Speaker
Description
With the intensification of ageing in the world population, the attention to older adults has dramatically increased. Compared with numerous studies of ageing identity in newspapers, novels and social media, there is little focus on dictionaries. How is the image of older adults constructed in dictionaries, specifically in the Contemporary Chinese Dictionary (7th edition, CCD7)? Is bias against older people displayed? This study adopts content analysis, transitivity and interpersonal systems from the perspective of CDA to demonstrate the social perceptions of older people in CCD7. Results show a diverse and balanced portrayal of old age in CCD7. On the negative side, CCD7 produces the identity of frail and vulnerability, and reveals several stereotypes regarding older people, with old age being presented as the antithesis of active youth. On the positive side, CCD7 is quite unique in affirming the importance of older adults in the family. Furthermore, according to our analytical interpretation of the example sentences, care for older adults cannot be fully identified as being in poor health. Rather, such care is considered a social and familial responsibility, reflecting Chinese social perceptions of respect and care for older adults, who have worked for the society and devoted themselves to their families for many years. This inconsistency with the results of previous studies may stem from differences in both social ideology and the genre of discourse. This study has rich implications for dictionary compilation regarding the inclusion, definition of entry words, and the treatment of sentence examples. The statistical and analytical findings of this study may help dictionary compilers to be aware of the ageism and inequality implicit in biased expressions and thereby promote the use of more inclusive language in future dictionary making.
