성별 대상어의 의미와 성별 분포와의 상관관계

The Correlation between the Pragmatic Meanings of Genderlects and the Distribution of Genderlects according to Gender - Focused on the Associated Vocabulary of Masculinity and Femininity -

남성성과 여성성은 문화적으로 만들어진 것이므로 자연적이지도 않고 본질적이지도 않다. 하지만 언중은 성별로 특정 속성, 자질을 가지고 있다고 여기고 있으며, 이러한 결과는 남성/여성다움의 연상어휘 목록으로 나타났다. 본고는 말뭉치 자료를 이용하여 실제 사용 예문을 분석하고, 이를 묘사대상별 빈도수에 의거, 분류를 한 결과, 남성다움과 여성다움의 어휘분포도에서 불균형스러운 모습을 볼 수 있었다. 이러한 연상어휘들이 갖는 특징은 의미가 비슷한 어휘쌍의 성별의미차를 분석한 결과에서도 나타났다. 남자다움에는 키, 체격, 골격 등 신체적 조건이 유표적인 남성상이 그려졌는데, 이는 초기산업사회 남성상과 일치하고 있어 현대의 사회변화와는 상관없이 고정관념처럼 자리 잡은 남성상을 반영하는 것이라 하겠다. 그리고 여성다움에는 외양 중시, 미성숙한 여성의 모습이 유표적으로 드러났는데, 이는 스스로 사랑하기보다는 사랑받기를 기다리는 수동적인 태도에서 외양 치장에 힘쓸 수밖에 없는 여성의 모습을담고 있는 것이다. 결국, 남성다움과 여성다움의 연상어휘들의 의미와 성별 분포도가갖는 상관관계를 살핀 결과, 전통적인 남성이데올로기 아래에서 나타난 여성, 남성의특징을 이 안에서도 확인할 수 있었다.

Masculinity and femininity are cultural products, so they are neither natural nor fundamental. However, men and women have different characteristics and qualities in terms of language speaking, and the difference is manifested by the list of vocabulary associated with masculinity/femininity. This study analyzed examples of such vocabulary sampled from corpuses and classified them according to frequency for each object of description, and found imbalance in the distribution of vocabulary associated with masculinity and femininity. That is, in vocabulary associated with masculinity men held an absolute or competitive advantage, but in vocabulary associated with femininity, not only women but also various objects including men, neutral persons and materials held an advantage. That is, compared to masculinity-related vocabulary, femininity-related vocabulary emphasized ‘gender’ less. This characteristic of vocabulary associated with femininity appeared also in the analysis of gender based difference in the meaning of word pairs. With regard to masculinity, men’s image marked with physical conditions such as height, physique and frame was described, and this image agreed with the masculine image in the early industrial society. This shows that vocabulary associated with masculinity reflects the masculine image settled as a fixed idea regardless of contemporary social changes. On the contrary, vocabulary associated with femininity revealed markedly the feminine image characterized by emphasis on outward appearance and immaturity. It described a woman as one who has to care about outward appearance in a passive attitude of waiting for being loved rather than loving actively. In conclusion, examining the correlation between the meanings of vocabulary associated with masculinity and femininity and the distribution of the vocabulary according to gender, we found that the pragmatic meanings of the vocabulary were similar to the characteristics of men and women observed under traditional male dominant ideology. This shows that it is nothing but an ideal to think that people may have masculine or feminine qualities according to their need regardless of their biological sex, and that it is necessary to assume the attitude of practicing various implications about surrounding femininity and masculinity in daily life.