遵循“男先女后”的原則。接著從勞動(dòng)性別分工、宗教思想、性別角色社會(huì)化三個(gè)角度對(duì)之進(jìn)行原因解讀。這為當(dāng)前的性別語言研究提供一定的參考和啟示。
關(guān)鍵詞:性別;勞動(dòng)分工;宗教;角色社會(huì)化
中圖分類號(hào):H0-05 文獻(xiàn)標(biāo)識(shí)碼:A 文章編號(hào):1673-2596(2011)09-0209-03 性別歧視是以性別為基礎(chǔ)而產(chǎn)生的一種歧視現(xiàn)象,它可以表現(xiàn)為男性對(duì)女性的歧視,也可以表現(xiàn)為女性對(duì)男性的歧視。《朗曼英語詞典》定義性別歧視為:“以性別為基礎(chǔ)的歧視,尤其是男性對(duì)女性的偏見。”《美國傳統(tǒng)詞典》關(guān)于“性別歧視”的解釋是:“一類性別成員對(duì)另一類性別成員,尤其是男性對(duì)女性的歧視。”因此,“性別歧視”通常是對(duì)女性的歧視,是社會(huì)對(duì)女性的偏見[1]1。語言是人們交流的重要工具,是人類思想的重要載體,折射了社會(huì)的文化習(xí)俗與價(jià)值觀念。通過語言,可以管窺到人們的性別觀念。幾千年來,英語國家人們一直生活在父權(quán)制體系的桎梏之下,對(duì)女性懷有深深的歧視。這一性別態(tài)度,在英語語言中有著深刻的印證。那么,本文將揭示英語語言中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象,并對(duì)之進(jìn)行原因探討。
一、英語語言中的性別歧視
(一)以男性為規(guī)范
以男性為規(guī)范是語言性別歧視的重要表現(xiàn)之一[1]1。表現(xiàn)在具體語言事實(shí)上,即語言視男性用語為主體,將女性用語當(dāng)作變體或附屬[2]。這一特征在英語語言中具有鮮明的體現(xiàn)。
(二)詞義上的不對(duì)稱
其次,與男性相比,英語中與女性相關(guān)的貶義詞數(shù)量眾多。據(jù)Dale Spencer統(tǒng)計(jì),英語中表達(dá)“性生活放蕩”的詞語,至少有220個(gè)是與女性相關(guān),而只有20個(gè)左右與男性有關(guān)。另據(jù)研究,英語中表示“在性生活上亂七八糟的女子”的詞多達(dá)320個(gè),幾乎所有關(guān)于女性的詞都有具有貶義,而一部分關(guān)于男性的詞則含有“哪個(gè)男子不風(fēng)流的”容忍之意。
再次,男女詞義演變上不對(duì)稱。在長期的語言交際過程中,男性詞語向褒義方向演變,而女性詞語則有惡化的趨勢(shì)。King(國王)、lord(老爺)、master(主人)、father(父親),在現(xiàn)代英語中,只要把他們的首字母大寫,就可以分別用來指“上帝”、“基督”、“主或神”。與男性褒化相對(duì),女性詞語往往增加了貶義。Tart一詞原指一種小糕餅,后用作親昵的稱呼年輕女子,后來演變?yōu)椤案挥谛愿械呐印保S后又轉(zhuǎn)化為“對(duì)道德不甚介意,作風(fēng)隨便的女子”,而現(xiàn)在又指“在街上拉客的女子”。
(三)語序上的歧視
二、英語中性別歧視產(chǎn)生的原因
語言依賴于社會(huì),是人類社會(huì)的產(chǎn)物。不同的社會(huì)形態(tài),會(huì)產(chǎn)生不同的語言體系。語言的形成與一定的社會(huì)文化、風(fēng)俗習(xí)慣、價(jià)值觀念等,有著密切的關(guān)系。因此,英語語言中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象,與英美國家男女不平等的社會(huì)現(xiàn)實(shí)不無關(guān)聯(lián)。而這種不平等的社會(huì)現(xiàn)實(shí),與以下三個(gè)層面緊密相關(guān):
(一)勞動(dòng)性別分工
馬克思主義女性主義認(rèn)為男女不平等源自勞動(dòng)性別分工[3]67。勞動(dòng)性別分工是人類最主要的社會(huì)分工形式,以生理性和社會(huì)性別為基礎(chǔ),社教化將男性和女性分別規(guī)范在以性別特質(zhì)界定的工作崗位[3]68。依照性別分配勞動(dòng)是人類最早的勞動(dòng)分工方式,它是人類尋找到的最有效的組織社會(huì)生活的方法[4]。在西方農(nóng)業(yè)社會(huì)里,勞動(dòng)性別分工模式主要與性別天然差異和當(dāng)時(shí)的生產(chǎn)力發(fā)展水平有關(guān):
首先,在某種程度來講,勞動(dòng)性別分工是自然秩序的結(jié)果[5]。根據(jù)達(dá)爾文理論,男性與女性具有一定的生理差異,兩性各有獨(dú)特的身體特征。總體而言,在體格方面,男性身材高大,肌肉發(fā)達(dá),身體健壯;女性則身材較小,身體比較纖弱。在性格方面,男性精力旺盛,富有冒險(xiǎn)精神;女性則比較文靜、溫柔、隨和。由于這些差異,男性似乎更加適合從事與生產(chǎn)有關(guān)的勞動(dòng),如養(yǎng)殖、農(nóng)耕等。而女性則適宜從事與人的再生產(chǎn)有關(guān)的勞動(dòng),如生育、撫育和家務(wù)勞動(dòng)等。
其次,勞動(dòng)性別分工形式與生產(chǎn)力的發(fā)展水平有直接的關(guān)系。在原始社會(huì),生產(chǎn)力水平低下,男性與女性必須一起勞動(dòng),才能維持生活:女性采摘水果和種子,男性狩獵打魚。由于當(dāng)時(shí)勞動(dòng)工具落后,采摘是人們主要的生活來源。于是,在一定時(shí)期內(nèi),人類社會(huì)是母系氏族社會(huì)。當(dāng)人類步入農(nóng)業(yè)社會(huì)后,生產(chǎn)力水平有了極大改善,社會(huì)的主要經(jīng)濟(jì)支柱轉(zhuǎn)為農(nóng)耕等體力勞動(dòng)。由于身體上的差異,男性身體更加強(qiáng)壯,更適合從事這些勞動(dòng)。于是,人類社會(huì)逐漸形成了新的勞動(dòng)性別分工,男性主要從事農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)等,女性則局限在家庭范圍之內(nèi)。
因此,在西方農(nóng)業(yè)社會(huì)勞動(dòng)性別分工模式里,男性是社會(huì)生產(chǎn)的主體。在家庭和公共空間的劃分過程中,財(cái)產(chǎn)關(guān)系成為決定性別秩序的基本決定因素[6]。于是,長期以來,在經(jīng)濟(jì)上占主導(dǎo)地位的男性主宰著社會(huì)的一切,壟斷了政治、經(jīng)濟(jì)、法律等公共領(lǐng)域;女性則處于從屬地位,被禁錮在家庭范圍內(nèi)。這一社會(huì)特征反映在語言層面上,表現(xiàn)為語言中存在大量的歧視現(xiàn)象。
(二)宗教思想
基督教是西方文化的基石,在西方國家文明發(fā)展中起到舉足輕重的作用,對(duì)社會(huì)意識(shí)形態(tài)的形成具有至關(guān)重要的意義。但是,基督教教義以男性為主體,到處充斥著對(duì)女性的排斥和歧視。在這種宗教思想體系下,男性有著無與倫比的社會(huì)地位,他們是按照神權(quán)來進(jìn)行統(tǒng)治,按照神權(quán)來規(guī)范女性的一切[7]22。在《圣經(jīng)》中,上帝創(chuàng)造的第一個(gè)人類是男性。上帝賦予他無限的權(quán)利,制造了世界萬物,按照他的意愿命名,歸他統(tǒng)治。為了不讓他感到孤獨(dú),上帝又取其一根肋骨,創(chuàng)造了一個(gè)女性,來幫助他,陪伴他。于是,女性往往被看作是男性的附屬品。因此,在社會(huì)關(guān)系中,男性支配社會(huì)的方方面面,而女性只能處于從屬的地位:
你們作妻子的,當(dāng)服從自己的丈夫,如同順服主。因?yàn)檎煞蚴瞧拮拥念^,如同基督是教會(huì)的頭,他又是教會(huì)全體的救主。教會(huì)怎樣順服基督,妻子也要怎樣凡事順服丈夫。(《以弗所書》第五章)
而且,女性在《圣經(jīng)》中常被看作萬惡之源。在伊甸園中,夏娃受到蛇的誘惑,偷吃了智慧樹上的蘋果,并引誘亞當(dāng)也偷吃了禁果。于是,他們被上帝驅(qū)趕出伊甸園,被罰永遠(yuǎn)生活在苦難之中。因此,人們認(rèn)為夏娃對(duì)人類的墮落負(fù)有不可推卸的責(zé)任。同時(shí),在《圣經(jīng)》中,無論是《舊約》還是《新約》,女性常常被忽略,鮮被提及。希伯來歷史上涌現(xiàn)出許多杰出的優(yōu)秀女性,但《圣經(jīng)》對(duì)她們的記載極其簡略。例如:女先知米利安,與摩西、亞倫有著同等重要的地位,不僅是女性的領(lǐng)導(dǎo)者,而且還曾經(jīng)救過摩西,在以色列人走出埃及的過程中起到了無可替代的作用。但是,《圣經(jīng)》對(duì)其描寫很少。
與之相比,男性則幾乎壟斷了《圣經(jīng)》的所有章節(jié)。《圣經(jīng)》中幾乎所有重要的人物都是男性。上帝稱為我們的“父親”,上帝的的后代是兒子耶穌。引領(lǐng)猶太人走出埃及的摩西,猶太人的祖先亞伯拉罕,以及耶穌的十三個(gè)門徒,全部都是男性。而且,《圣經(jīng)》對(duì)其中的男性描寫非常詳盡,不吝筆墨。
總之,《圣經(jīng)》是一本站在男性立場上,為男性書寫的宗教典籍。作為基督教的重要經(jīng)典,《圣經(jīng)》影響廣泛,其所散播的性別觀念滲透到社會(huì)的方方面面,使得西方社會(huì)奠定了男尊女卑的格調(diào),使得英語語言存在嚴(yán)重的性別歧視色彩。
(三)性別角色社會(huì)化
性別角色社會(huì)化指個(gè)體在社會(huì)生活中逐漸學(xué)會(huì)按照自己的性別角色規(guī)范行事的過程[6]76。每個(gè)人一出生甚至在出生前,就可能被身邊的人們按照社會(huì)性別的固定模式來對(duì)待和教育。兒童從父母、教師、同輩、媒體、社會(huì)等多方面得到性別角色的信息,并受其影響,從中學(xué)習(xí)到怎樣做符合社會(huì)規(guī)范的“男孩”或“女孩”,“男人”或“女人”。而且,性別角色社會(huì)化是一個(gè)持續(xù)的過程,會(huì)貫穿于每個(gè)人的一生。
性別角色社會(huì)化是自動(dòng)的無意識(shí)的過程,但同時(shí)又是每個(gè)人積極參與的過程。在性別角色形成過程中,人們?cè)诤艽蟪潭壬鲜遣粫?huì)意識(shí)到文化如何影響兩性,并對(duì)不遵從社會(huì)期望者進(jìn)行懲罰[8]169。但是,性別角色社會(huì)化并不是一個(gè)完全被動(dòng)的過程。在社會(huì)性別期望的驅(qū)使下,每個(gè)人會(huì)不由自主地按照社會(huì)期望進(jìn)行性別角色社會(huì)化。根據(jù)心理學(xué)家的說法,“每個(gè)人不是被動(dòng)的接受性別角色社會(huì)化,而是按照他對(duì)自我、社會(huì)期望、行為規(guī)范的理解,積極的參與這一個(gè)過程”[8]169。
同時(shí),在性別角色社會(huì)化過程中,一系列因素,如生產(chǎn)方式、政治制度、社會(huì)等級(jí)劃分等,會(huì)影響到性別角色的形成[9]。換句話說,社會(huì)性別角色的形成,會(huì)受一定社會(huì)背景的影響,如:語言、媒體、文學(xué)、宗教、教育機(jī)構(gòu)、家庭等。每一個(gè)人都會(huì)參照他的生長環(huán)境,如家庭、教育材料等,來逐漸形成適當(dāng)?shù)男詣e角色。
幾千年來,英美國家是典型的父權(quán)制社會(huì)。男性壟斷著社會(huì)的政治、經(jīng)濟(jì)、文化等公共領(lǐng)域,女性的社會(huì)活動(dòng)范圍則局限在家庭。在當(dāng)時(shí)的社會(huì)意識(shí)形態(tài)下,女性與男性相比天生具有缺陷,是不完整的人。而且,女性是“人類墮落”和“人類原罪”的根源。
于是,在這樣的社會(huì)環(huán)境下,女性一出生就被灌輸相應(yīng)的性別觀念,并逐步的進(jìn)行性別角色社會(huì)化。她們漸漸的接受其性別角色定位,認(rèn)為女性是低卑的,一生應(yīng)依附于男性,并遵從相應(yīng)的道德規(guī)范,承擔(dān)起家庭范圍內(nèi)的社會(huì)職責(zé)。這使得女性認(rèn)同社會(huì)中的性別不平等,對(duì)語言中性別歧視現(xiàn)象熟視無睹,從而在一定程度上使得英語語言中的性別歧視一直延續(xù)下去。
三、結(jié)語
語言的產(chǎn)生離不開一定的社會(huì)環(huán)境。因此,英語語言中的性別歧視不僅僅是一種語言現(xiàn)象,它是英美國家男女不平等的社會(huì)現(xiàn)實(shí)的反映。隨著三次婦女運(yùn)動(dòng)的高漲,英美國家女權(quán)主義者積極投身到語言改革與規(guī)劃活動(dòng)中來,英語中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象得到一定改觀。但是,由于歷史、文化、社會(huì)等因素,英語中的性別歧視并未完全消除。只有進(jìn)一步深化性別研究,提高女性社會(huì)地位,完全實(shí)現(xiàn)男女平等,才能使語言真正的平等。
第二篇:淺談?dòng)⒄Z語言中性別歧視
淺談?dòng)⒄Z語言中性別歧視
中文摘要
性別歧視在不同的社會(huì)制度和國家中都不同程度地存在。而作為一種普遍的社會(huì)現(xiàn)象,自然會(huì)在語言中得到折射。本文介紹了英語中的性別歧視語的種種表現(xiàn)形式,分析了這種現(xiàn)象產(chǎn)生的社會(huì)原因和文化根源,并總結(jié)了在英語語言運(yùn)用過程中消除性別歧視的方法。關(guān)鍵詞: 英語語言;性別歧視;產(chǎn)生原因;消除方法
Abstract
Sex discrimination exists in all the social systems and countries, and as a common social phenomenon, it is surly reflected in language.This paper lists out different forms of sex discrimination in English, analyses 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
引言
在社會(huì)生活中,語言對(duì)男女一視同仁,但語言是文化的載體,并在人們不斷使用的過程中逐漸得到豐富和發(fā)展。作為一個(gè)地區(qū),一個(gè)民族約定俗成的一種表達(dá)方式,語言必然會(huì)反映出一定的社會(huì)價(jià)值觀念和民族思維方式。性別歧視是以性別為基礎(chǔ)而產(chǎn)生的一種社會(huì)歧視現(xiàn)象,?朗曼英語詞典? 對(duì)“性別歧視”的解釋是:“以性別為基礎(chǔ)的歧視,尤其是男性對(duì)女性的偏見。《美國傳統(tǒng)字典》的定義是“一種性別成員對(duì)另一性別成員,尤其是男性對(duì)女性的歧視”。雖然它可以表現(xiàn)為男性對(duì)女性的歧視,也可以表現(xiàn)為女性對(duì)男性的歧視。但是“性別歧視”通常是對(duì)女性的歧視,是人們對(duì)女性的偏見和男女社會(huì)地位不平等的反映。“女性長期以來被看作是the weaker sex/the second sex,是男性的陪襯和附屬品。即使在標(biāo)榜人權(quán),平等的西方發(fā)達(dá)國家中也是如此。而現(xiàn)代女權(quán)運(yùn)動(dòng)轟轟烈烈的發(fā)展形勢(shì)正是對(duì)這一不平等現(xiàn)象的反抗和反映。”[1](P80)從而在語言中,出現(xiàn)了多種多樣的性別歧視語,英語也不例外。
一、性別歧視語言現(xiàn)象
(一)人際稱謂
親昵稱謂
在西方,男性上司稱呼他們的女性下屬時(shí)可以用一些表示親密關(guān)系的昵稱,如sugar, darling, sweetie, girlie;反過來,女性下屬卻不能用這些昵稱來稱呼她們的上司,而且女性上司也不能如此來稱呼她們的男性職員,可是,陌生男子或非親密關(guān)系的男子卻可用昵稱來稱呼女子,這說明在英美社會(huì)女性比男性社會(huì)地位低,受到的尊重比男性少。[2](P74)姓名稱謂
在西方 ,女子婚前一般用父姓 ,婚后改用丈夫的姓 , 例如 :在西方婚禮上 ,新郎新娘步入教堂時(shí) ,牧師宣布:“I now pronounce you man and wife.”“婚后的男子依舊是man ,而婚后的女子則由Miss變成了wife這種現(xiàn)象不乏女權(quán)主義者和職業(yè)婦女。”[2](P74)當(dāng)時(shí)的美國總統(tǒng)Bill Clinton的夫人Hilary Rodhamon也在為自己的 ,即支持已婚女性不僅
應(yīng)當(dāng)標(biāo)注夫姓 ,而且只應(yīng)當(dāng)標(biāo)注夫姓 ,而不應(yīng)繼續(xù)標(biāo)注父姓。盡管Hilary Rodhamon本人是一位女權(quán)運(yùn)動(dòng)者 ,但她還是把自己的名字根據(jù)丈夫和自己的政治需要, 先從Hilary Rodhamon改為Hilary Rodhamon Clinton, 最后改為Hilary Clinton。但是, 不管怎么改, 都不能超出如下選擇: 要么跟父親姓, 要么跟丈夫姓。這種以丈夫的姓冠之于前的稱呼 ,表明婦女出嫁后就成了丈夫的私有財(cái)產(chǎn), 是屬于丈夫的, 因此無法得到與丈夫平等的權(quán)利。未婚女性用Miss冠以父姓, 已婚的用Mrs.或Lady冠以丈夫的姓氏。
指代稱謂
1)提到男女雙方時(shí),雙方不是處于平等地位,而是男先女后。
King and queen, brother and sister, father and mother, boys and girls, husband and wife, Adam and Eve, man and woman, Mr.Lucas and his wife Louise.2).一些形式上沒有男性標(biāo)志的詞意,人們習(xí)慣上把它們當(dāng)作是男性詞看待。
英語及其它講英語國家的人習(xí)慣認(rèn)為 professor, doctor, lawyer, surgeon, barrister, magistrate 等為男性,當(dāng)我們聽到有人說:My cousin is a professor 時(shí),多數(shù)人會(huì)斷定professor為男性。若要說明這些詞是女性的,一般可在前面加上woman, lady, female 等 修飾語。如:woman professor, lady doctor, female worker等,這些所謂的中性詞的用法從一個(gè)側(cè)面反映出舊社會(huì)中地位較高的職業(yè)為男子所壟斷,相反地teacher, nurse , secretary, model 等人們一般認(rèn)為是女性,如為男性時(shí)前面要加上male或是man,如:male nurse, man teacher。這些習(xí)慣除了歷史現(xiàn)實(shí)情況有關(guān),也可以說是一種社會(huì)偏見。
(二)詞語發(fā)展
首先,表面上對(duì)應(yīng)的詞,含義卻往往褒男貶女在英語中往往通過對(duì)女性名詞的惡化來達(dá)到性別歧視的目的。幾乎所有的女性名詞都帶有貶義,如queen, lady, mistress, madam等,其貶義為“雌貓”、“情婦”、以及“鴇母”等,而與之對(duì)應(yīng)的king, lord, master, father 等詞,如將他們的起首字母大寫即可升格為“上帝”、“基督”、“主”、“神”等意義。
其次,英語中常用一些動(dòng)物的名稱來指稱某些女性。
比如:bat(賤婦,丑婦,妓女);dog(丑婦,賤婦,沒有成就的女人,妓女);chicken(見面熟的年輕女人);cat(惡婦,包藏禍心的女人,可卑的女人);cow(子女多的女人,肥胖而不整潔的女人,經(jīng)常懷孕的女人,妓女);mutton(放蕩的女人,做少女打扮的老婦女,妓女)。
并且,英語中還有一些帶有輕蔑色彩,專指中老年婦女的詞匯。
比如:trot(老太婆);hen(愛管閑事或嘴碎的中年婦女);warhorse(粗聲大氣,肥胖固執(zhí)的女人);crone(干癟皺皮的老太婆);hag(愛做壞事的老丑婦);witch(老丑婦);biddy(長舌婦);harridan(面容枯槁,脾氣暴躁的老婦)。
(三)諺語運(yùn)用
理性類
宋朝黃六鴻《福惠全書,弄名部》載:“婦人水性楊花,焉得不為所動(dòng)”,詆毀女子“用情不專”,“缺乏理性”,在英語中就有相類似的諺語。
Long hair and short wit.(頭發(fā)長,見識(shí)短)
When an ass climbs a ladder, we may find wisdom in women.(若要女子有才智,除非毛驢攀上樹)
言及女子“感情游移”“二三其德”的有:
A woman’s mind and winter wind change a lot.(冬天里的風(fēng),女子的心胸---變化異常)
Women, wind and fortune are ever changing.(女子,風(fēng)向與命運(yùn),翻天覆地?zé)o常態(tài))
婚嫁類
A fair face is half a portion.(姿色艷,嫁妝半)
When the candles are out, all women are fair.(燭燈熄,無妍女)
Daughters and dead fish are no keeping wares.(女大不中留)
Marry your son when you will, your daughter when you can.(娶媳不忙,嫁女宜速)
There are many good women, it’s true;but they are in their graves.(世上好女實(shí)在多,可惜都在墳里臥)
He that has a white horse and a fair wife never wants trouble.(倘若妻俊馬俊,一世難得安靜)
性情類
一代文豪莎士比亞曾云:“弱者,你的名字是女人”(Frailty, your name is woman)弱女子的典型形象特征是“淚水漣漣”。
Woman is made to weep.(女子生來好哭)
Nothing dries so fast as a woman’s tears.(易干不過女子淚)
Woman is made of glass.(女子脆復(fù)弱,象是玻璃貨)
Glass and lasses are brittle wares.(少女嫩脆,瓷杯易碎)
(四)職業(yè)中的性別歧視
許多表示職業(yè)的名詞,如engineer ,pilot, scientist ,writer, doctor,pilot, scientist, engineer, pilot等對(duì)男女都適用,本來是中性詞匯,本身沒有性的區(qū)別。“由于歷史上男性長期占據(jù)社會(huì)主導(dǎo)地位,人們習(xí)慣把它們與男性聯(lián)系起來。”[3](P210)如要特別指女性從事相同職業(yè)時(shí),往往在前面加上female, woman lady, 從而使女性職業(yè)名詞在外在的形式上呈現(xiàn)出“有標(biāo)志性”,如woman doctor, female pilot, woman scientist, woman lawyer等。而行業(yè)名稱冠以男性標(biāo)記反而不符合語言習(xí)慣,但男保姆、男護(hù)士除外。只有一些地位較底的職業(yè),如nurse, secretary等,傳統(tǒng)上讓人聯(lián)想到女性,而與男性無緣。這種習(xí)慣除了與歷史和現(xiàn)實(shí)有關(guān),也可以說是一種性別歧視。
二、英語語言中性別歧視現(xiàn)象產(chǎn)生的原因
(一)、歷史原因
在西方文化傳統(tǒng)中,男性一直被認(rèn)為富于創(chuàng)造力。在《圣經(jīng)》里,創(chuàng)造世界的耶和華為男性,而耶和華創(chuàng)造的亞當(dāng)亦是男性,亞當(dāng)?shù)钠拮酉耐拗徊贿^是亞當(dāng)一條肋骨的衍化物,這一傳統(tǒng)觀念就把創(chuàng)造力固定在男人身上,后人便有了“男性的特質(zhì)是創(chuàng)造力的天賦”的說法。并且在圣經(jīng)《創(chuàng)世紀(jì)》關(guān)于上帝造人的神話成了語言起源學(xué)說的聯(lián)想依據(jù)。“在他們看來,既然上帝造
了亞當(dāng)這天下第一個(gè)男人,語言中的“性”范疇就應(yīng)將陽性置于首位。如果把兩者的順序顛倒過來,就不符合語言習(xí)慣。” [4](P132)英語語法并沒有規(guī)定“先男后女”的語序,但人們?cè)陂L期的言語習(xí)慣中,大都以男為先,女為后,女性只能是跟隨在男性后面的第二性別。男先女后的語序是如此常見,以至于反過來如說woman and man ,she or he等則會(huì)令人感到不習(xí)慣。
(二)、社會(huì)原因
性別歧視的根源可以追溯到史前時(shí)代男女所扮演的性別角色。由于男性的肌肉比女性肌肉發(fā)達(dá),又不生育,于是他們擔(dān)當(dāng)起打獵、耕作的角色,婦女體弱、要生育,所以負(fù)責(zé)照顧孩子、料理家庭、采集食物等。那時(shí),男女角色雖然不同,但還沒有一方價(jià)值高于另一方的觀念。“隨著社會(huì)生產(chǎn)力的不斷發(fā)展,男子逐漸從事更多的農(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)活動(dòng),占據(jù)了主導(dǎo)地位,婦女的地位隨供給食物能力的降低而下降。”[5](P113)到了中世紀(jì)時(shí)期,婦女由于能生養(yǎng)孩子,能為土地所有者生養(yǎng)合法繼承人,她們成了地主丈夫的寶貴財(cái)產(chǎn)。為了使婦女處于這樣的地位,統(tǒng)治者便借助法律令女性屈服和受制于丈夫,于是,各種約束婦女的各種社會(huì)規(guī)范和習(xí)俗開始形成。在漫長的父系社會(huì)里,婦女地位低下,依附男性,受制于男性,這種觀念逐漸根深蒂固,被人們視為理所當(dāng)然。直到二十世紀(jì),婦女的地位有了很大的改善,但是社會(huì)化偏見是在社會(huì)化的過程中,通過社會(huì)群體,父母,親友,伙伴的言傳身教和大眾傳媒(廣播,電影,電視,報(bào)紙)獲得的。人們對(duì)女性的歧視和偏見也是從父母,親友或群體的交往中直接獲得的,或通過大眾傳媒獲得的。在英語中,受傳統(tǒng)觀念的影響,對(duì)女性的語言歧視已經(jīng)成為了一種惡性循環(huán)。比如,人們一看到或聽到“virgin”和“prostitute”這兩個(gè)詞,首先想到的就是“處女”和“妓女”的意思,而很少想到它們還分別可用于指“處男”和“男娼”。
(三)、生理原因
記的有人寫道:在醫(yī)院的育嬰室里,每個(gè)剛出生的嬰兒的小床上都有說明性別的標(biāo)記,上面清楚寫著:“I am a boy”或“It is a girl”.這里男孩的稱呼是I, 而女孩卻用it。在嬰兒還不知道什么是語言時(shí),而在他們的身上已深深打上了文化和語言的印記。在英語中用男性物主代詞his指代包括女性在內(nèi)的任何人的現(xiàn)象也不勝枚舉。例如Has everyone completed his
assignment?還有Everyone should do his best on the exam.這里的his已經(jīng)包括了女性在內(nèi)。雖然女性享有就業(yè)、選舉、教育等等同男性一樣的權(quán)利,然而女性仍然處于社會(huì)的邊緣,被認(rèn)為是“弱者”(the weaker sex)和“他者”(the other);男性始終占據(jù)主導(dǎo)地位。” [6](P210)根據(jù)1980年的聯(lián)合國統(tǒng)計(jì),男性擁有世界資源的99%,而女性擁有的資源不到1%。“因此說,對(duì)女性的歧視與偏見有長期的社會(huì)歷史根源。”[6](P219)
三、消除英語語言中性別歧視的方法
隨著社會(huì)的發(fā)展和婦女社會(huì)地位的不斷提高,尤其是隨著美國女權(quán)運(yùn)動(dòng)的高漲,消除語言中的性別歧視的呼聲越來越高。這其中核心問題有兩個(gè):如何直接剔除語言中的性別歧視詞(sexist words);如何消除第三人稱代詞泛指而引起的性別歧視問題。我們從英語性別歧視詞的轉(zhuǎn)換方式和如何選用恰當(dāng)?shù)娜朔Q代詞來消除性別歧視問題的對(duì)策這幾個(gè)方面來進(jìn)行介紹和討論。
(一)、性別歧視詞轉(zhuǎn)換成無性別歧視詞(non-sexist words)的方法盡量使用那些包括兩性在內(nèi)的詞,即無性別歧視詞,例如:immigrant, voter, officer, coach, church member, grandparent, employee, testee, patriot, customers, dealer, clerk, civilian, politician, tutor, etc.2.以陰性詞綴-ess, ette, rix和enne 結(jié)尾的詞要避免使用并改成無性別歧視的詞綴:-or, an, er或ist。例如:actress →actor, administratrix →administrator ,suffragette →suffragist, usherette→ usher ,comedienne→ comedian.3.寫信時(shí),如果不知道收信人的具體性別時(shí),最好不要使用傳統(tǒng)的Dear Sir, Dear Gentleman, Dear Madam, 可用工作職稱代替以免出現(xiàn)差錯(cuò)。例如:Dear friends of the library, Dear Madams and Sirs, Dear personnel officer, Dear Committee Member, Dear Agent, Dear Director.(二)、規(guī)避第三人稱代詞泛指所引起的性別歧視問題的對(duì)策
1.采用復(fù)數(shù)形式
Sexist: When bathing a baby, never leave him unattended.Revised: When bathing a baby, never leave them unattended.2.用We/us/our改寫原句
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.改用第二人稱
Sexist: 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.改用被動(dòng)語態(tài)
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.用 he and she/ his and her ,但是使用的次數(shù)不宜太多,否則會(huì)造成用詞累贅。s/he僅僅可以用于備忘錄(memos),便條(notes),或者非正式的交談之中。
6.用名詞或上下文中用過的同義詞替代
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.采用交替使用陽性和陰性來達(dá)到平衡
例如: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.(三)、英語教學(xué)作用
在英語教學(xué)中向?qū)W生傳授新創(chuàng)立的中性表達(dá)法,學(xué)校和教師在語言的習(xí)得、文化的傳授中起著不可低估的作用。改變對(duì)女性的否定態(tài)度,語言的改革也是重要的一環(huán)。語言教師同樣也肩負(fù)著一份神圣的使命。在英語學(xué)習(xí)中,教師首先要規(guī)范自己的語言,在課堂上盡量避免帶有性別偏見的語句。然后,教師根據(jù)教學(xué)內(nèi)容把女權(quán)運(yùn)動(dòng)后英語中出現(xiàn)的新詞、新用法傳授給學(xué)生,有意識(shí)地加強(qiáng)性別平等的思想教育,讓學(xué)生了解英語國家的社會(huì)變化、語言動(dòng)態(tài)。應(yīng)該強(qiáng)調(diào)婦女不應(yīng)該被忽視。女人們每天在生活中仍然發(fā)揮著巨大的影響力。沒有女人就沒有男人的成功。女人們用自己的智慧竭盡全力使每個(gè)家庭生活更豐富多彩。
四、結(jié)論
在使用上面談到的方法、對(duì)策時(shí),我們一定要把握一個(gè)“度”,具體使用那一種方法、對(duì)策要取決于它能否使我們的寫作、會(huì)話順利進(jìn)行并達(dá)到預(yù)期的效果。“正如以前女性主義思想家認(rèn)為,女性與語言疏遠(yuǎn)太久,與她們的女性經(jīng)驗(yàn)疏遠(yuǎn)太久,使她們不能將自己的經(jīng)歷符號(hào)
化。”[7](P331)傳統(tǒng)的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)句法和確定的文類都代表父權(quán)制話語結(jié)構(gòu)。因此女性主義試圖找到新的語言和新的文學(xué)形式對(duì)女性現(xiàn)實(shí)做出反映。她們批評(píng)并激烈地改變既存語言,大膽地
進(jìn)行創(chuàng)作實(shí)驗(yàn),使用新詞、新拼寫、新語法結(jié)構(gòu)、新意象和新隱喻以遠(yuǎn)離父權(quán)語言的權(quán)威結(jié)構(gòu),為女性尋求一片新的話語空間。女性主義的口號(hào)之一就是“婦女通過語言獲得完全的解放”。而且,“語言是社會(huì)的一面鏡子,語言中所折射出的性別差異和性別歧視現(xiàn)象并不是由語言符號(hào)本身的自然屬性決定的,而是特定社會(huì)的價(jià)值觀念和民族思維方式在語言中的必然反映。”[8](P287)語言本身是中性的,但語言的使用者卻可以按照其社會(huì)觀念和價(jià)值觀念,賦予語言一定的語用色彩。若要消除語言包括人際稱謂系統(tǒng)中的性別歧視現(xiàn)象,首先需根除社會(huì)上存在的性別歧視觀念,語言的變革只有在社會(huì)變革的基礎(chǔ)上才能最終實(shí)現(xiàn)。
從以上論述可以看到女性要獲得自身的真正解放與不平等要做不懈努力。語言對(duì)社會(huì)的反映 經(jīng)歷了漫長的過程。舊的歧視清除了,新的歧視還會(huì)反映到語言中來。語言中性別歧視的真正消除,只能寄希望于在社會(huì)現(xiàn)實(shí)中,男女真正的平等。“索緒爾認(rèn)為語言不僅是交際工具,還是思想的載體,沒有語言作為載體和工具,人的思維也就無法發(fā)展。”[9](P267)性別歧視的改觀不能等待男權(quán)的施舍,要女性自我的覺醒,要女性自己的參與。在強(qiáng)勢(shì)和弱勢(shì)文化的交匯中,同樣需要弱勢(shì)文化自身的努力。強(qiáng)調(diào)性別差異的重要性是必要的,但它只是過渡性的,女性不能只作為女性說話,男性也不能只作為男性說話。要走出性歧視的誤區(qū),出路在于語言的中性化,而實(shí)現(xiàn)語言的中性化,在于不斷提高語言覺悟。因此,“女性運(yùn)動(dòng)要取得實(shí)質(zhì)性的進(jìn)展,不是依靠女性自身就能完成的,不僅需要世界范圍內(nèi)廣大女性的團(tuán)結(jié),更需要尋求作為人類另一半的男性的支持與配合,因此更有必要加強(qiáng)與男性的溝通和協(xié)商。”[10](P113)
參考文獻(xiàn)
[1] 鄧炎昌,劉潤清.語言與文化[M].北京:外語教學(xué)與研究出版社,1989。
[2] 蔣桂紅.諺語視野里的性別歧視[J].寧波大學(xué)學(xué)報(bào), 2004, 第1期。
[3] 朱伯通等譯.哥倫比亞美國文學(xué)史[M].成都:四川辭書出版社,1994。
[4] 穆鳳良,李秀萍.英語中的性歧視與中性化[J].外語與外語教學(xué),1998。
[6] 讓?雅克?盧梭.洪濤譯.論語言的起源[M].上海:上海人民出版社,2003。
[7] 王德春,孫汝建,姚遠(yuǎn).社會(huì)心理語言學(xué)[M].上海:上海外語教育出版社,1995。
[8] 柏子明.英語中的性別歧視及女權(quán)運(yùn)動(dòng)對(duì)英語的影響[J].四川外語學(xué)院學(xué)式化報(bào),1999。
[9](美)埃萊娜?肖瓦爾特.走向女權(quán)主義詩學(xué).《新女權(quán)批評(píng)》及序言[M].紐約:潘修恩圖書公司,1987。
[10]朱躍.論英語詞義的變化和使用所反映出的對(duì)婦女性別的歧視現(xiàn)象[J].四川外語學(xué)院,1995。
第三篇:論英語中的性別歧視
景德鎮(zhèn)陶瓷學(xué)院科技
藝術(shù)學(xué)院
本科生畢業(yè)論文(設(shè)計(jì))
題目:Sexism in English Vocabulary 學(xué) 號(hào): 姓 名: 院(系): 專 業(yè): 完成時(shí)間: 指導(dǎo)老師:
CONTENTS Acknowledgements…………………………………………..Abstract in Chinese…………………………………….Abstract in English…………………………………….1.Definition……………………………………………… 2.Sexism in word-formation methods………………..2.1 Suffixes………………………………………….2.2 Sexism in compound words……………………..3.Sxism in Naming and Addressing…………………..3.1 Sexism and Naming……………………………….3.1.1 Sexism in the first names………………..3.1.1.1 Derivation of Female Names from Male Names……..3.1.1.2 Sexism in Semantic Naming of First Names……….3.1.2 Sexism in the family names…………… 3.1.2.1 Patrilineal System of Family Names 3.1.2.2 Change of Female Family Names upon marriage 3.2 Sexism and Addressing……….3.2.1 Sexism in Addressing Terms…..3.2.1.1Female Social Titles upon Relationship with Male…
3.2.1.2 Derogation of Female Honorific Titles…………….3.2.1.3 Abusive Addressing Patterns………………..4.Sexism in Proverb and Slang……………………………..4.1 Sexism in Proverb…………………………………………… 4.2 Sexism in Slang……………………………………… 5.Conclusion……………………………………………………..6.Bibliography……………………………………………………
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My deepest gratitude goes first and foremost to Professor Hou Xiaohua,my supervisor,for her constant and inspiring guidance and encouragement.She has walked me through all the stages of writing of the thesis.Without her constant and illuminating instruction,this thesis could not have reached its present form.Second,i would like to expree my heartfelt gratitude to all the teachers who taught me when i have striving for my Bachelor Degree for their excellent lectures and inspiring ideas.Last, my thanks would go to my beloved family for their loving considerations and great confidence in me all through these years.I also owe my sincere gratitude to my friends and my fellow classmates who gave me their help and time in listening to me and helping me work out my problems during the difficult course of the thesis
摘要
英語不僅是一種語言工具,也是一種意識(shí)形態(tài)工具。性別歧視這一文化觀念反映在語言的詞匯學(xué)中。牛津高級(jí)字典是這樣解釋的:“不平等的對(duì)待人,尤其是對(duì)女性,因?yàn)樗齻兊男詣e”。本篇論文將從英語詞匯構(gòu)詞法、詞義、稱謂語及諺語和俚語分析英語詞匯中的性別歧視。所以對(duì)性別歧視了解的越多,避免的困難也就越多。這是很有實(shí)際意義的。關(guān)鍵詞:語言;英語詞匯;性別歧視
ABSTRACT
English is not only a language tool, but also an ideological tool.Vocabulary of the language can faithfully reflect the culture it serves such as sexism.The oxford advanced learner's dictionary explains it as below: the unfair treatment of people, especially women, because of their sex.This article will discuss sexism that exists in English lexicon in terms of word formation ,word meaning ,naming and addressing terms ,as well as proverb and slang terms.So the more you know it, the better you will avoid trouble.Therefore, the present research has important practical significances.Key words: language;English word;sexism;
1.Definition
Sexism,according to Oxford Advanced Learner?s English
-Chinese Dictionary is defined as prejudice or discrimination against people(esp.woman)because of their sex;and according to Longman Dictionary of Comtenporary English ,sexism is defined as ideas and believe that menbers of one(usually man)sex are more able and clever than theode of the other sex.It is manifest in all forms of behavior from subtle gestures and especially language to exploitation and oppression,and in all human institutions from the family to the multinational corporation(Paula S.Rothenberg 1988:21). It affirms the dominance of men over women,jnst as Rosemary Radford Ruether(1993:165)holds that“sexism is gender privilege of males over females.It is males primarily who have originated this form of oppression,benefited from it,and perpetuated it,legally and ideologically.”In this sense,it keeps women in second.classstatus,denies them their rights to control their own bodies,and denies personal,mental,and physical safety;it reinforces the false notion that any man who is gentle,flexible,compassionateor gay becomes“feminine”and thereby loses status and respect. 2.Sexism in word formation
Word formation is one of the elements in language from which we can find many examples of sexism.The most obvious one is the word “history”,which it combines words “his”and “story”.It claimed that the history belonged to man not the woman.In general,it is divided in to two categories,adding suffixes and compounding.2.1 Adding suffixes Adding-tress is common among words like ,actress,authoress,sculptress and waitress.Although it sometimes awarded some outlanding achievements of women,the importance of its role isn?t the same as man.For instance,we usually call a man of a general manager,rather than a general manageress.The highest rank of poet in British is Poet Laureate,which it award to every distinguished poet including both males and females.Howerever,rarly had it probably honored a poet of Poetess Laureate.Word like hostess is widely accepted by people in bar ,which its meaning had been degraded.The same as in the terms of JewessNegrss and Quakeress
The suffix of-ette includes three meanings.The first one aims at small size,such as “cigarette(香煙)” and “kitchenette(小廚房)”.The second level is artifical ,such as “Leatherette(人造皮)”.The third level derives from the last two meanings which discloses the oweakness of woman and subordinates to man.As a result ,it discininates against woman obviously.Woman are unfairly treated.Duing the turn of 19 century and 20 century ,“Suffragette”was frequently used by women who wanted to strive rights for women.However,the public and media used it with derogation.Words like aviatrix(女飛行員),executrix(女執(zhí)行官)and dominatrix(母夜叉)added the suffix of-trix,which all present an insular prejudice towards women.Women are so weak and fragile that they need obey to men.2.2 Sexism in compound words
In addition to sex discrimination in suffixes,compounding is a good example too.Take word-formationof common words made by “man” and “woman”for example.on one hand,there are a great many words with “man”,like human,policeman,chairman,businessman,sportsman,superman,mankind,postman,Englishman,airman,salesman,clergyman,kinsman,countryman,etc.Even the word “woman”is made up of “man.All these words should refer only to the male,while in fact,the meanings of these words also cover woman,which is obviously unfair to the female.Actually,this kind of words are regarded as masculine words in grammar.According to the point of view in English history,it inherits word-formation principle of Latin and old English in grammar gender.So such kinds of words empasize masculine in word structure.At the sametime,it also stresses that all things are done by the mmale, not the female in practical use.That is quite unfair to the female.On the other hand,in social life,pepole always regard women with discrimination.If a woman is engaged in noble cases,she will face much more difficulties than men.And the following meaning of words also show that the words made up of”woman”mainly emphasize the characteristics of women who are engaged in some kind of profession or belong to a certain of sector.For example,(1)Womankind: female human beings(2)Chairwoman: a woman presiding officer of an assembly meeting,committee or board(3)Womanpower:the power of woman physcial strength(4)Policewoman: a woman who is in a member of a police force(5)Womanhood:the state of being a woman;woman(6)Horsewoman:a woman horseback rider
3.Sexim in Naming and Addressing Spender(1985:24)notes: one of the features of English language practices which are inherently sexist is the use of naming and addressing terms.”Naming and addressing terms play an important role in interpersonal communication.They are continuously used in our daily life hence the social and cultualfactors encoded in them are very valuable for us to explore.3.1 Sexism and Naming
Naming system usually includes first name,middle name and family nam,such as “William Jefferson Clinton”.First name such as”William”in the example,is otherwise known as Chtistian name,forename or given name.Middle name like”Jefferson”in the example occurs betwwen the first name and family name as the second forename,and is usually represented by its capitalized initial letter and is often used in formal occassions.Family name is known as Surname,or last name,which is a name shared in common to identify the mumbers of a family,which is usuallyinheritedfrom the ascending generation on the paternal side,such as?Clinton”in the example.This part will discuss the sexist phenomena in the first and family name on the basis of the analysis of their semantic features.3.1.1 Sexism in the first names
Giving first name to the infant is one of the most important tasks.First name is truly a lifetime gift from parents;it helps define the children within the family,school and the outside word.Hence an analysis of sexism in first names is very significant.3.1.1.1 Derivation of Female Names from Male Names
In English lots of female names derivate from male names by adding affixes for example,Stephen-Stephanie,Dana-Dana.Affixs play an important role in the formation of female names.After researching affixes used to refer to female in English,Mills(1995:93)claims that those affixes lead to a view of women as a derivation from a male universal norm and the female form is seen as the marked term and the male as the unmarked term.Therefore,it is not a surprise that female names would have some consistent marker bias.Many female names derive of male ones by addingthe suffixes “-a”(or “-ia” due to phonetic reason), “e” and “-line” to them.like Albert and Alberta、、Alex and Alexa、Daniel and Danielle、Gabriel and Gabriell and Paul and Pauline etc.First corresponding with the above, research has shown that male names differ fromfemale ones in two major aspects.Firstly, male names are shorter in spelling than female names according to the research, There are many male names are formed with one syllable such as Jim, Fred, John, Bob and Jack, while only few female names are one syllable.Furthermore, fewer female names have three or more than three syllables, such as Roberta, Victoria and Amand.Part of the explanation of this study lies in the fact that many female names are originated from male names by adding one or more syllables.Secondly, male names are phonologically different from female ones.This thesis finds that majority of male names are ended with consonant phonetic symbol in which some male names end with the stops [d], [t], [k] such as Robert, Richard, Jack;while only two femalenames do, namely, Brooke and Jade.However, most of female names analyzed endedwith a vowel [i], [i:], [?], such as Mary and Anna, but only a few male names do so.Cutler argues(1990: 476), “Small vocal tracts such as [i], [i:], [?], which producehigh-pitched sounds, are typically possessed by smaller, weaker, less threateningbeings.” Therefore, the frequent use of [i] in such female names as Tracey, Mary andBonnie, and [?] in Rita, Selina and Lisa, reflects “smallness and lack of threat are heldto be desirable attributes of females”.Theoretically, the practice of deriving female names from male ones forms the contrast in which men are dominant and women are subordinate in society and meanwhile it is in accordance with the belief in Bible that woman was created from a rib of man.3.1.1.2 Sexism in Semantic Meaning of First Names
The names that people give their children show the hopes and dreams they have for them and also reflects their parents? hope and expectations for their children.So from their first names,we can know the different attitudes of parents to boys and girls.First names for girls and boys often reflect stereotyped features of feminity or.masculinity prevailing in a particular culture or society.It is undeniable that first names contain various connotations and this thesis will make an effort on the sexism in name?s connotation In our society the vast majority of first names carry clear feminine or masculine connotations.People no matter in the East or West attach great importance to marking the child?s sex when choosing a name for him or her.And in baby naming book, there might be two lists: one for girls and another for boys.According to it, parents are recommended to choose a name that identifies the child?s sex.Besides marking the sex of the child, first names for girls and boys often reflect stereotyped features of femininity and masculinity prevailing in culture.More female names contain the connotation associated with appearance while more male names contain connotation associated with wealth, power, wisdom and intelligence.It reflects the sexist expectaton that male should improve internal quality and female should pay more attention to external beauty.3.1.2 Sexism in Family Names
Family names are passed down from generation to generation, it symbolizes the blood relationship and development of a family.From the way of giving family names, it is not difficult to find the sexism.3.1.2.1 Patrilineal System of Family Names
When women were born, they were given their fathers? name and adopted their husbands? names upon marriage.It?s only sons who carry on their fathers? name forever, whereas women lost this capacity when they got married.This stresses the portrayal of women as the prosperity of men, passed from father to husband.They just have no freedom to own their own names.US Senator Hilary Clinton.Either way she names herself after a man- her father or her husband, or both.Children typically inherited their fathers? rather than their mothers? family names, which enables fathers but not mothers to achieve a direct continuity of naming from generation, provided they have sons.Even if there are only daughter, however the derivation of female forms from male names enables the transmission to continue.It?s very common for women in English-speaking countries to adapt their husbands? names upon they got married.Thus women are said to“marry into families and families are sad to ?die out? if an all-female” generation occurs.Thus, Spender comments:“Practically”, it means that women?s family names don?t count and there is one more device making women invisible.”
In the ceremony, the, the official asks,“ Who gives the bride away?”and the father answers.“I do”, or “Her mother and I do”, but that does not solve the problem inherent in the idea that a bride is something to be handed over from one man to another.3.1.2.2 Change of Female Family Names upon Marriage
When a woman is referred with her husband?s name, as in “Mrs.John Smith”, she is rendered both subordinate and invisible.For example, when a woman named Helen Keller marries to a man named John Fords, She is submerged by being called Mrs.John Fords.Even the woman is of high social status;it is the same with her.One of the candidates in 2008 Presidential Election of the United States of America, Hilary, the former president of Bill Clinton?s wife, kept her maiden name “Hilary Rodham” after marriage.But in order to help her husband in the election, she had to change her names.Though allegedly a feminist, she has shifted between naming herself Hilary Rodham, Hilary Rodham Clinton and Hilary Clinton.Despite the fact that some countries no longer legally require for women to adopt their husband?s names upon marriage, women who do not conform to this practice still face many practical and attitudinal obstacles.3.2 Sexism and Addressing
3.2.1 Sexism in Addressing Terms Addressing term is a mark that indentifies the relationship of people in social activities, which can present our ideal and social ties.It is used frequently in the communication.According to different criteria, address forms can be divided into different classifications.They can be divided into: social titles, occupational titles, endearments, abusive terms,kinship terms etc.3.2.1.1 Female Social Titles upon Relationship with Male Mr、Miss and Mrs are used frequently when we refers to address someone in social communication.All adult men are called Mr, however women have different addressing terms after they get married.As we know, marriage and age is private.The title of Mrs indicates that women are reluctant to disclose his marriage condition, which is unfair to women.In addition to this ,when adapting the Mrs, her family names do not belong to her own ,but her husbands?.“Iron Lady” Margaret Thatcher and Nobel Prize Lady Marie Curie did not change this condition.These two famous persons still surbodinated to men.人們?cè)谏鐣?huì)交往中稱呼某個(gè)男性或女性個(gè)體時(shí),最常使 用的是Mr、Miss 和Mrs。對(duì)所有成年男性都統(tǒng)稱為Mr,而對(duì)于 成年女性則有已婚和未婚的不同稱謂。眾所周知,婚姻和年齡 一直都是涉及到個(gè)人隱私的話題,而Mrs.這一稱謂公開宣布 了女性不愿意表明的婚姻狀況,讓女人永遠(yuǎn)都得不到和男人 能夠平起平坐的對(duì)待。更有甚者,當(dāng)使用Mrs.的時(shí)候,女性使 用的不是自己的姓氏,取而代之的是丈夫的姓,表明自己已經(jīng) 嫁給了某人,即使是一代名相“鐵娘子”撒切爾夫人和諾貝爾 物理獎(jiǎng)的居里夫人也沒有改變這種現(xiàn)象,這兩位女強(qiáng)人雖聞 名世界卻仍舊擺脫不了被的問題。這一語言現(xiàn)象正
是由于人們認(rèn)為男人是世界的主宰,而女人只是男人的附屬
3.2.1.2 Derogation of Female Honorific Titles
In the male-orienated society, people honor high stature to men solely, for instance chairman、spokesman and policeman.However when woman gets achievements in her career, she will be regarded as an example.Such as words, doctor、lawyer can both designate the same state or condition as it did for men.However,it is a convention for people classifying them into male-dominated society.for example, “master” and “mistress”.In an earlier society, master and mistress were simple male-female equivalents meaning “one who has control over or ownership of something or has control over another or others”.With the changing of society, “master” now generally refers to a man who has power over others or who has acquired skills in some field.But its feminine counterpart cannot be used in this way.It is practically restricted to its sense of “paramour”, a woman who a man has a sexual relationship with, but is not married to.For example, “He is a master of intricacies and academic politics”, and “Catherine declined to be his mistress, and returned to her husband”.3.2.1.3 Abusive Addressing Terms for Female
Abusive terms of address are unfriendly and insulting terms to address others;convey quite unpleasant affections.There are two major types of words that are most likely to serve as abusive addressing terms which females are humiliated.Examples of the first type are: “wanton” is used to address a woman who is immoral, lewd, and unchaste.The second type are associated with such words as ass, pig, rat, tigress, duckie, shrew, turkey, cow, goat which is closely connected with the figurative meanings of such foods, plants and animals.A.Foods The food terms have not escaped the process of derogation, which often associated with women show women?s passive image and subordinate status.The following are some examples: cheesecake—a picture of a naked lady;dumpling—short and fat women;mutton—indicating an elderly lady dressed up as a young girl in “mutton dressed(up)as lamb”;
sweet-pie—a mistress;tart—a prostitute or women behave frivolously or a woman considered to be sexually;B.Plants
Plants names are involved in addressing male or female.But the semantic prototype of male is a gigantic tree while that of female is flowers.Plants names are used to address females, they often have insulting meaning as follows: clinging vine—a woman who overly depends on a man emotionally;shrinking violet—a shy woman;wall flower—a woman who has no one to dance with.C.Animals
When you use an animal name for a female, usually they are smaller animals like “kitten”, “bunny”, “chick” which are more likely to become pejorative;and others like “chicken”, which more likely to acquire sexual suggestions.Male, however, are referred to as being a tiger, moose, or even as a bear to show aggressive masculine attribute and dominance to female.When you use an animal name for a female, usually they are smaller animals like “kitten”, “bunny”, “chick” which are more likely to become pejorative;and others like “chicken”, which more likely to acquire sexual suggestions.Male, however, are referred to as being a tiger, moose, or even as a bear to show aggressive masculine attribute and dominance to female.The following are examples:(a)For females bitch—a woman considered to be spiteful or overbearing or a lewd woman;butterfly—a showy or frivolous person(esp.a female);cat—a malicious or spiteful woman or an evil woman;chicken—prostitutes;(b)For males
goat—an old man who is sexually active or a lecherous man;loin—a brave, strong, or fiercely cruel person(usu.of males);tiger—a fierce, determined person(esp.males);wolf—a man given to paying unwanted sexual attention to women or a satyr.From the example discussed above, we could conclude that names of foods, plants and animals used to address female are sexist, because most of them humiliate female from the perspectives of appearance, personality and identity and meanwhile imply that female is inferior to male or easy to be obtained by male.4.Sexism in English proverbs
English proverbs reflect the social customs and cultural perceptions of the English-speaking countries.Since sexism is embodied in human culture, English proverbs unavoidably reflect sexist discrimination.This essay penetrates into sexism in English proverbs from three perspectives, namely status, personality flaws, and demands on women.4.1 Sexism in English proverb There are many proverbs that indicate women?s low condition in society and her vulnerability in family.The following examples are classified into three kinds a.Social status and family status Man, woman and devil are three degrees of comparison.(男人、女人和魔鬼,三個(gè)等級(jí)分貴賤。)If the husband be not at home, there is nobody.(丈 夫不在家,等于說沒人。)
A woman?s advice is never to seek.(女人的建議一文 不值。)A woman of no birth may marry into the purple.(夫榮 妻貴。)A woman, a dog and a walnut tree, the more you beat them, the better they?ll be.(拳腳之下出好妻,棍棒之下 有義犬,胡桃敲打多結(jié)果。)A man is a man though he have/has but a hose on his head.(家貧襪當(dāng)帽,仍是男子漢。)A man of straw is worth of a woman of gold.(稻草男 兒抵得上金玉女子。)A fair face is half a portion.(姿色顏,嫁妝半。)Since the acient time ,women were suppressed under the low social status and suffered a lot.They subordinated to men and acted as an animal for men beating.b.vulnerability characteristic(1)Women are fragile
Frailty , thy name is woman.(脆弱啊,你的名字是女 人。)Woman is made to weep.(女人生性愛流淚。)A woman and a glass are ever in danger.(女人易毀,玻璃易碎。)A woman is the weaker vessel.(女人是易碎的器皿。)It is no more pity to see a woman weep than to see a goose go bare foot.(女人哭如鵝光腳走路,根本不值得可憐。)(2)Women are changeable.A woman is a weather cock.(女人是風(fēng)向標(biāo)。)A winter weather and women’s thoughts change oft.(秋 天的云,女人的心—變化莫測。)Women are wavering as the wind.(女人心思猶如風(fēng)之多 變。)There’s nothing sooner dry than women’s tears.(什 么也沒有女人的眼淚干得快。)(3)Women are noisy and troublesome.A woman’s tongue is the last thing about her that dies.Where there are women and geese, there wants no noise.(哪有鵝和女人,哪不缺喧鬧聲)Foxes are all tail and women are all tongue.Three women and a goose make a market.(三個(gè)女人一只 鵝,市場里面鬧哄哄。)A woman’s tongue wags like a lamb’s tail.(女人饒 舌如同羔羊擺尾。)Words are women, deeds are men.(女人的嘴巴,男人的 行動(dòng)。)
(4)Women are deceptive, pretentious and evil.Every woman would rather be beautiful than good.(女 人愛美不重德。)Tell a woman she is fair, and she will soon turn fool.(跟女人講她長得漂亮,很快她就會(huì)暈頭轉(zhuǎn)向。)Bad woman are worse than bad men.Trust not a woman, when she weeps.Bad women can do more than the devil.Women are the devil’s nets.(女人是萬惡之源。)There is no devil so bad as a she-devil.(魔鬼當(dāng)中女 人最壞。)3.Traditonal requirments The smell of an onion from the mouth of the lovely is sweeter than that of a rose in the hand of the ugly.(美女口中蔥蒜臭,勝過丑女手中玫瑰香。)Husbands are in heaven whose wives scold not.(老婆 不嘮叨,丈夫就像生活在天堂里。)A simple maiden in her flower is worth a hundred coats of arms.(正值芳齡的純潔少女值一百枚勛章。)Beauty without virtue is like a rose without scent.(美而無德猶如花無香味。)Silence is the best ornament of a woman.(女子文靜,不須治容。)Maidens should be mild and meek, swift to hear, and slow to speak.(少女尚溫柔,多聽慢開口。)Modesty is the ornament of women.(穩(wěn)重為婦女增美。)A good wife and health are a man’s best wealth.(賢 妻與健康是丈夫最佳財(cái)富。)從古至今,女性都處在被觀賞和被品位的地位,在男性占主 導(dǎo)的社會(huì)中,女性被要求既要上得廳堂,又要下得廚房,既要有 貌,又要有德,既要純潔,又要賢淑。
第四篇:試析英語諺語中的性別歧視
最新英語專業(yè)全英原創(chuàng)畢業(yè)論文,都是近期寫作 從跨文化角度對(duì)品牌名稱的研究——以化妝品品牌為例 美國猶太文化與傳統(tǒng)猶太文化的沖突——淺析《再見吧,哥倫布》 3 英語習(xí)語陷阱及其學(xué)習(xí)策略 4 我看簡愛的愛情 《霧都孤兒》中的正邪兒童形象 6 《荊棘鳥》的女性主義解讀 文檔所公布均英語專業(yè)全英原創(chuàng)畢業(yè)論文。原創(chuàng)Q 175 567 12 48 Purity and Doom: on Thomas Hardy’s Tess’s of the d’Urbervilles 9 中國文化特色詞匯的音譯與中國文化的傳播 Hardy’s View of feminism from Sue Bridehead in Jude the Obscure 11 像魯濱遜一樣在逆境中創(chuàng)造精彩 12 論《推銷員之死》中威利的死因 13 歐·亨利作品中人生的真正意義 14 從美學(xué)角度淺談?dòng)⑽碾娪捌姆g 出人意料的結(jié)局和夸張-基于歐亨利的短篇小說《忙碌經(jīng)紀(jì)人的羅曼史》 16 主位推進(jìn)模式在語篇翻譯中的應(yīng)用 17 小議非語言交際中的身體語言 荒誕與抵抗——《局外人》中莫爾索的荒誕表現(xiàn)之原因分析 19 《少年派的奇幻漂流》電影中的隱喻與象征手法研究 20 《快樂王子》中的唯美主義 圣經(jīng)對(duì)J.K.羅琳創(chuàng)作《哈利?波特》的影響——對(duì)《哈利?波特與鳳凰社》的寫作手法及其宗主題的研究 英語與漢語中的稱謂研究 電影《聞香識(shí)女人》中弗蘭克的人物分析 A Probe Into the Translation of the Hot Cyber Word—“Geili” 25 從文化視角看《了不起的蓋茨比》中黛西的無辜 On the Causes of the Death of Willy Loman in Death of A Salesman 27 A Survey on Western Culture Learning among Non-English Majors 28 性別差異在日常英語詞匯和句法中的體現(xiàn) 29 經(jīng)典英語電影臺(tái)詞的語言特征和文化態(tài)度 30 淺析愛爾蘭詩人葉芝作品中的象征主義 31 《在路上》:垮掉一代的反叛與追求
《呼嘯山莊》男主人公希斯克里夫的性格分析 33 跨文化交際中的語用失誤與避免方法
A Masterpiece “Stolen” from the Past—Intertextuality Analysis of The Great Gatsby 35 從翻譯美學(xué)探究散文英譯 36 簡?愛性格魅力分析
旅游英語中的跨文化交際語用失誤分析 38 高級(jí)英語課堂中教師角色研究
英文商務(wù)信函的語言特點(diǎn)和寫作原則 40 簡愛性格魅力分析
從文化負(fù)載詞褒貶意義看中西文化差異 42 論《憤怒的葡萄》中的生態(tài)批評(píng)思想
淺析英語專業(yè)學(xué)生在聽力理解中的策略運(yùn)用 44 通過《荊棘鳥》來探究考琳麥卡洛的內(nèi)心世界 45 詞匯銜接手段在新聞?dòng)⒄Z中的應(yīng)用
淺析田納西?威廉斯劇作《欲望號(hào)街車》的同性戀傾向
The Symbolic Meaning of Setting and Characters in Howards End 48 A Humanistic Study on Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities 49 功能對(duì)等理論視角下的商務(wù)合同翻譯研究 50 從電影《阿凡達(dá)》透視美國文化
The Seven-Eighths of The Old Man and the Sea: an analysis of “Iceberg Theory” 52 文化差異對(duì)國際商務(wù)演講的影響 53 諧音現(xiàn)象促成因素及其啟示的研究
English-Chinese Advertisement Translation 55 論男權(quán)主義在圣經(jīng)語言中的體現(xiàn) 56 英文電影名漢譯中的功能對(duì)等 57 英語委婉語中的轉(zhuǎn)喻現(xiàn)象分析 58 英漢動(dòng)物詞匯隱喻意義的對(duì)比研究 59 教師在初中教學(xué)中對(duì)學(xué)生的評(píng)價(jià)
“I” and Rebecca--A Study on the Comparison of Two Female Characters in Rebecca 61 中國英語在中國文化輸出中的作用 62 中西方寒暄語簡要對(duì)比研究
試析《啊,拓荒者》中的生態(tài)倫理觀
合作學(xué)習(xí)在初中英語寫作教學(xué)中應(yīng)用的可行性研究 65 淺析《飄》中斯嘉麗的婚姻觀
《潛鳥》女主人公——皮格特托納爾悲劇的探析 67 英語詞匯教學(xué)方法探討
《蒼蠅》的敘事藝術(shù)及悲劇主題探究
英語中的漢語借詞折射出的中國對(duì)外關(guān)系史
托馬斯哈代與張愛玲作品中女性悲劇命運(yùn)對(duì)比研究——以苔絲和顧曼楨為例 71 淺析國際商務(wù)談判禮儀的文化差異 72 中西方文化中的節(jié)日比較
場獨(dú)立和場依存對(duì)不同主題閱讀材料的影響研究 74 To Foster Pupils’Interests in English Teaching 75 分析《霧都孤兒》中的諷刺手法
《寵兒》的黑人女性主義解讀(開題報(bào)告+論)77 《喜福會(huì)》中的象征主義
American Individualism and Its Reflection in the Film Erin Brockovich 79 淺析苔絲悲劇命運(yùn)的形成原因
The Emerging Tendency of Marketing—Network Marketing 81 A Study on the Cross-Cultural Management in the Sino-American Joint-Venture Enterprises--With Special Reference to Changan & Ford Motor Company 82 英語詞匯中的性別歧視 83 中華民族主義的新表現(xiàn):“中國威脅論”——構(gòu)建民族認(rèn)同的一種手段 84 An Analysis of Hamlet’s Delay of Revenge in Hamlet 85 布什總統(tǒng)演講詞中幽默話語的語用功能分析 86 淺析《小婦人》中喬的女性意識(shí)及其成長過程 87 Demystification of Model Minority Theory 88 淺析漢英翻譯中中式英語的現(xiàn)象 89 多媒體技術(shù)在早期英語教育中的應(yīng)用
網(wǎng)絡(luò)流行語翻譯評(píng)析——“神馬都是浮云”個(gè)案分析 91 剖析托尼?莫里森筆下的黑人世界 92 科技英語語篇中的語法隱喻研究
A Comparison of the English Color Terms 94 Translation Strategies of Chinese-specific Idioms 95 《乞力馬扎羅的雪》中的象征手法解析 96 從自然主義角度解讀《苔絲》的悲觀主義 97 從《喜福會(huì)》母女代溝看中西文化沖突
The Impact of Gender Differences on Language Learning Strategies 99 歐內(nèi)斯特?海明威《雨中貓》和田納西?威廉斯《熱鐵皮屋頂上的貓》中的女主人公的對(duì)比分析
《本杰明?富蘭克林自傳》和《嘉莉妹妹》美國夢(mèng)的對(duì)比研究 101 對(duì)《大地》中女性人物的生態(tài)女性主義解讀 102 DOTA游戲英雄名稱漢譯策略
The Comparison of Diet Culture between China and America 104 從目的論看《紅樓夢(mèng)》中成語的翻譯 105 公示語英譯錯(cuò)誤分析
論《傲骨賢妻》字幕翻譯中的歸化和異化策略 107 中西方對(duì)鬼怪認(rèn)識(shí)的差異
歸化和異化策略在《紅樓夢(mèng)》文化負(fù)載詞翻譯中的應(yīng)用 109 探析國際貿(mào)易中的跨文化風(fēng)險(xiǎn)
非英語專業(yè)學(xué)生學(xué)習(xí)英語的動(dòng)機(jī)和策略調(diào)查 111 圖式理論在高中英語閱讀中的運(yùn)用
電影《苔絲》的缺失——與原著《德伯家的苔絲》的比較 113 對(duì)《憤怒的葡萄》中圣經(jīng)原型的分析 114 論英漢植物詞語的文化附加義 115 論模糊限制語在廣告中的語用功能
On Alice Walker’s Womanism in The Color Purple 117 試析《假如明天來臨》的敘事藝術(shù)
The Analysis of the Double Character of Wuthering Heights’ Hero——Heathcliff 119
On the Disposal of Cultural Differences in the Translation 121 A Reflection upon American Heroism Based on Reviews of Hollywood Movies 122 奧斯卡.王爾德的美學(xué)觀點(diǎn)及其在《道連格雷的畫像》中的體現(xiàn) 123 從《艾瑪》看簡奧斯汀小說中的對(duì)話運(yùn)用 124 提高學(xué)生說英語的興趣和能力 125 英漢新詞形成因素研究
影響中學(xué)生英語學(xué)習(xí)的心理因素分析 127 鼓勵(lì)性教學(xué)方法在中學(xué)英語教學(xué)中的應(yīng)用 128 淺談在華跨國公司的本土化策略
從《去吧,摩西》中的“熊”看福克納對(duì)人性的探討
失敗的逃亡—從《麥田守望者》中主人公的逃亡看個(gè)人意識(shí)對(duì)社會(huì)的超越 131 網(wǎng)絡(luò)語言特色分析
論《野性的呼喚》的多重主題 133 新加坡英語和英國英語比較研究
英語畢業(yè)論文)從利益最大化的角度分析商務(wù)談判中的報(bào)價(jià)策略 135 奈達(dá)“功能對(duì)等”理論在中國電影片名英譯中的運(yùn)用分析 136 An Analysis of Gothic Features in Poe’s The Cask of Amontillado 137 中美個(gè)人理財(cái)規(guī)劃的對(duì)比分析
On the Translation of Children’s Literature in the Light of the Skopostheory:A Case Study of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 139 從電影《刮痧》看東西方文化差異
Study of the Translation of Flower Image in Chinese Classical Poetry 141 初中英語課堂教學(xué)師生互動(dòng)有效性研究 142 詩歌《飛鳥集》的意象評(píng)析 143 論大學(xué)英語口語課外活動(dòng)
A Contrastive Analysis of Chinese and English Address Terms 145 An Interpretation of Initiation Theme in Heart of Darkness 146 《傲慢與偏見》中的婚姻
Symbolic Meanings of Babel in The Dogs of Babel 148 A Study on Subtitle Translation of Legal Films 149 從《紅字》看霍桑的道德思想觀
On the Integrative Use of Multiple Teaching Methods in Middle School English Class 151 論企業(yè)對(duì)員工過度壓力的管理
152 從《一間自己的房間》看弗吉尼亞?伍爾夫的女性主義 153 英文諺語的文化場景在中譯文中的缺失與彌合 154 《了不起的蓋茨比》—美國夢(mèng)的破滅 155 毛澤東詩詞中典故翻譯的對(duì)比研究 156 從文化角度看中美家庭教育的差異 157 英文電影中俚語的翻譯策略
158 兩種文化中不同的生存希望——以電影《肖申克的救贖》和《活著》人物命運(yùn)分析為例
159 跨文化視角下研究英漢民俗詞語的不等值翻譯 160 中式英語成因之分析 161 英語語言中的性別歧視
162 淺談文化差異對(duì)國際商務(wù)談判的影響及對(duì)策 163 溫和的反叛者——論《小婦人》中的女性群像 164 論《荊棘鳥》中的女性意識(shí) 165 跨文化背景下的廣告翻譯技巧 166 文化負(fù)遷移對(duì)翻譯的影響
167 高中英語寫作中母語負(fù)遷移現(xiàn)象分析
168 A Comparative Study of Inversion between English and Chinese 169 中美籃球背后的青年文化 170 論《看不見的人》的主人公的心理成長歷程
171 天鵝的涅槃——以跨文化交際的角度解讀《喜福會(huì)》中母女關(guān)系 172 淺析愛倫坡《烏鴉》的語音象征 173近年來漢語中英語借詞的簡析
174 《憤怒的葡萄》中圣經(jīng)的象征和隱喻
175 從王爾德喜劇中的花花公子形象解讀王爾德信奉的紈绔主義 176 英漢基本顏色詞的文化內(nèi)涵對(duì)比及其翻譯
177 《紅字》中的丁梅斯代爾和齊靈渥斯誰更“惡”?
178 生命不息,奮斗不止——海明威小說中的英雄倫理觀和英雄形象研究 179 比較《百萬英鎊》和《阿Q正傳》 180 超音段特征對(duì)意義的影響 181 中英文化差異與翻譯策略
182 新聞?dòng)⒄Z中的委婉語及其翻譯策略 183 試析英語諺語中的性別歧視
184 簡?奧斯汀《諾桑覺寺》中人物對(duì)愛情和婚姻的不同態(tài)度 185 淺談商標(biāo)的特點(diǎn)及其翻譯 186 試論英語學(xué)習(xí)中的動(dòng)機(jī)
187 試究中國古詩詞英譯中的常用技巧—以《發(fā)如雪》為例
188 A Thousand Splendid Suns: from the Perspective of Initiation Story 189 企業(yè)英文簡介中的概念語法隱喻分析
190 以馬斯洛需求層次理論分析《傲慢與偏見》中的愛情婚姻觀 191 試析中英婚姻生活差異及其原因 192
193 紫色中女人意識(shí)的覺醒
194 論禮貌制約下You-attitude在英語商務(wù)信函中的用法 195 跨文化交際中的中西方時(shí)間觀念
196 跨文化交際中英語副語言的表現(xiàn)和交際功能
197 從《悲悼三部曲》看尤金?奧尼爾對(duì)古希臘悲劇的繼承性超越 198 論D.H.勞倫斯詩歌中的救贖意識(shí) 199 《呼嘯山莊》的哥特式傳統(tǒng)
第五篇:英語中對(duì)女性性別歧視語言的詞匯特征
英語中對(duì)女性性別歧視語言的詞匯特征
減小字體 增大字體 作者:張 娜 來源:考試周刊 發(fā)布
時(shí)間:2007-11-03 關(guān)鍵字:英語 女性 性別歧視 語言 詞匯
摘要:本文從熟語和人名兩個(gè)方面,運(yùn)用舉例、對(duì)比等方法,探討了英語中對(duì)女性性別歧視語言的詞匯特征。
關(guān)鍵詞:性別歧視 熟語 人名 詞匯特征引言
性別歧視是以性別為基礎(chǔ)而產(chǎn)生的一種歧視現(xiàn)象,是一個(gè)性別成員對(duì)另一個(gè)性別成員的歧視,既包括對(duì)女性的歧視,也包括對(duì)男性的歧視,實(shí)際上常指對(duì)女性的歧視。性別歧視反映在語言中就形成了語言性別歧視。語言中的性別歧視觀點(diǎn)是在揭示了語言的不對(duì)稱現(xiàn)象以后提出來的。語言學(xué)家們相信,受宗教法規(guī)、等級(jí)制度等制約的文化環(huán)境中的語言,反映的是男性世界圖景的本質(zhì)內(nèi)容—男性屬于中心地位,而女性的形象卻是殘缺不全。文化伴隨意義,語言國情學(xué)研究的一個(gè)重要方面是受民族文化制約(即形式上來表現(xiàn))的附屬義,主要包括潛在的感情色彩和評(píng)價(jià)色彩,兩者相互聯(lián)系,其總和概括地體現(xiàn)了人們對(duì)事物現(xiàn)象的褒貶態(tài)度(顧亦謹(jǐn),1991:23-4)。詞匯與社會(huì)發(fā)展的關(guān)系最密切,透過詞匯的文化伴隨意義,可以看到文化里滲透的性別歧視。本文將從熟語、人名兩個(gè)方面談?wù)動(dòng)⒄Z中對(duì)女性性別歧視語言的詞匯特征。女性性別歧視語言的詞匯特征
2.1熟語
熟語按其性質(zhì)可分成諺語、俗語等六類(王德春,1997:144)。本文僅討論前兩類。
2.1.1 諺語
諺語是人類智慧的結(jié)晶,語言簡潔的化身。語言學(xué)家把它形象地比喻為“民族之明鏡”,“語言活化石”(楊永林,1987:37)。諺語作為觀念文化的產(chǎn)物和語言的組成部分,無疑會(huì)折射出性別歧視的思想意識(shí)。
漢語里的“三個(gè)女人一臺(tái)戲”說的就是女人多嘴多舌,英語里也有類似的說法:Three women and a goose make a market.在英語諺語里,描寫女人多言的諺語似乎跟鵝結(jié)下了不解之緣。比如:Many women, many words;many geese, many turds(鵝的糞多,女人的話多);Where there are women and geese, there wants no noise(有女人有鵝,把耳朵都能吵破)。(徐超墀,1983)
夫妻關(guān)系中對(duì)女性歧視表現(xiàn)得尤為突出,比如:A woman, a dog and a walnut tree, the more you beat them, the better they are.(拳腳之下出好妻,棍棒之下有義犬,核樹敲打結(jié)果多。)The house goes mad when women gad.(女人愛閑蕩,一家亂紛紛。)Smoke, rain and a very crusty wife make a man weary of house and life.(煙熏、雨漏、潑辣婦,使人厭世家難住。)(徐超墀,1983)
2.1.2俗語
現(xiàn)代美國俗語里,對(duì)女性的性別歧視表現(xiàn)為把女人比作食物、植物、動(dòng)物。有些詞乍看挺美,但實(shí)際上語義雙關(guān)。這與女人的外貌、性別及年齡密切相關(guān)。隨著年齡的增長,容顏的蒼老,所用的詞也發(fā)生變化,含有輕蔑、諷刺、厭惡之意了。可見女人處在被供養(yǎng)、觀賞、品嘗和玩弄的地位,女性的重要性僅僅在于美麗、年輕和性方面。下面對(duì)“The book of slang”(1983)中出現(xiàn)的帶有對(duì)女性性別歧視的詞匯進(jìn)行分類。
2.1.2.1比喻食物
peach 桃子;漂亮女子;cherry櫻桃;處女;sweet-pie甜餡餅;情人;tart果餡餅;妓女;舉止輕佻的女子;cheesecake干酪餅;富于性感的裸體女人像;mutton羊肉;做少女打扮的老嫗;tomato西紅柿;妓女;漂亮女子
2.1.2.2比喻植物
blossom花;女人;daisy雛菊;漂亮姑娘;rose玫瑰;極其美麗可愛的女子;rosebud玫瑰花苞;漂亮姑娘;初入社交界的女子;clinging vine有藤蔓的植物;依賴男子的女子;wall flower墻頭花;舞會(huì)中無舞伴的女子;shrinking violet蜷縮的紫羅蘭;羞怯的女子。與此相反,男人的角色主動(dòng)、剛毅、果敢,難以想象有誰把男人與花朵聯(lián)系在一起。唯一能侮辱男人的就是罵他象個(gè)女人似的:pansy(三色紫羅蘭,無大丈夫氣的男子)
2.1.2.3比喻動(dòng)物
人們用動(dòng)物比喻男人和女人,并把自己的好惡和褒貶也帶進(jìn)了這種比喻。由動(dòng)物的形象及其比喻引起的聯(lián)想常能產(chǎn)生各種各樣受民族文化制約的附加意義。這種附加意義反映的就是民族心理特征以及民族風(fēng)俗和倫理道德觀念。
cat貓;心地惡毒的女人;bitch母狗;壞女人 淫婦;crone老母羊;干癟的老太婆;butterfly蝴蝶;輕浮的人(尤指女人);bat蝙蝠;妓女;dragon龍;嚴(yán)厲固執(zhí)的女人;heifer小母牛 漂亮姑娘; shrew地鼠;潑婦;悍婦。
美國作家Nilson.A.P.(1982)曾將女人的一生用chicken metaphor來描述,英文如下:In her youth, she is a chick, then she marries and begins feeling cooped up, so she goes to hen parties where she cackles with her friends.Then she has her brood and begins to henpeck her husband.Finally she turns into an old biddy.幼時(shí),她是一位可愛的小女孩,長大后結(jié)了婚,開始有種被關(guān)進(jìn)雞籠里個(gè)感覺,于是她去參加?jì)D女集會(huì),在那里唧唧喳喳與女友們說個(gè)沒完。再后來,生了孩子,開始象母雞啄米一樣無休止地譴責(zé)丈夫。最后,她成了一位十足的長舌婦。
這段話用一連串絕妙的雙關(guān)語,形象地描寫了女人的一生,其中幾個(gè)“關(guān)鍵詞”都與雞有關(guān)。如chick(小雞;小女孩;年輕的女子),coop(把雞關(guān)進(jìn)籠子;受束縛),cackle(母雞下蛋時(shí)咯咯叫;形容女人嘀嘀咕咕地講),hen parties(母雞群;婦女集會(huì)),brood((雞等)一窩;小孩),henpeck(雞啄米;“妻管嚴(yán)”),biddy(母雞;長舌婦)。
2.2人名
從表面看,人名只是人們用語言區(qū)別人的特定標(biāo)志,每個(gè)人名都有具體的確定所指,千萬個(gè)人名只是相區(qū)別的語言個(gè)體存在。實(shí)際上,無論是人名的外在形式還是內(nèi)在含義,都與相應(yīng)的社會(huì)文化緊密相關(guān)。(顧亦謹(jǐn),1991:77)
2.2.1名字的文化內(nèi)涵
2.2.1.1名字的含義
“人名是各族人民歷史的一部分,它們反映了各族人民的風(fēng)俗、信仰、希冀、向往和藝術(shù)創(chuàng)造以及它們與歷史的聯(lián)系(顧亦謹(jǐn),1991:77)”。因此,名字在一定程度上代表了社會(huì)的觀念,反映出父母對(duì)男孩、女孩的不同期望。人們普遍認(rèn)為女子名應(yīng)該表現(xiàn)出女性的美麗、溫柔與“賢妻良母”的氣質(zhì)(劉曉民,1998:89),所以女性常以花卉、小動(dòng)物和珠寶為名,以顯其嬌氣、嫩弱、依賴、愛惜、呵護(hù),供人欣賞、受人珍藏等被動(dòng)意味。如:花卉Rose, Lily, Violet;小動(dòng)物Faw, Salmon, Vanessa;珠寶Ruby, Jewel, Crystal, Diamond, Margaret等。
2.2.1.2名字的短暫性
女性在年幼時(shí),是父親的daughter,從父姓;長大了,就成了某某人的girl friend;結(jié)了婚,按照慣例,不僅要放棄姓,有時(shí)甚至是名字。當(dāng)婦女無權(quán)擁有自己的“姓氏”,無權(quán)擁有自己家族的“姓氏”時(shí),無形中就強(qiáng)化了女人是男人的財(cái)產(chǎn)這樣一種觀念(Spender D.,1985:24-5)。比如在美國,一個(gè)叫Mary William的女子和一個(gè)叫Henry James的男子結(jié)婚后,Mary William的名和姓完全被取消了,她從此被稱為Mrs James。丈夫死后,婦女仍得保留夫姓,若是再嫁,又得換后來丈夫的姓。
即使出了名,享有較高的社會(huì)地位,也沒有多大改變,如大名鼎鼎的英國前首相Mrs.Thatchel(撒切爾夫人),雖為鐵娘子,但人們也只知她是Mrs.Thatchel, 而真正的姓氏卻鮮為人知。上任美國總統(tǒng)Klinton的夫人原來也是一位婚后堅(jiān)持用娘家姓的“解放了的婦女”,為了幫助丈夫競選總統(tǒng),才改用夫姓。對(duì)她來說,這大概是為丈夫的事業(yè)所做的最尷尬的犧牲。更換姓名的傳統(tǒng),反映了美國女性是男人的附屬品,沒有選擇自己姓名的權(quán)利。
2.2.2名字的作用
在英語語言中對(duì)女性的性別歧視表現(xiàn)在一些表示女性和女孩名稱的詞,經(jīng)常被用來指稱一些令人厭惡的事物。如:南美洲有一種毒性很大的蜘蛛,交配后將雄蜘蛛吃掉,英語中稱其為black widow spider。
在美國,過去常以女性的名字來給颶風(fēng)命名。二戰(zhàn)期間,美國海陸軍氣象人員首次以女孩名字按字母順序?yàn)樘窖笊媳l(fā)的颶風(fēng)命名。該方法于1952年被美國氣象局采用。第一張颶風(fēng)名單為“Alice Barbara, Carol, Dolly, Edna, Florence, Gilda, Hazel, Irene, Jill, Katherine, Lucy, Mabel, Norma, Orpha, Queen, Rachel, Susie, Tina, Una, Vicky and Walis”。破壞性很大的颶風(fēng)稱為Hurricane Betty。氣象局用女孩名字命名颶風(fēng)的做法曾引起許多婦女的不滿和抗議,因?yàn)槊峙c颶風(fēng)雷同的女性受到了人們的取笑,并由此造成生活中的麻煩和苦惱(夏決芬、陳曉珊,1999:71)。
有些毒品的名稱也冠上了女性的名字。在Judith S.Neaman %26 Carole G.Silver寫的“A Thesaurus of Euphemisms”(1983)一書的“(服毒后的)幻覺與幻覺者“中,一共有20個(gè)詞語,其中5個(gè)用來描寫女性,1個(gè)描寫男性,中性14個(gè)。如用Mary, Mary Jane, Mary Anne, Mary Warner婉指大麻毒品marijuana;用 White Lady, Old Lady White 婉指可卡因毒品cocaine;用White Nurse, Miss Emma婉指毒品嗎啡morphine,而男性名稱婉指毒品的只有Boy一詞,人們用它婉指毒品海洛因heroin。
通過對(duì)女性名字用途的考察,我們也找到了女性受歧視的痕跡。
小結(jié)
本文從歧視女性這一角度,從熟語和人名兩個(gè)方面,運(yùn)用舉例、對(duì)比等方法探討了英語中對(duì)女性性別歧視語言的詞匯特征。性別歧視的研究對(duì)我們有很大的啟發(fā)。語言是用來表達(dá)思想的,它反映著操這種語言的民族的文化。學(xué)習(xí)語言,不僅要掌握語言符號(hào),還要掌握符號(hào)里蘊(yùn)涵的民族文化信息。只有這樣,才能真正掌握語言,充分發(fā)揮其交際工具的作用。
參考文獻(xiàn):
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