Sexism in the English Language - Essay Example

The male gender has many representations in language with such objects collectively used to allude to the phallus status of male superiority. On the other hand, the female gender has fewer representations of objects in language. Social constructivist refers to the basic choice and use of words in a language. It asserts that males and females choose their words differently only because they are their genders. Women are soft-spoken and mostly formal. They care about what people say about them and so they choose their words with caution. They do not use obscene words every quite often and always aspire for decency. Men, on the other hand, are bolder in expressing themselves. Their authoritative nature dictates that they are free to say anything without accountability. Therefore, unlike women, men are more obscene (Berlin, 2003).

Views of gender reveal imbalance and some aspects of bias. From this, it is evident that while males are made to exist independently, females do not. It is after the construction of the noun man that the prefix ‘wo’ is added. It is after creating the noun male that the prefix ‘fe’ is added.

Insulting terms present similar inconsistencies; the most common abusive words that women use against men are dogs and bastards. A dog is the most faithful animal on earth. In fact, in most cases, it is said to be a man’s best friend. It is therefore possible that the two share some traits. A bastard, on the other hand, is a human in all rights. The two abusive terms in closer look do not insult but simply refer to some aspects of being male. Men, on the other hand, occasionally use derogative words against women. Such insults as bitch, whore, and slut have been used. A bitch is a female dog and is completely unrelated to a woman. Comparing the two is thus insulting. A whore and a slut are two synonyms that imply that a woman is a prostitute. These abuses simply reduce women to their sexuality which is demeaning; women are more than that. However, the choice of insulting terms used by the two is related to the fact that women are not as abusive as men. Men are rough and authoritative in nature; they thus use abusive terms that show this. Women are weak and soft. The terms they thus use are similar.

Some other ways through which language show male dominance include the use of titles. A common phrase goes, ‘Mr begets Mrs’. A bachelor is an unmarried male. On the contrary, an unmarried female is called a bachelorette which is created from the male noun bachelor. A spinster is an independent name for an unmarried woman but this does not have a male name that corresponds to it.