I absolutely agree that men as well as women you language differently. The book did a wonderful job at explaining the reasons as to why men and women communicate the way they do. The reason that I most agreed with was gender roles effects on how males and females communicate.
From birth, from the moment we find out the sex of the baby, I feel that society places standards to which the baby must fit into. For instance, its okay for boys to have rough physical play and play with guns, but it is not okay for a boy to be overly sensitive or to cry. Having this rule or expectation placed on the boy at such a young age will inevitably affect the communication style he will come to know and use. By saying he should not cry, maybe this will affect how he expresses his feelings as a man in the future. The same would go for females. If a young girl is told to play with dolls and taught to care and love her barbies.. she may grow into a young lady who enjoys expressing her emotions and socializing with others.
Another aspect from the reading that I completely agree with is sexist language and how that too affects how genders communicate. Different cultures place different meanings to words. And I appreciated the example of words the books uses: girls = innocents and less responsible; whereas women could mean more responsible or ladylike.
Hi WobbledyWa,
ReplyDeleteI find that I fully agree with what you wrote about regarding men and women’s use of language. You stated that the two different sexes use language differently. In my post, I specified how women use rapport and men use report. I really like how you brought up the beginning of communication and how girls and boys are automatically put into categories when they are born. For instance a girl wears pink and a boy wears blue. From then on, as they grow up, they are taught to communicate and react in certain ways. You went on to use the example of boys not being “allowed” to cry because boys are not supposed to cry. Your examples were great and I enjoyed reading your post.
WobbledyWa,
ReplyDeleteI agree with your writing about gender and communications. I think you explained it well and gave clear examples of the possible difference in communication. I think it's important to understand that men and women communicate differently because it helps us to become effect in our communication by understanding the various aspects of speech. I like that you pointed out how even at a young age boys and girls are given different behavioral standards which can in turn effect their communication or speaking patterns. I also like that you touched on the idea of sexist language and how that to has its influence in communication. The words we choose to use depending on which gender we are describing often has intentional or unintentional connotations placed on them. What's interesting for me is that I grew up delving into both standards. I grew up as a tomboy so my sister and I would play aggressively with all the boys while simultaneously dressing our barbies. I have the tendency to include both gender styles of speech in my communication. Anyways, I like the examples you used! Good job!
WobbledyWa ,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you in that men and women use language differently. From birth, boys are allowed to play rough, get dirty, whereas girls are brought up to be sweet and innocent. Like you said, boys are taught to be tough and not to be overly sensitive or cry in a situation. When boys grow up then they have a hard time expressing feelings. They are more direct and just say what comes to mind. Then when the sweet and innocent girls grow up, they have a tendency of being able to communicate better about their emotions and socializing with others.
Lauren