Abstract Gender discrimination, generally speaking, means a gender bias, and  mainly refers to the discrimination against women.This discrimination exists in all aspects of our social life. During the development of society, men dominated the world in all ages. Language, as a means of communication, really demonstrates the uniqueness of human. Though language can not change people’s thinking, it can truly influence their outlook . Gender discrimination also reflects the dependence of women on men in the society under the rule of men.53655

     In 1960s, gender discrimination in English language became a heated research area for language researchers. Even today, it still attracts a large number of learners majoring in linguistics to do much research in this field. This paper focuses on the gender discrimination phenomenon existing in English syntax, vocabulary and proverbs in order to make a thorough study on the gender discrimination in English language. In addition, this paper analyses the causes of the gender discrimination from the aspects of history, society and culture. It also discusses some basic strategies to eliminate this kind of gender discrimination.

     The paper aims to remind us to avoid using sexist language in order to have a better communication with people in English-speaking countries and perfect the English language. Only in this way can we really realize the equality between men and women in language.

Keywords: gender discrimination; discrimination against women; English language 

摘要性别歧视，一般来说，是指一对个性别的偏见，而且主要是指对妇女的歧视。这种歧视存在于我们社会生活的方方面面。在社会的发展过程中，一直是由男性主宰着世界。语言作为沟通的一种手段，真正体现了人类的独特性。虽然语言不能决定人们的思维，它确实可以影响人们的世界观。性别歧视也反映了在男性主宰的社会中妇女对男性的依赖。

   上个世纪六十年代，英语中的性别歧视现象成了语言研究者们探究的热点领域。直到今天，它仍然吸引着大批语言学习者去大量研究这一领域。本文聚焦于英语中句法，词汇以及谚语中存在的性别歧视现象旨在深入研究英语中的性别歧视。此外，该文还从历史，社会，文化的角度探讨了性别歧视的起因，同时还提出了消除这种性别歧视的一些基本策略。

    为了更好地与英语国家的人们进行交流并完善英语这门语言，本文旨在提醒我们要避免使用带有性别歧视的语言。只有这样，我们才能实现男性和女性在语言上的平等。

毕业论文关键词：性别歧视；对女性的歧视；英语语言

Contents

1. Introduction 1

2. Literature Review 2

3. Phenomena of Gender Discrimination in English Language 4

3.1 Sexism in Proverbs 4

3.2 Sexism in Vocabulary 5

3.3 Sexism in Syntax 5

4. Causes of Gender Discrimination in English Language 6

4.1 Living Environment 6

4.2 Cultural Factors 8

4.3 Social Factors 10

5. Feasibilities of Reducing Linguistic Sexism 11

6. Conclusion 13

Works Cited 14

1. Introduction

     Language, as a complicated and emotional social phenomenon, is the most important tool for human beings to communicate and think .It can also reflect and convey thoughts, attitudes of people who have developed and used it for thousands of years. People use language to communicate ideas and formulate thoughts .Language tends to reflect social reality and is subjected to the restrictions of people’s living habits, thinking patterns, behavior norms, moral values, political concepts and cultural traditions. Consequently, it is considered as the existing form of thinking, even more ,as “the identity card” of thinking.