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从英语人名中看性别歧视OnSexisminEnglishPersonalNames 内容摘要 语言是社会的反映。作为历史久远的一个社会问题，性别歧视现象几乎存在于每个语言中，并反映了在男性统治下的社会中，女性对男性的依赖性，以及女性所受的歧视。随着现代化的到来和妇女解放运动的兴起，如何消除对女性的性别歧视受到了广大关注，并取得了一定进展。性别歧视在英语人名中的姓氏及个体名字上明显地表现出来，这一性别歧视有着历史，社会，宗教和文化等方面的原因。为消除英语人名中的性别歧视现象，以求在语言中真正实现男女平等，提出合适的策略将起着重要作用。英语社会在分配任务，活动，权利和义务时，在不同程度上都会因性别不同而有所区别。因此，英语人名中的性别歧视现象都是社会状况的再现，人们的大多数行为都是社会化的结果。因而，消除英语人名中的性别歧视现象的第一种策略是让两性在人名中得到平衡的体现。英语人名本质上是对社会的反映，单从语言学方面实现真正的平等只是空中楼阁。因此，消除英语人名中的性别歧视的第二种策略在于女性社会地位的提高。 关键词：性别歧视；英语；人名；女性 Abstract Languagealwaysreflectssociety.Asasocialproblemwithalonghistory,sexismexistsinalmosteverylanguage,reflectingthedependenceanddiscriminationfromwhichwomensufferinasocietydominatedbymen.Withtheadventofmodernizationandtheriseoffeminism,theissueofhowtoeliminatesexismagainstwomenhasattractedmoreandmoreattentionandmadesomeachievements.SexdiscriminationareshownclearlyonEnglisnsurnameandtheindividualname.Thiskindofsexdiscriminationhasitshistorical,social,religiousandculturalreasons.ToeliminateEnglishnamesofsexdiscriminationandrealizetheequalitybetweenmenandwomeninlanguage,itwillplayanimportantroletoputforwardappropriatestrategies.Linguisticsexismisafterallrootedinsocialreality.TheEnglishspeakingcommunitiesusesex,toonedegreeoranother,inallocatingtasks,activities,rights,andresponsibilities.Aslanguagesreflectsociety,sosexisminEnglishnamingisactuallyamirrorofthesocialconditions.Muchofpeople’sbehaviouristheresultofsocialization.Thus,thefirststrategyforsexisminEnglishnamingistostrivingforbalancednamingandaddressing.Englishnaming,inessence,isareflectionofsociety.Linguisticattemptstoachieverealequalityexclusivelyareemptytalk,sothesecondstrategytogetridofsexisminEnglishnamingliesintheimprovementofwomen’ssocialstatus. Keywords:sexism,English,naming,women22 Contents Introduction11.LinguisticSexismExistinginEnglish21.1 DefinitionofSexism31.2LiteratureReview42.SexisminEnglishPersonalNames62.1FamilyNames62.2PersonalNames83.TheOriginsofSexism93.1HistoricalOriginofSexism103.2SocialOriginofSexism113.2.1ReligiousPsychology123.2.2CulturalInfluence134.TheStrategiesofReformingSexism144.1StrivingforBalancedNamingandAddressing154.2ImprovingWomen’sSocialStatus—theBasicSolution17Conclusion19Notes21References2222 Introduction AnEnglishlinguistoncesaidthatlanguageloyallyreflectsnotonlyanation’shistoryandculture,butalsoitsgames,amusements,beliefsandbiases.Languageisthemirrorofthesociety.Allthephenomenainthesocietycanbefoundinlanguage.ThereexistssexinequalityinEnglishspeakingcommunities.Asaresult,wecanlocatesexismhereandthereinEnglish.Languageandgenderisapopularissueintheareaofsociolinguistics,thestudyoflinguisticbehaviorasdeterminedbysocialculturalfactors.Sociolinguisticsdidnotcomeintobeinguntiltheendofthe1960s.Butactually,peoplehadshownconcernforlanguageandgenderlongbeforesociolinguisticsappearedasadiscipline.Intheeighteenthcentury,WelshlinguistRowlandJonesstudiedmaleandfemalelanguageandclaimedthatthekeytothemysteryoflanguageistheOldTestamentfromtheBible.Heconcludedfromhisstudythatwomenwereinferiortomen,andalltheinequalitiesinlanguagesareabsolutelyjust.Sincetheearlytwentiethcentury,especiallysincethefeministmovementinthe1960swhichoriginatedinAmericaandthenspreadallovertheworld,therehavebeenchangesinattitudestowardsthelanguageandsexissue.Forexample,AliapublishedWomenandLanguagesin1984,whichhashaddirectlinguisticimpactonthesystematicstudyofsexandlanguageandisconsideredtheavant-guardinthisfield.Itgiveslinguisticallyspecificaccountswhichturn22 thestudyinthisareanotablytoareexaminationofboththedifferencesbetweenmen’sandwomen’slanguageandtobecontinuedassumptionthatmen’slanguageconstitutesthenormwhilewomenareprejudicedagainstinEnglish.Thecustomofnamingalwaysconnectswithone’ssex,caste,strength,orfeatures.Fromthenamingconventionofonesociety,wecaninsightintopeople’sattitudestobothgenders.ThenamingcustominEnglishlanguageisanimportantwindowthroughwhichwecanfindthatsomeimportantevidencessupporttheideaofgenderbiasinEnglishworld.Mostcommunitiesattachgreatimportancetomarkingthechild’ssexwhenchoosinganame.ThisthesiswilltrytoexplorethephenomenaofsexisminEnglishnames,itscausesanddiscussthemethodstoavoidit. 1.LinguisticSexismExistinginEnglish Inthewest,theexistenceofsexismhaslongbeennoticed,buttheawarenessofitremainedperceptualandvagueuntil1960swhenthefeministmovementtookplace.Theinitialperiodofstudiesmainlyconcentratesonthegenderlanguagedifferencesbetweenmalesandfemales.Globallyspeaking,theriseofsociolinguisticsinthemid-70sgavegreatimpetustothestudyofsexism.Currentstudiesinthisfieldhaveshifteditsfocusfromsinglelinguisticvariablestocontext-specificspeech,drawingonapproachesfromdiscourseanalysisandtheethnographyofcommunication.22 1.1 DefinitionofSexism Worksordictionariesindifferentareasdefinesexismindifferentperspectives:AccordingtotheNewOxfordDictionaryofEnglish,itmeans“unfairorunreasonablediscriminationbetweenthesexes,unreasonablemaintainingoftraditionalsexualroles”[1].Therefore,sexismisasystemofbeliefsandpracticesthataffirmthedominanceofmenoverwomen.Helgesonmakesamoreneutraldefinitiononsexismfrompsychologicalangle:theaffective(feeling)componentofone’sattitudetowardthesexcategoryorprejudicetowardpeoplebasedontheirsex.Linguisticsexismreferstovarioussexistphenomenainlanguageuse.AccordingtoCoatslinguisticsexismcanbeanyofthefollowingfourcategories:1)Languagethatfavorsonesexoveranother,e.g.Frailty,thynameiswoman;2)Languagethatbelittlesonesex,e.g.Marryyoursonwhenyouwill,yourdaughterwhenyoucan;3)Languagethatmakesonesexinvisible,e.g.Manisthehighestformoflifeonearth.Hissuperiorintelligence,combinedwithcertainphysicalcharacteristics,hasenabledmantoachievethingsthatareimpossibleforotheranimals;22 4)Languagethatmaskssexualdiscrimination,e.g.youknowboysareboys,butyoumustbeagoodlady[2].Inashortword,linguisticsexismcanbedefinedascertainkindofprejudiceorattitudeinlanguageuseongenders.Asamatteroffact,evenwemakesuchdivisions;linguistsstillcannotfindthesexistevidencesinlanguageexactlyandcomprehensively.Forsociolinguistics,languageisnotonlysemioticexpression,itisakindofpoliticizedlanguage,akindofculturalstereotype,powerideology,socialattitudes,orreflectionofakindofcognitivepatterns. 1.2LiteratureReview Concernwiththelinguistictreatmentandrepresentationofwomenissaidtobeacharacteristicofthesecondwaveofthewomen’smovementwhichstartedinlate1960sandearly1970s,mainlyinthewestofEnglishspeakingcountries.Feministscholarshipandinvestigationsintothesexisminlanguagestartedinthemid-1970s.Earlyworksonsexisminlanguageinvolveddocumentingthevariouswaysinwhichlanguagecouldbeunderstoodasbeingsexist.(Alia,1984;Kramarae,1985;Maggio,1987;Spender,1980)TheyhavepointedoutthattheEnglishlanguageisinherentlysexistbecauseitcarriescertainassumptionsaboutgenderroles.Theearlyworksinthelanguageandgenderwerecarriedoutatatimewhen22 womeninthewesternworldwerefightingfortheirequalityandliberation.Asaresult,lotsofattentionwasfocusedonthesexismreflectedinthelanguage,andthedevastatingsocialconsequencesofsuchalanguage(thelanguagethatdeprecatesandignoreswomenandatthesametimekeepsthemintheirlowsocialhierarchy).Theemergenceofthecurrentthoughtwithinacademiccircle—whichcanbelooselycalled“feminist/postmodernist”—ledtodifferentwaysofthinkingaboutgenderandtoafurtheremphasisontheimportanceoflanguageandlinguistictheory.Languagewasandisseenbymanyfeministsasapowerfulinstrumentofpatriarchy:forexample,feministDaleSpender,spokeoftheEnglishlanguageasbeing“man-made”andasbeinganimportantcontributortowomen’soppression(Spender,1980).Chinesescholar,ZhuWanjin(1992)analyzedsexismpracticesfromtheperspectiveoflexicology;BaiJiehong(2000)analyzedsexismfromtheculturalperspective;YangYonglin(2004)pointsoutthatsexismhavetwosenses:thenarrowsenseandthebroadsense.Admittedly,suchstudiesonlanguageandgenderarestillrareandtheirstudieshavenottoucheduponhowtoreduceoreliminatethesexisminlanguage.Moreover,littleworkhasbeencompletedonsexisminEnglishnaming. 2.SexisminEnglishPersonalNames Namingpracticesinvolvealotofissues.Names,titlesandothertermsof22 addressareapowerfulmeansofidentifyinganddescribingpeople.Dependingonthesocietyandthelanguage,namecanreflectaperson’ssex,ageoccupation,socialstatus,andgeographical,linguistic,religiousoraffiliation.Formostofus,anameismuchmorethanjustatagoralabel.Itisasymbol,whichstandsfortheuniquecombinationofcharacteristicsandattributesthandefineusasanindividual.Itistheclosestthingthatwehavetoshorthandfortheself-concept.Thevastmajorityofnamesofnamescarrydistinctfeminineormasculineconnotations. 2.1FamilyNames Whenwomenwereborn,theyweregiventheirfathers’nameandadoptedtheirhusbands’namesupontheirmarriage.It’sonlysonswhocancarryontheirfathers’nameforever,whereaswomenlostthiscapacitywhentheygotmarried.Thisstressestheportrayalofwomenastheprosperityofmen,passedfromfathertohusband.Theyjusthavenofreedomtoowntheirownnames.USSenatorHilaryRodhamClintonisagoodexample.Thoughallegedlyafeminist,shehasshiftedbetweenaddressingherselfHilaryRodham,HilaryRodhamClintonandHilaryClinton.Eitherwayshenamesherselfafteraman—herfatherorherhusband,orboth.Childrentypicallyinherittheirfathers’ratherthantheirmothers’familynames,whichenablesfathersbutnotmotherstoachieveadirectcontinuityof22 namingfromgeneration,providedtheyhavesons.Evenifthereareonlydaughter,howeverthederivationoffemaleformsfrommalenamesenablesthetransmissiontocontinue.It’sverycommonforwomeninEnglish–speakingcountriestoadapttheirhusbands’namesupontheygotmarried.Thuswomenaresaidto“marryintofamilies,andfamiliesaresaidto‘dieout’ifanall-female”generationoccurs.Thus,Spendercomments:“Practically,itmeansthatwomen’sfamilynamesdon’tcountandthereisonemoredevicemakingwomeninvisible.”Intheceremony,theofficialasks,“Whogivesthebrideaway?”andthefatheranswers.“Ido”,or“HermotherandIdo”,butthatdoesnotsolvetheprobleminherentintheideathatabrideissomethingtobehandedoverfromonemantoanother. 2.2PersonalNames Thenamesthatpeoplegivetheirchildrenshowthehopesanddreamstheyhaveforthemandalsopersonalnamesoftenreflecttheirparents’hopeandexpectationsfortheirchildren,sofromtheirpersonalnames,wecanknowthedifferentattitudesofparentstoboysandgirls.Personalnamesforgirlsandboysoftenreflectstereotypedfeaturesoffeminityormasculinityprevailinginaparticularcultureorsociety.Forexample,boysareoftengivensassociatedwithstrength,power,andheroismwhereasgirlshavenamesreflectinggraceand22 otherfemininevirtues.InBritishculture,girlsusuallyhavenamestakenfromsmall,aestheticallypleasingitem.So,womenmaybenamedaftervirtues:Faith,Hope,Charity,Patience,Patience,Prudence,Chastity;orVegetation:Rose,Lily,Rosalind,Violet,Flora,Phyllis,Iris,Heather,Olive,Myrtle;orcalendarunits:April,May,June,Spring,orminerals:Pearl,Beryl,Ruby,Amber,Jade,Crystal,Jet,Diamond,Margaret,Jewel,whichstressbeautyandelegance.Ruby,Jewel,Pearl,Esther,andStellameans“star”,Adameans“omament”andVanessameans,“Butterfly”However,menaremorelikelytobegivennameswithmeaningsofpowerandstrength.Forexample,Neilmeans,“champion”;Martinisfrom“Mars”,thegodofwar;Haroldmeans“Chiefofthearmy”;Richardmeans“strongking”andsoon.Researchhasalsoshownthoseboys’namesdifferphonologicallyfromgirls’beingshorterandendingfrequentlyinastop(p,t,k,etc.).InculturesusingIndo-Europeanlanguagesgirls’namesareoftenderivativeofboy’,andformedbyLatinatesuffixeswhichlengthenthename,oftenaddingavowelending.E.g.Roberta,Henrietta,Patricia.AnothercommonpracticefoundintheEnglishlanguageisthatofgivinggirlsnames,whicharediminutiveofmenorboys’names.InEnglish,thispracticehasgivenrisetosuchnamesasGeorginafromGeorge,GlendafromGlen,RobertafromRobert,ChristianafromChristine,JacquelinefromJacque,22 PaulinePaul,etc.Fromabove,wecanconcludethatnamingpracticesformenandwomendifferinmanyrespects,andthatmengenerallytakeprecedenceoverwomen. 3.TheOriginsofSexism WithregardtothecausesofsexisminEnglishnaming,itisbelievedthattherearethreepre-dominantfactorsattributingtothat:historicalbackground,socialroleandposition,andculturalinfluence.Bythehistoricalbackground,Iherebymeantheancientcodesandrecordsthatcarrythekeynoteofacultureincludingagenderideology.However,thesexisminEnglishnamingisafterallrootedinsocialreality,i.e.theimmediatesocialsituationandthebroadersocialfactors.Meanwhile,cultureinevitablyhasaninfluenceintheformingofsexisminnaming. 3.1HistoricalOriginofSexism Menandwomenshouldertheresponsibilityofthelivingandmultiplyingofhumanbeingsandtheconstructionanddevelopmentofthesociety.Infact,therearenostatusdifferencesbetweenthem.Nevertheless,inhistory,feudalistthoughtshaveoccupiedpeople’sthoughtsforalongtime.Asaresult,therewasalongperiodwhenmenenjoyedhigherstatusthanwomen.Theingrained22 conceptstillremainsinsomepeople’sheads,andhasleftamarkonnaming.Languagewasproducedfromandtogetherwithwork.Asaspecialsocialphenomenon,languagehasdirectrelationshipwithpeople’sproductiveandotheractivities.Nameisthewaytoaddresseachother.SincelatePrimevalAge,maleshaveoccupiedthedominantpositioninproductiveandmanyothersocialactivities.Theresultisthatmaleshavealwaysbeeninasuperiorandpriorstatustofemalesinpolitics,economy,cultureandsomeotherfieldsaswellastraditionalthoughts.Theyusuallyactedasthedictatoroffemalesinsociallives,whichisperhapstheoriginalcauseofsexisminEnglishnaming.Aboveall,sexismshouldbeoriginatedinthedifferentrolespeopleplayedintheancientsociety.Atthattime,livingconditionswereverybad,andpeoplewereconstantlyfightingwiththenature.Therefore,menandwomenwereassigneddifferenttasksaccordingtotheirphysiologicalcharacteristics.Thusmenseemedtoplayamoreimportantroleinthefamily.Littlebylittle,mennoticedtheirsuperiorityandbegantodiscriminate.Sosomenametermsreflectsthat. 3.2SocialOriginofSexism Insociety,thereexistdifferentkindsofsexismagainstwomen.Feministsallclaimthatweliveinapatriarchalsociety:asocietyofmen,ruledbymenandformen.Patriarchydepictsmenastheperfectnormagainstwhichwomenare22 measuredandfoundlacking.SimoneDeBeauvior(1990)[3],inheressayWomanasOtherwrote,“Sheisdefinedanddifferentiatedwithreferencetomanandnothewithreferencetoher;sheistheincidental,theinessentialasopposedtotheessential.HeistheSubject,theAbsolute--sheistheOther.”[3]Inthisculturewomenearnless,havelessright,andareinmanywayssecond-classcitizens.Women’scontributionstoworkinartsorliteratureandscienceareallundervalued.TheauthoranalyzessocialoriginofsexisminEnglishnamingfromthereligiouspsychologyandculturalinfluence. 3.2.1ReligiousPsychology Sexism,meaningthedegradingofwomentosecond-classstatusisrootedinreligion.MostEnglishspeakersbelieveinreligions,especiallyChristian.Goddoesnotrefusefemaledisciples,however,hedoesnotgivefemaledisciplesatthesamestatusasmalebelievers.Andmaleimageryisusedthroughoutreligioustextstoportrayallspiritualmatters,whereasfemaleimageryisusedpredominantlyinreferencetoearthlymatterssuchassexuality(positivesexuality─theimageofthevirginandnegativesexuality─theimageofthewhore).WomeninboththeOldandtheNewTestamentsofTheHolyBiblearelargelyinvisible:forinstance,Jacob’sdaughters,Rebecca,Lea,RachelandDina,arenotgivenamentioninrelationtoJesus’ancestors.Ifwomenareever22 mentionedinthetexts,theyareportrayedasthepropertyofamanormen.ItissaidintheHolyBiblethatthefirstsinisalsocommittedbythewomanwhowasseducedbytheserpentintoeatingandhavingthemaneatthefruitofthetreeoftheknowledgeofgoodandevil.Therefore,womanisalwaysrelatedtothetroubleandwickedness.TheHolyBibleisactuallyabookofmen.AsChristianityissuchapowerfulreligioninEnglish-spokencommunities,itisunreasonabletodenythishelpstosetandconsolidatetheinferiorpositionofwomen.Thus,religiouspsychologyisthereasontoleadthesexisminEnglishnaming. 3.2.2CulturalInfluence Languageisalsoakindofreflectionofculture.Thedifferentsocialrolesandpositionsofmenandwomenarealsoreflectedinculture.Womenhavelongbeenconsideredasthedependencyofmen,andtheywerethoughtsubordinatetomen.Mencreatedtheoutsideworldandthewholeuniverse.InOldEnglish,womanwasacompoundwordfromwifeandman.Accordingtowesterntradition,femalesshouldbekind,gentle,politeandemotional.Ontheotherhand,malesshouldbefirm,composed,decisiveandhardworking.Allthepeoplelearnfromtheoutsideandchoosethelanguagesuitablefortheirownsex.Socializationisanimportantwaywhichbeginsatbirth,shapingpersonstobehaveinappropriate,prescriptiveways.Muchofpeople’sbehaviouristhe22 resultofsocialization.Childrenlearnappropriatebehavioursthroughrolemodels,gamesandtoys,children’sliteratureandeducationalinstitutions.Individualslearntheirlanguageandculturelongbeforetheylearntothinkindependently.Childrenjustabsorbtheprejudiceagainstgirlandwomeninthesexismfirstreadersandtextbooksanddevelopaccordingtogenderstereotypingjustliketheirnames.Oneoftheprimaryrolesofeducationalsystemsinanycultureistosocializepeopleintodifferentrolesinthecultures.Oneofthemostpervasiveinfluencesistheliterature,orwritingsthatchildrenreadandthatothersreadtothem.Inthesechildren’sliterature,girlsandboysarefrequentlydepicteddifferently.Girlsaredepictedaskind,attentiveandserving,whileboysarepicturedasstrong.Thebasicdifferencebetweenthesexesissummedupas“boysdo”,and“Girlsare”.Socializationthroughthemassmediabeginsevenearlierthansocializationintheeducationalsystem.ThroughfairytalesandDisneymoviessuchasSnowWhiteandtheSevenDwarfsandCinderellachildrenlearnthatfemalessucceedbybeingbeautiful,obedient,passiveandsubordinatetomen;onlyinthiswaytheycanmarryandlivehappilyeverafter. 4.TheStrategiesofReformingSexism Aswomen’inferiorandsubordinatepositionswerereinforcedunderthe22 influenceofsexisminEnglishnaming.Womencannotachieverealequalitywithmenwithouttheeliminationoflinguisticsexism.Withthedevelopmentofthesociety,women’ssocialrolesareincreasinglyimportant.However,thesexisminlanguagestillexistswidely,whichhinderstheachievingofwomen’sequalitywithmen.So,itistimeforustoturnourattentiontohowreformlanguagetoachievelinguisticequality.Inthischaptertheauthorwilltendtodiscussthestrategiesofreformingsexismandfocuson:(1)strivingforbalancednamingandaddressing;(2)improvingwomen’ssocialstatus. 4.1StrivingforBalancedNamingandAddressing InEnglishgeneralcourtesytitlesforwomenrevealinformationaboutmaritalstatuswhereasthoseformendonot,“Missaddsurname”isgenerallyusedtorefertoaddressanunmarriedfemaleperson,irrespectiveofage,andthetitle“Mrs.addsurname”isusedtoaddressmarriedwomen,includingthosewhohavebeenmarried.Althoughtherearetwocourtesytitlesformales,“Mr.”and“Master”whichdistinguishmalesprimarilyintermsofage,onlyone,“Mr.”,isincommonuse.Men’scourtesytitlesdonotrevealinformationabouttheirmaritalstatus.Toachieverealequality,anewterm“Ms.”,whichisacombinationof“Miss”and“Mrs.”,wascoinedinthe1960s,whichismeanttofunctionasanexactcounterpartof“Mr.”.Sincethen,“Ms”hasbeenadoptedbywomenwhoobjecttohavingatitlethatismarkedformaritalstatus.However,22 theresultofthechangehasnotturnedouttobewhatwasexpected“Ms.”,insteadofreplacing“Miss”and“Mrs.”,becomesathirdwayofaddressingwomen.Inmostcasesitisusedtoaddressmarriedwomanandanintentionalavoidanceofthementioningofmarriageandhasofteninpracticebeenaddedtheconnotedmeaningtouseforawomenwhosemaritalstatusisindoubt,orforaseparated,divorcedorcohabitingwomansosomewhoareaddressedinthiswayfeeluneasyandtheyareresistanttosuchaddress.Pauwels(1998:135)suggestedthatabetteroptiontoaddressthegenderimbalancemightbetointroducenewtitlesformen,whichcouldprovidemoreinformationabout,forexample,maritalstatus.Anotherpossiblestrategyhasbeentoturneitherthecourtesytitle“Miss”and“Mrs.”Intoageneralcourtesytitleforwomenandtoabandontheothertitle.Surnamingpracticealsomarksaneraofconflictandchangeinhowwomenarenamed.ForcenturiesinEnglish—speakingcountries,thefemalememberofthecoupleassumedherhusband’ssurnameandbecomeamemberofherhusband’sfamilyaftermarriage.Inthiswaybothlinguisticallyandinrealitythewomanchangedorlostheridentity.Mostrecently,withthepurposeofstoppingnamingwomenintermsoftheirrelationshiptomen,therearisesconsiderablevariabilityastowhichsurnametheychooseaftermarriage:theymayremaintheirmaidennames,adoptalastnamewhichisahyphenatedhybridoftheirmaidennamesandtheirhusbands’name,takethefirstnameofaclosefemalefriendorrelativesuchasmotherasthenewfamilyname(forexample,Janet22 Robyn,ElizabethSarah),taketheirformerlastnamesasamiddlenamewhichiswrittenoutinfullortakesomeothernamesthatpurelyfromtheirimagination.(Kramarae,1985:54). 4.2ImprovingWomen’sSocialStatus—theBasicSolution Languagechangecanbeimplementedbyadjustingtheformortheimplicationoftheoriginal,asmentionedabove.However,thisisonlyanidealtheoreticalassumption.Languageisacomparativelystableobjectandmorepurelylinguisticattemptstochangearedoomedtofailure.RosalineMaggio,authorofTheNonsexistWordFinder:ADictionaryofGender-FreeUsage(1987:198)[4],comments:Itisalsonecessarytoacknowledgethattherecanbenosolutiontotheproblemofsexisminsocietyontheleveloflanguagealone.Usingtheword“secretary”inclusively,forexample,doesnotchangethefactthatonly1.6%ofAmericansecretariesaremen.Using“director”insteadof“directress”doesnotmeanawomanwillnecessarilyenjoythesameopportunitiestodayamanmight.Inthepastaswellasatpresent,marriagedoesmeanmoretoawomanthantoaman.Inthepast,womenhadlittleaccesstoworkandtheywereconsiderednoteligibletoworkoutside.Theywereunabletosupportthemselvesandinsomesense,theirmarriagedeterminedhowwelltheycouldlive,asisclearlyseeninJaneAustin’sPrideandPrejudice.Womendressedupandlearnttosing22 anddanceforthepurposeofattractingman’sattentionsothattheymightfindaneligiblehusband.Theywereinsomesensesubordinatetotheirhusband.Asmarriagewassoimportanttothem,therereallycameanecessitytomakeadifferentiation.ThatisthereasonwhytherewasnotasymmetriccounterpartofMr.Eventoday,inmostfamilies;menstillplayamoreimportantrole.Althoughwomencanworkoutside,ingeneral,theybringhomelesssalarythanmendo.Therefore,ahusbandisstillamoreprominentfigureinafamily.Nowadays,thoughwomenhavetakenpartinallfieldsofworkandhaveprovedcapableofdoinganythingmencando,somepositions,especiallythoseofhighranksareseldomheldbywomen.Womenneedthesameopportunitiesthatmenenjoy:equaleducationalandemploymentopportunitiesaswellasmoreequitabledomesticrelation.Ifjudgeships,surgicalappointments,nursingpositionsandprimaryschoolteachingassignmentsarejustaslikelytobeheldbywomenasbymen(orbymenasbywomen),ifinallmajorsocietalinstitutionswomenhaveequalaccesstopower,changewillfollow.OnlyifmenandwomenareequallyimportantinfamilyaswellasinsocietycanMs.beacceptedwithoutnewprejudice.Onlythisnametermscouldcontentnewmeanings.Selectingstrategiesforchangeshouldbeguidedbytheprincipleofsocialeffectivenessinadditiontolinguisticviability.Perhapsaweaknessofthestrategiesassociatedwithachievinglinguisticequalityisthattheyarepronetobeingregardedassimply‘surface’measures:changingoreliminatingcertain22 languageformsmaynotalwaysalterthelanguagepracticesinwhichtheyareembedded.Therefore,theeliminatingofsexisminnamingliesinsocialchange.Onlybychangingthesocialstructuretillonedaywhenwomenandmenholdreallyequalstatuscanlanguagebetrulyachieved.Asaresult,linguisticactionandsocialactionshouldbetakensynchronouslyforthepurposeofeliminatingsexisminlanguage. Conclusion Feminismhasbeenoneofthemainsocialmovementssincethe1960s,andthereisnodoubtthatthismovementwillcontinueinthiscentury.Itsinfluenceisfeltinmanysocietiesaroundtheworldandinmanyspheresoflife.Thewomen’sorfeministmovementstrives,amongotherthings,fortheeliminationofgenderdiscriminationandforthegreaterrecognitionofwomen’scontributiontosociety.Italsoaimstochangemanyculturalandsocialpracticesthatperpetuatepatriarchalvaluesystems.Languagewasandisseenbymanyfeministsasapowerfulinstrumentofpatriarchy.Asaconsequence,itisnotsurprisingthatlanguageanddiscoursepracticeswereandaresubjectedtofeministscrutiny,oftenleadingtoelaborateanddetaileddescriptionsofsexistpracticesinnaming.Selectingstrategiesforchangeshouldbeguidedbytheprincipleofsocialeffectivenessinadditiontolinguisticvariability.Perhapsaweaknessofthe22 strategiesassociatedwithachievinglinguisticequalityisthattheyarepronetobeingregardedassimply‘surface’measures:Strivingforbalancednamingandaddressing.Therefore,theeliminatingoflinguisticsexismliesinsocialchange.Onlybychangingthesocialstructuretillonedaywhenwomenandmenholdreallyequalstatuscanlanguageequalitybetrulyachieved.Therefore,linguisticactionshouldbetakensynchronouslyforthepurposeofeliminatingsexisminnaming.ThisthesisattemptstostudysexisminEnglishnaming.Asalways,thereisagreatdealtobedoneinthisarea.SinceverylimitedresearchhasbeencompletedonEnglishnames.Itisexpectedthatfutureworkinthisfieldwillofferconfirmationsandfurtherrefinement.ThefieldundoubtedlybenefitfromthegrowinginterestinthesociolinguisticanalysisofsexisminEnglishnaming. Notes [1]NewOxfordDictionaryofEnglish[Z].Beijing&Oxford:TheCommercialPress&OxfordsUniversityPress,1997:1378.[2]JenniferCoates.LanguageandGender:AReader[M].Oxford:Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress,1998:63.[3]DeBeauvior,Simone.“Womenandtheother”[A].D.Walder.(Ed)LiteratureintheModernWorld.[C].Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress,1990:28.[4]RosalieMaggioTheNonsexistWordFinder:ADictionaryofGender-FreeUsage[M].NewYork:Oryx,1987:198.[5]戴伟栋.语言性别差异分析综述[J].外国语,1983(6):39-42.[6]杨永林.社会语言学研究---功能.称谓.性别篇[M].上海:上海外语教育版社,2004:18.[7]SpenderDale.Man-madeLanguag[M].London:Routledege&KeganPaul,22 1980:200.[8]PauwelsAnlle.WomenChangingLanguag[M].London&NewYork:AddisonWesleyLongman,1998:135.[9]KramaraeC.andP.ATreichler,FeministDictionary:InourOwnWords[M].London:PandoraPress,1985:54.[10]RosalineMaggio.TheNonsexistWordFinder:ADictionaryofGender-FreeUsage[Z].NewYork:Oryx,1987:198. 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