Original research article
May 26, 2025
Open access

Gender stereotypes parameters in English-language media

E. A. Babenkova
E. A. Vasilkina
M. N. Mishina

Abstract

The study aims to identify ways to explicate gender roles and stereotypes of the femininity category in the media and print media as well as their impact on English-speaking society and culture. The article examines the ways in which linguistic tools form and reproduce existing gender stereotypes in the headlines and texts of the English-language media. The main focus of the research is on the ways in which the category of femininity is represented and the evolution of a woman image in an English-language publicist text. The traditional interpretation of this category in linguistic genderology meant mainly the presence of a pronounced labeling of the female image, and its subordination to the male structure of society. At the same time, the practical linguistic material of the last decade shows a clear tendency towards neutralizing gender differences in the categories of femininity and masculinity. The scientific novelty of the study is to describe the evolution of this phenomenon, which seems very relevant due to the lack of a diachronic research fulfilled on such vast material. It is especially important considering the social nature of the gender category and its dynamic structure. As a result, it is emphasized that the media not only support established ideas about gender roles, but also contribute to the emergence of new gender images determined by the socio-historical parameters of society. The diachronic analysis showed a clear semantic evolution of gender-labeled categories in the English-speaking linguistic consciousness, reflected in the information media space.

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