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In:Lexical Variation and Knowledge Construction across Historical, Methodological, and Cultural Ecologies
Edited by Rossella Latorraca, Rita Calabrese, Jacqueline Aiello and Dirk Geeraerts
[Terminology and Lexicography Research and Practice 25] 2026
► pp. 242–257

Medical lexicon and gender ideologies in nineteenth-century British periodicals

The pathologisation of the female body and mind in The Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal (1805–1855)

 | “Roma Tre” University of Rome
This content is being prepared for publication; it may be subject to changes.
Abstract
This chapter examines the growth, in nineteenth-century Britain, of specialised medical lexicon closely connecting organs and physiological processes pertaining to the female reproductive system with various forms of mental insanity. The aim is to investigate how such lexical specialisation both reflected and construed discourses of female gender as enduringly diseased and irrational. Corpus linguistics methodology is applied to a sample of scientific articles concerning diverse pathological conditions affecting women, published in The Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal (1805–1855). By comparing results to data extracted from a corpus of articles not specifically focused on female diseases, this study aims to show how the terminology of feminine psychophysical pathology, disseminated through specialist publications, contributed to propagating gender ideologies and theories of femininity as physical and mental illness in itself.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Methodology
  • 3.Results
  • 4.Discussion and conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
References (31)
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