Chinese characters, reflecting the synthesis of millennia of thought processes, demonstrate profound ambivalence toward women. The author examines combinations of Chinese characters and concludes that the "woman" radical is frequently linked with that which is negative, derogatory, greedy, wicked, while simultaneously conveying an impression of that which deserves respect. The etymological evidence for prejudice against women is associated with unresolved oedipal conflict and developmental lapses from the preoedipal phase. The implications are that such linguistic connections are not limited to Chinese characters and that perhaps that which is referred to as "unresolved" or "lapsed" is, in fact, part of the human condition. Thus, awe and fear of an object perceived preoedipally as omnipotent can be transformed, disguised, and sublimated, but continues to exert pressure on both character formation and human interaction.