Abstract
in virtues of an avowed descriptive objectivity and traditional authority, dictionary is potentially one of most dangerous carriers of cultural bias and prejudice. In guise of linguistic objectivity, modern dictionary then appears neutral to editorial preference, poetry, and politics. For who would expect such scholarly virtues to promote cultural prejudice? Just because of its authoritative status and influence, dictionary should be one of primary targets of investigations in public doublespeak. With this concern in mind, I systematically investigated unabridged Random House Dictionary of English Language (1966) for its use of masculine and feminine nouns and pronouns in illustrative sentences. I wanted to see whether RHD perpetuated sex-role stereotypes in illustrating neutral entry words and whether one gender was given more representation than the other. I was impressed with how a seemingly objective and politically neutral medium could so easily reinforce sex-role stereotypes and sexism. The deeprooted cultural cliches about men and women are represented in following sentences illustrating usage of neutral and innocuous entry words. The entry word is italicized in each sentence:
- Journal
- College English
- Published
- 1975-04-01
- DOI
- 10.2307/375488
- CompPile
- Open Access
- Closed
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