Gender Studies

Question 1

Deficit theory

Answer 1

Women’s language is controlled to ensure that they are less assertive and more insecure

Lakoff - spotted general trends and pattern in women’s language

Hedging
Super politeness strategies
Mitigated imperatives and indirect proposals
Use hyper correct grammar
Use tag questions

SUPPORTING THEORIES

Keith and shuttleworth

Women - talk more than men, talk too much, are more polite, are indecisive/ more hesitant, complain and nag, ask more questions, support each other, are more cooperative

Men - swear more, don’t talk about emotions, talk about sport more, talk about women and machines the same way, insult each other, are competitive in conversation, speak with more authority, give me commands, interrupt more

CONTRADICTORY THEORIES

Janet holmes

• features of women’s language are used for multi faced reasons and not merely a sign of weakness

Tag questions not a sign of insecurity but:
A cooperative device to maintain convo and be polite
A coercive device to demonstrate authority

She stated language features like hedging and fillers have multiple features and it’s misleading to suggest they’re marks of indecision

Obarr and Atkins

Language differences are situation specific, relying on who has authority and power in a conversation

Suggests that lakoffs proposed female language features were not result of being a woman but of being powerless

Studied courtroom for 30 months

3 pairs identified and studied

Pair 1 - low power occupation - ambulance driver and old house wife = high frequency of women’s Lang features

Pair 2 - fell between 2 for features

Pair 3 - high power - doctor and policeman - low frequency of women’s Lang features

Question 2

Difference theory

Answer 2

Men and women have different sun cultures and therefore rules for language which causes a discrepancy in conversation
Tannens categories

Status vs support

Advice vs understanding

Orders vs proposals

SUPPORTING THEORY

John grey - men are from mars and women are from Venus

Argued that differences in language are due to biological differences between males and females that we fail to recognise and have merely forgotten about (based on pseudoscience)

Pilktington - studied male and female conversation in a bakery over a 9 month period

He found:

Women - talk to firm solidarity and maintain social relationships, agree frequently

Men - Men frequently disagree and challenge each other, men’s conversation is competitive to the point of verbal abuse, they take part and verbal spiring often using insults

Coates - female talk is essentially cooperative in the way that speakers help negotiate discussion and support each other’s talk

Kuiper - all male talk amongst members of a rugby team men used a few were face saving strategies and insult to express solidarity

CONTRADICTORY THEORY

Deborah Cameron - the myth of Mars and Venus

She dismisses the argument that languages of mass and females have potential biological basis

Gender is indirectly relevant status is more relevant

Evidence doesn’t support the proposition that women’s brains are less strongly lateralised language

Janet Hyde - the truth about gender differences - more stereotype than a truth men and women are basically alike

Question 3

Dominance theory

Answer 3

And mix sex conversations, men are more likely to interrupt and women

Zimmerman and West - Studied a small sample of conversations the subject of the recording Will white metal class under 35 they reported in 11 conversations between men and women men used 46 interruptions but women 2. Zimmerman and West State of men interrupt to dominance and conversation.

SUPPORTING THEORY

Dale spender - her argument is that in patriarchal societies men control language and it works in their favour

Meant to save themselves as the dominant gender disobedient women who failed to conform to their given inferior role are labelled as abnormal, promiscuous, neurotic or frigid

CONTRADICTORY THEORY

Obarr and Atkins - language differences of specific, relying on who has authority and power and conversations

– Remember this is the case study about the courtroom hearings between power and frequency of women’s language features from lackoff deficit theory

Some criticism of Zimmerman and West research that it could be down to personality of the speaker. Context dependent – could be excited to speak. Emergency.