Gender political correctness in German (on the material of political leaders public performances)

Abstract

The issue of gender equality is currently being studied on the basis of different languages and from various positions, most intensively from the point of view of language policy. In this case, we are talking about the choice of language tools in oral or written speech that allow to unambiguously reflect gender and the social role of the named person. The word-building capabilities of the German language, in particular suffixation and substantiation, represent a significant potential for creating gender-correct lexical units. The main objective of the study was to identify lexical means of expressing political correctness in the speech of representatives of various political parties of Germany (Christian Democratic Union, Christian Social Union, Social Democratic Party of Germany, Free Democratic Party, Green Party, Left Party, Alternative for Germany) in close interconnection with extralinguistic factors. In the research process, the continuous sampling method, semantic, contextual, and statistical analysis were used, which made it possible to identify units with a gender marking. Based on semantic attributes, the identified lexemes were classified into four groups: feminitives, gender-neutral, gender-asymmetric, and gender-symmetric units. The analysis shows the changes in the German language towards gender equality. The main tendency of this process is feminization, the signs of which are found primarily in the language of female politicians, which also reflects the national-cultural specificity of the modern German language.