A Sociolinguistic Analysis of Selected British Women Proverbs

Abstract

The study investigates women status and position in society. A number of British proverbs are selected for analysis to discover how women are represented in the English society. Language functions as a means for the expression of culture. It also functions as: a social regulator, a means of self- expression, a means of doing things, and a means of thought as well. So being the case, this influential manipulation of language is the key for any society to survive. Nothing can define culture as obviously as its language since it sums up a society's attitudes, values, beliefs and thoughts. Especially based on the idea that proverbs represent the verbal expression of folk culture, the present study probes the role of proverbs in reflecting the beliefs, attitudes, mores, and social values of different cultures. It aims at investigating whether proverbs can be used to mirror and maintain women subordinate or secondary position in the British society.