Week 2 Q#2

There is no doubt in my opinion that men and women use language differently. This chapter focused a lot on how language affects the way we see the world, and I think that the world is seen differently between men and women. The text talks about how gender roles effect language, and that language effects thinking. Throughout history, gender has been a huge factor in oppression and domination for women. Gender values differ for men and women in order for them to be socially accepted. Women generally place more emphasis on inclusion with their use of disclaimers, tag questions, and qualifiers. They want to make sure that nobody is offended in the interaction. I think it is safe to say that women were being seen as submissive because of their style of language. On the other hand, gender roles have appropriated masculinity to involve competitiveness and autonomy. Therefore language use by men is often evasive and directly to the point. With men wanting to talk about basics, and women wanting to talk about details, a gap in communication between men and women can occur.

The areas in which men and women use language differently can vary. The text talks about how women use language differently in an interpersonal relationship such as a husband or a wife. A husband may sit and wonder why his wife is nagging him about his day, while the woman is trying to use language and conversation to build a stronger relationship or bond to her husband. Women's cultural backgrounds provide them with a different use of language than men, and throughout history men's use of language has been deemed dominate or "better." The text suggests that this is changing, and that women's use of language is becoming more acceptable, but only time will tell if there can be a middle ground found in the construction of gender roles and the subsequent language differences.