Analytical Reading Essay: The Impact of Gender Bias in Language

This essay delves into the pervasive issue of gender bias within language, arguing that language is not merely a tool for expression but a reflection of societal ideologies, particularly those rooted in patriarchy. The author contends that language often reinforces male dominance and marginalizes women, citing examples of gendered expressions and the denial of female-generic terms. The essay explores how sexist language demeans women and promotes the idea that their worth is tied to their ability to satisfy men. It underscores the impact of biased language on societal expectations, personal beliefs, and the perpetuation of inequality. The author emphasizes the importance of recognizing and addressing these biases to foster social equality and create a more inclusive linguistic environment.

Running head: ANALYTICAL READING
Analytical Reading
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While often people believe that language is a mere instrument of expressing one’s
opinions and thoughts, it is far more than that. Language reflects the ideology of a society one
lives in, and thus if the society is ideologically biased towards one group of audience, so will its
language be. While a society is accused of being patriarchal and biased towards male interests, it
often goes unnoticed how the language construction in a patriarchal society also seems to pass on
the power and authority to the men only.
First of all, even though the world has emerged to be much more liberal than before, it
goes without saying that the language still continues to reflect male interests, making women
absolutely subservient to the men. It is no wonder that people still use expressions such as “man
up” or “hey guys”, while addressing people that include both men and women, and yet there is
no female-generic expressions, that can voice their interests. Since the beginning of mankind,
every form of power and authority has been unquestionably given to men, and the women have
failed to voice their interests, choices and opinions. However, at present, even though people
have become much liberal, complete social equality can never be accomplished without the
language being neutral and unbiased (Litosseliti, 2014). While people at most of the times
dismiss the importance of paying attention to such essentially patriarchal discourse, it should be
noted that language is an ideological instrument used by patriarchy to promote the interests of
men, establish their superiority, making women forever subservient to men. After all, how can a
woman think of voicing her interests and ventilating her opinions, when her very “existence” is
not acknowledged in the language she speaks? The words “Fireman” or “Postman” clearly
establish the importance the society attaches to male existence, and male superiority, and women
still struggle to find a female-generic expressions for explaining their interests (Kleinman, 2002).
If a language believes in subordinating women, it is no wonder that female interests of the

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women are still overlooked in the society, allowing ruthless women oppression, unequal pay for
the same work, and continual coercion of women. It should be remembered that the personal
beliefs, ideals and attitudes of every person in a society is determined by the language one uses,
and the continual use of such biased language only helps in promoting male interests, and
distorting the societal expectations of men and women, in a patriarchal set up. As long as women
are treated as the ‘other’ in the language, they will fail to carve out a distinct identity for
themselves.
Apart from the denial of existence to women in an inherently patriarchal language, it is
also important to note how people often employ the use of sexist language, that also serves to
demean women, and make them a laughing stock, or reinforce their subordination to men. It is
no wonder, how the current US President Donald Trump has often commended on the marital
life of a female reporter, stating that her physical unattractiveness accounts for her marriage
failure (Denton, 2017). While such ideas voiced through a sexist language are essentially
unprofessional, it also intends to promote the idea that the worth of a woman is completely based
on her ability to sexually satisfy the lust of a man. Often the worth of a woman is belittled or
abased, without even the speaker comprehending the possible consequence his or her utterance
might have on the society one lives in, For example, often people would say – “You should man
up”, and would use it to imply that the person spoken tom should gather up the courage required
to do a particular task. No matter, how harmless the speaker’s intentions might be, s/he ends up
stating that strong virtues such as courage or audacity to accomplish something should be
essentially connected with male identity, and that a woman or a female identity cannot be as
courageous as her male counterpart be (Tumulty, 2015). Thus, the very fabric of language seems
to be very sexist, constructed in a way, that even if the speaker does not deliberately try to

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belittle the opposite sex, in the manner of Trump, he will eventually end up doing the same. It is
no wonder that often words like “eye-candy” are associated with women, and not with men,
simply because women are believed to be potential charmers and passive agents, whose
existence revolves around pleasing the eyes of men, rather than assuming any active role.
Words are powerful, and the language is a form of social discourse that determines how
the social relations are being interpreted, and hence it is highly important to ensure the language
a child learns each day does not distort his opinions, and create ideological perceptions, that only
serve the male interests.

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Reference List:
Denton, R. E. (2017). Issues of Gender in the 2016 Presidential Campaign. In The 2016 US
Presidential Campaign 179-203. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham.
Kleinman, S. (2002). Essay: Why sexist language matters. Qualitative Sociology, 25(2), 299-304.
Litosseliti, L. (2014). Gender and language theory and practice. Routledge.
Tumulty, K. (2015). Donald Trump's history of flippant misogyny becomes part of his brand.
The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved from http://www.smh.com.au/world/donald-
trumps-history-of-flippant-misogyny-becomes-part-of-his-brand-20150809-giv7k2.html