Gender and Language

By Moazzam Ali

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Gender as a Social Construct

• GENDER is a construct that owes its creation to

a number of social institutions. Some of these
include family, educational institutions,
judiciary, religion, etc. In recent times, the
media has emerged as a powerful constitutive
agent of gender-related ideas and notions.
Gender as a Social Construct

• Gender, unlike sex which is based on biological

division and is specific in character, is more
amorphous in nature and is subject to change
with reference to context and time.
Gender and Sex

• Gender is a social construct whereas Sex is a

biological term referring to the anatomical
difference between a male and female.
• Gender is a political view of sex that is based on
the binary division of male and female. This
binary division apparently looks natural. The
problem with this division, however, starts when
one thing is considered inferior to the other
which is regarded as superior.
Gender and Sex

Chanter (2006) states:

• ―That is, biology, anatomy, physiology, nature,
DNA structure, genetics, materiality, ‗the body‘— or
however one expresses it – comes before, logically
or chronologically. Social structures, gendered
roles, historically gendered expectations and
preconceptions, cultural mores, prescriptions and
taboos on sexual behavior, and so on‖. Chanter,
2006, pg 43)
• So, we may say that, a biological given, sex (i.e., boy,
girl, man and woman) provides the basis for
constructing a social category which is called gender
(attributes of masculinity and femininity).
Language and gender

• In almost all societies and cultures, people usually

believe that men and women differ in their linguistic
behavior. There is a large literature available which
tries to explain the gender differentiation of
linguistic behaviour in different societies, cultures
and speech communities.
• Language and gender constitute society. Language
used by one gender is often, very different from the
one, used by the other gender. It is often claimed
that language is discriminatory against woman. In
spite of much progress in women’s rights, women
are still not equal to men. They are not provided
with equal opportunities of speaking and
communicating.
Language and gender

• John Stuart Mill (1869) writes:

• ‗What it is to be a boy, to grow in the belief that
without any merit or exertion of his own, by the
mere fact of being born a male he is by right the
superior of all of an entire half of the human race‘
(John Stuart Mill 1869, cited Romaine 2000, pg
104)
• Feminist theorists put a great effort to fight against
the traditional gender ideologies and to overcome
naturalizing claims about women’s innate inferiority
to men or female irrationality (Chanter, 2006, pg 8)
Language and Gender
• The differences that are found in two different forms of
language used by men and women are known as gender-
preferential differences (Coates, 1986, p.40). These gender
preferential differences distinctly reflect the various attitudes
adopted by societies towards male and female gender.
• Rochefort, one of the first Europeans who made a contact
with Carib tribe, comments about them,―The men have great
many expressions peculiar to them, which the women
understand but never pronounce themselves. On the other
hand, women have words and phrases which the men never
use or they would be laughed to scorn. Thus it happens that
in their conversations it often seems as if women have
another language than the men.‖ (Rochefort 1665, cited
Trudgill 1987: 79)
Language and Gender
• In Living Language (p. 222), George Keith and
John Shuttleworth record suggestions that:
• women - talk more than men, talk too much, are
more polite, are indecisive/hesitant, complain and
nag, ask more questions, support each other, are
more co-operative, whereas
• men - swear more, don't talk about emotions, talk
about sport more, talk about women and machines
in the same way, insult each other frequently, are
competitive in conversation, dominate conversation,
speak with more authority, give more commands,
interrupt more.
Lakoff’s Views about Gender and
Language
• Women use more…

• Hedges: using phrases like “sort of”, “kind of”, “it seems like", and
so on.
• (super)polite forms: “Would you mind...”,“I'd appreciate it if...”, “...if
you don't mind”.
• tag questions: “You're going to dinner, aren't you?”
• Intonational emphasis equal to underlining words - so, very, quite.
• empty adjectives: divine, lovely, adorable, and so on
• hypercorrect grammar and pronunciation: English prestige
grammar and clear enunciation.
• direct quotation: men paraphrase more often.
• question intonation in declarative statements: women make
declarative statements into questions by raising the pitch of their
voice at the end of a statement, expressing uncertainty. For
example, “What school do you attend? Eton College?”
• Have a special lexicon: women use more words for things like
colours, men for sports.
Lakoff’s Views about Gender and
Language

• Women…

• Use “wh-” imperatives: (such as, “Why don't you open the door?”)
• Speak less frequently
• Overuse qualifiers: (for example, “I Think that...”)
• Apologise more: (for instance, “I'm sorry, but I think that...”)
• Use modal constructions: (such as can, would, should, ought -
“Should we turn up the heat?”)
• Avoid coarse language or expletives
• Use indirect commands and requests: (for example, “My, isn't it cold
in here?” - really a request to turn the heat on or close a window)
• Use more intensifiers: especially so and very (for instance, “I am so
glad you came!”)
• Lack a sense of humour: women do not tell jokes well and often
don't understand the punch line of jokes.
Dominance Theory
• Lakoff’s views about gender difference in language use support the
dominance theory which purports to interpret these differences. But the
language and gender research has not yet satisfactorily verified this theory.
• This is the theory that in mixed-sex conversations men are more likely to
interrupt than women. It uses a fairly old study of a small sample of
conversations, recorded by Don Zimmerman and Candace West at the
Santa Barbara campus of the University of California in 1975. The subjects
of the recording were white, middle class and under 35. Zimmerman and
West produce in evidence 31 segments of conversation. They report that in
11 conversations between men and women, men used 46 interruptions, but
women only two. As Geoffrey Beattie, of Sheffield University, points out
(writing in New Scientist magazine in 1982): "The problem with this is that
you might simply have one very voluble man in the study which has a
disproportionate effect on the total." From their small (possibly
unrepresentative) sample Zimmerman and West conclude that, since men
interrupt more often, then they are dominating or attempting to do so. But
this need not follow, as Beattie goes on to show: "Why do interruptions
necessarily reflect dominance? Can interruptions not arise from other
sources? Do some interruptions not reflect interest and involvement?"
Coates objection

• Many of Lakoff’s theories are built on

experiences and assumptions, not scientific
research. This has been criticised by many.
Coates (1993:23) wrote:
• “While noting that she is talking about general
tendencies rather than“hundred-percent
correlations”, Lakoff seems happy to present
such folklinguistic (SIC) material without the
support of any research findings to confirm her
statement”
Tannen’s Views about Gender and
Language

• Tannen, as well as Lakoff, claims that there are

gender differences in ways of speaking (Tannen
1991:17), but she focuses more on conversational
differences as such. Many of these differences
“arise because boys and girls grow up in what
are essentially different cultures, so talk between
women and men is cross-cultural
communication” (1991:18). This in contrast to
Lakoff’s view that male and female
communication does not work because of men’s
tendency to dominate women.
Men are from Mars, women from
Venus
Language Differences

• According to Tannen (1991:77), the language of

conversation between women, is foremost a
language of rapport (Tannen 1991:77). The
purpose of it is to establish connections and
negotiating relationships. Women tend to
display similarities and matching experiences
with each other, and in meetings, women tend to
argue by using their own experience as evidence.
Language Differences

• For most men on the other hand, language is a

way to preserve independence and negotiate and
maintain status in the hierarchy. According to
Tannen (1991:92), men do this by exhibiting
their knowledge and skill. And men also do it
through “holding centre stage” by for example
telling stories, joking or conveying information.
Men in meetings for example, tend to argue by
making categorical statements about right and
wrong.
Language Differences

• Orders vs. Suggestions

• Men/boys give orders like “Give me that” or “Get
outta here!” while girls and women express their
preferences, as suggestions like “Let’s do this” or
“How about doing that” (Tannen 1991:44).
• Conflict vs. Compromise
• Men choose the conflict while women
compromise instead, in order to try to prevent
fights.
Language Differences

• Status vs. Support

• Moreover, it is suggested by Tannen, that men grow
up in a world where conversation is often a contest.
The goal is either to achieve status among other
people, or to prevent them from pushing them (the
men themselves) around. Women on the other
hand, use talking to exchange confirmation and
support.
• Advice vs. Understanding
• Men give advice while women show understanding.
Gender Exclusive language
Gender Exclusive Language

• Language being a powerful tool, can convey impressions,

communicate knowledge and transmit feelings. Unless
we are successful in our uses of language, the words we
select and the ways in which we combine them, will not
have the effect that is intended.
• Unintended consequences can result from
misinterpretation of the words by the receivers.
Outcomes will not match intentions e.g. We might offend
when it was merely our intention to inform, or a receiver
might find the message demeaning when it was only
intended to persuade.
Gender Exclusive Language

• The meaning of any given word or set of words,

after all, is not in the words themselves but in the
people who use them. Senders of messages assign
one set of meanings, while receivers of messages
assign another. When those meanings
approximate each other, some degree of
communication may take place.
• Miscommunication occurs when the
understanding of a set of words or phrases by a
receiver is different from that of a sender.
Gender Exclusive Language
• Gender Exclusive Language
• “Gender exclusive language discriminates on the basis of gender. It
consists of words or phrases that focus on one gender unnecessarily,
thereby excluding the other gender.”

• Language that refers only to one gender when both genders might
properly be addressed is considered, at the very least, inappropriate.

• In contrast, "gender-inclusive", also known as "gender-fair" and

"non-sexist" refers to language in which both men and women are
included, for example, humanity, chairperson, he/she or their (A
student should be paid for his/her or their work).
Gender Exclusive Language
Let’s change the gender exclusive language to gender inclusive (or
gender neutral) language.
Gender Exclusive Language - Sample Paragraph:
“If an insurance man contacts a family after the unexpected death of
the husband, one of the first questions he may hear is, "Where is his
insurance policy?" The insurance man knows that when a father
dies, the meaning of life insurance suddenly becomes crystal clear.
No one, at that time, asks what a man's return is on his investment.
The bottom line is that life insurance provides cash when a man and
his family really need it. I tell the husband that the amount his loved
ones receive depends on him. I also tell him that if he gives proper
attention to this matter now, few financial problems will ensue after
his death.”
Gender Exclusive Language
• Gender Exclusive Language – Revised
Paragraph:

• “If an insurance agent contacts a family after the unexpected death

of a family member, one of the first questions he or she may hear is,
"Where is the life insurance policy?" The agent knows that when a
client dies, the meaning of life insurance becomes crystal clear. No
one, at that time, asks what a person's return is on an investment.
The bottom line is that life insurance provides cash when clients
and their families really need it. I tell the client that the amount his
or her loved ones receive depends on him or her. I also tell the
client that if he or she gives proper attention to this matter now,
few financial problems will ensue after death.‖
Gender Exclusive Language

• Gender Exclusive Pronouns-A Common

Problem.
• “These pronouns refer unnecessarily to only one gender, thereby
excluding the other gender.”
• Six main strategies for revising gender exclusive
pronouns:
• A. Substitute a plural pronoun for the gender exclusive pronoun
B. Delete the gender exclusive pronoun
C. Substitute first or second person for third person
D. Revise the sentence to change the subject
E. Use "he or she" sparingly
F. Substitute an article for the masculine or feminine pronoun
Gender Exclusive Language
• Strategy A:
• Substitute a plural pronoun for the gender exclusive noun or pronoun.
• Example:
Original Sentence: Although a doctor is busy, he should always answer his
patient's questions.
• Revised Sentence:
Although doctors are busy, they should always answer their patients'
questions.
• Strategy B:
• Delete the gender exclusive pronoun.
• Example:
Original Sentence: A good lawyer uses his analytical ability.
• Revised Sentence:
A good lawyer uses analytical ability.
•
Gender Exclusive Language
Strategy C:
• Substitute a gender neutral first or second person pronoun for a
third person gender exclusive pronoun.
• Example:
Original Sentence: A careful student budgets her time.
• Revised Sentence: As a careful student, you should budget your
time.
• Strategy D:
Revise the sentence to change its subject.
• Example:
Original Sentence: A good salesperson makes sure she keeps her
customers happy.
• Revised Sentence: Keeping customers happy is an important
part of being a good salesperson.
•
Gender Exclusive Language
• Strategy E:
Use "he or she" (never s/he or he/she) sparingly.
• Example:
Original Sentence: A teacher's success depends on whether she
communicates effectively.
• Revised Sentence: A teacher's success depends on whether he or
she communicates effectively.
• Strategy F:
• Substitute an article for the masculine or feminine pronoun.
• Example:
Original Sentence: Every student should bring his text to class.
• Revised Sentence: Every student should bring the text to class
Gender Exclusive Language
• Guidelines for Using Gender-Neutral Language
• If you know the gender and it is appropriate to refer to an individual
or a group with gender-identifiable pronouns, go ahead and do so.
"Richard left his keys on the dresser.” You could say "the keys,” or
"a set of keys,” but frankly, they are his, and he is a man. Saying, for
example, "Richard left her keys on the dresser” tells us a great deal
more than if the author had simply chosen to refer to "a set” of keys.
We know now that the keys he’s left belong to a woman.
• If it is inappropriate to refer to a collective or a group with a gender-
identifiable pronoun, don’t do it. Instead, use a collective noun or
pluralize. "Each manager must secure his files before leaving the
office” may well be inappropriate because of the presence (or
possibility) of female managers. Instead, a plural reference might
do: "Managers must secure their files before leaving the office.”
• Use the second person when directly addressing your audience.
"Please secure your files before you leave the office.”
• "All files must be secured before managers leave the office.”
Gender Exclusive Language
• Consider the use of a declarative sentence or a direct command: "Please
secure all files before departing.” The problem with this, of course, is
that the overly conscientious manager will end up securing other people’s
files before departing for the day. It’s only his or her own files that we’re
concerned with here.
• Consider rewording the sentence to eliminate gender pronouns
altogether. Rather than "The average American drives his car about
10,000 miles a year,” write "The average American drives about 10,000
miles a year.” Instead of "The average automobile owner trades in his car
every three years,” write "The average automobile owner buys a new car
every three years.”
• Keep in mind that "person” is singular and "people” is plural. There were
three people in the elevator, not three persons. Often, the use of people
and persons will help to eliminate an inappropriate gender reference.
"Women who want to become nurses” could just as easily be "People who
want to become nurses,” or "Those who would like to study nursing.”
Men, it is clear, make fine nurses, and should not be excluded. Just as
women have become doctors, journalists, attorneys, and engineers,
writers of both sexes must not assume that any domain (other than
mother-hood or fatherhood) is somehow gender-exclusive.
Gender Exclusive Language
• You may use the word "one,” rather than a gender-specific pronoun,
though the second person is still preferable. Rather than "If a man
plans ahead, he can retire at age 65,” you might say "If one plans
ahead, one can retire at age 65.” Frankly, a direct reference to the
reader would be better: "If you plan ahead, you may be able to retire
by age 65.”
• When circumstances call for the identification of people by gender
in collective groupings, pay some attention to the age or maturity of
the people involved.
• Instead of identifying people by their sexes, try to identify them in
other ways: by roles, occupations, or pursuits. Saying "Customers
are protesting rising food prices” is preferable to saying
"Housewives are protesting rising food prices.”
• Job titles such as salesman, foreman, and chairman have generally
been replaced in business organizations with the gender-neutral
titles of salesperson, sales representative, supervisor, chairper-son
or chair.
Gender Exclusive Language
• Consider, when it’s appropriate to do so, the use of substitutes when gender-
specific language simply won't do.
• Instead of: Use:
• Mailman Letter Carrier, Postal Worker
• Salesman Sales Clerk, Sales Representative
• Cleaning Women Janitors, Maintenance Staff
• Mankind Humankind, People
• Manpower Personnel, Workers
• Mothering Nurturing
• To Man To Staff, To Operate
• Cameraman Camera Operator
• Audio Man Audio Technician
• Foreman Supervisor
• Chairman Chair, Moderator, Facilitator, or Director
• Stewardess Flight Attendant
• You needn’t go so far as calling a waiter or waitress a "waitperson.” Refer to the
person who takes your dinner order as a "server.”
Gender Exclusive Language

• Conclusion
• According to Professor Maxine Hairston of the University of Texas: Each of
us must come to believe that developing nondiscriminatory style matters. It
matters to the reader and it matters to the world at large. A sense of care
and a genuine concern for all who may come to hear or read your words will
ultimately prove to be your best guide.”
• While using language people have right to make their own informed
choices, but at the same they need to understand the very rationale for their
choices.
• This concept of informed choice leading to action is stated very eloquently
by Australian linguist Jim Martin:
• Conscious knowledge of language and the way it functions in social contexts
then enables us to make choices, to exercise control. As long as we are
ignorant of language, it and ideological systems it embraces control us.
Learning about language means learning to choose. . . . Knowledge is
power. Meaning is choice. Please choose.
Gender Exclusive Language

• References
• James S. O'Rourke. “Gender Issues In Language‖ 1999
• Agnew, Spiro T. "English Anyone?" Exploring Language. Ed. Gary
Goshgarian. New York: Longman, 1998. 409-413.
• Maggio, Rosalie. "Bias-Free Language: Some Guidelines." Exploring
Language. Ed. Gary Goshgarian. New York: Longman, 1998. 313-
324
• Peterson, Eric E. "Nonsexist Language Reform and "Political
Correctness." Women and Language 17 (1994): 6-11.
• Wheatherall, Ann. "Re-visioning Gender and Language Research."
Women and Language 21 (1998): 1-9.
Difference Theory