Topic 3: Gender Language & Emotions {by 9/25}
Chapters 5 and 6 – “Gender and Language” and “Gender and Emotion” is due this week. Because it is two chapters, I’ll keep it relatively simple. Address the following discussion points: (1) What did you find most interesting in Chapter 5? (2) What did you find most interesting in Chapter 6? Explain your answers. Your original post should be posted by the beginning of class 9/25. Have your two replies no later than 9/27. *Please remember to click the “reply” button when posting a reply. This makes it easier for the reader to follow the blog postings.
Dr. Adam M Volungis 
Sep 24, 2012 @ 14:31:26
In chapter 5 I found the section on parallel words to be interesting and how some parallel words for males and females have different connotations. The female form of words normally has a negative connotation and a sexual reference. I agree with the book in which the words master and mistress have equivalent meanings expect, master has a positive meaning while mistress has a negative meaning and is referred to as the “other woman”. I don’t understand why the female terms take on a negative meaning overtime while male terms remain to have a positive meaning.
In chapter 6 I found it interesting that women can have both positive and negative emotions while men are only supposed to have negative emotions. I know that women show more emotions then men, however I feel that men also feel emotions of sadness, fear, love, and sympathy expect they don’t show them as much. I feel that society stereotypes men to be strong, contempt and angry and if they show female emotions they are looked down upon. I agree that male emotions vary within different ethnicities.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 22:07:50
I think the link between ethnicity and emotion is interesting. It is not something I had really considered much before. This gender stereotypes with ethnicity charts in the book opened my eyes to this different stereotypes imbedded within each other. I also found it funny that white women are stereotyped as not expressing anger. I feel that these stereotypes are changing due to outlets such as television and social media which portray many different sides of cultures to a wide audience.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 14:55:38
I agree with your view on chapter six because it is a stereotype and men do feel other emotions, It is funny that they chose anger and pride to be emotions considering testosterone is supposed to increase anger and aggressiveness.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 11:25:24
I agree with you about the emotions in chapter 6 that were discussed. Men very much show emotions, though it may not be in front of people. I read another one of your posts that said we are all human and show emotions one way or another. I totally agree. Men are supposed to be “tough and strong” according to society. Whereas, women should show their emotions and be sensitive towards certain situations. I know a few men in my life that are tough on the outside but sensitive on the inside. I see no problem in having that quality.
Sep 30, 2012 @ 14:13:45
I agree with you on your view about chapter six. It was interesting to read that men show only negative emotions, but women show both positive and negative emotions. It is generally thought of that men are supposed to be strong and tough, however, I do not believe this is true for all situations. For example, I have seen men cry over losing a football or baseball game before. This does not support the stereotype of men being strong and not showing their sadness emotions. Therefore, I think it depends on the situation that men are in and whether they will show their positive or negative emotions.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 15:41:30
In chapter five, I found women’s use of non-verbal communication interesting. While reading, I noticed that a lot of it relates back to the stereotype of women being more insecure than men. I’ve noticed that women tend to be more fidgety when they are speaking up in class or having a conversation. Women stand closer to each other when they are having conversations, especially with their close friends. Women smile more often than men. Women also tend to make more eye contact while listening to someone other than while they are speaking. To me, all these examples can be related back to the stereotype of women being insecure. Their nervousness or lack of confidence could be the cause of these examples. I think that it depends on the situation women are in and how comfortable they are.
In chapter six, I found gender socialization interesting. I think that gender stereotypes play a role in how people act around others. In my opinion, both males and females all have the same emotions. We are all human. The chapter discussed how it is more socially acceptable for both men and women to show some emotions and not others. For example, it is not acceptable for women to show anger. I think this all depends on where you are and who you are with. Growing up in Worcester, I have seen plenty of angry women. This also has to do with culture and ethnicity. Personally, when I am at home or in a comfortable place I do not have a problem expressing my emotions, even if that emotion is anger. However, I would be less open about my emotions if I were in a public place surrounded by people I don’t know. I think the same goes for some men when expressing emotions like sadness or sympathy. It all depends.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 11:05:03
Morgan, I agree completely that despite how we express ourselves, men and women feel the same emotions. I don’t think it could be well supported that women feel timidity and men don’t, for instance.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 12:42:07
I also found that woman use non-verbal communication more often to be quite interesting as well
Sep 27, 2012 @ 22:56:31
I agree with women smiling more and being fidgety when they speak up or are leading a conversation especially with the opposite sex. Like you said, it could be that women are more insecure than men or that they express their anxiety more. With the smiling part of it I feel that it could just go back to women feeling like it is the appropriate thing to do in many situations and are just acting like ladies in society should. It even goes back to the old times where women would keep quiet and smiled while their husbands were the ones talking.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 16:01:23
What I found most interesting in Chapter 5 was the female as-the-exception phenomenon. This phenomena states that if a category is considered normatively male and there is a female example of the category, gender is noted because the female is the exception. For example, if a headline said “BG Swimmers Defeated” we would most likely automatically assume it was a male swim team. However, if an all female swim team won, the headline would read “BG Women Swimmers Win.” I found this interesting because this phenomena is almost like common sense to us. It is so natural for this phenomena to occur that I didn’t even know that it was considered a phenomena. The more I read about this phenomena, the more I realized that this occurs so much in our society today. Women are the exception and male is normative. The normativeness of the male has been a facet of society for so long that we use “man” to generalize all human beings.
What I found most interesting in Chapter 6 was the study done by Kring & Gordon where undergraduate students viewed brief films designed to stimulate either happiness, sadness, or fear. The results of this study found that women tend to be more facially expressive than men but men show more autonomic nervous system activity. In other words, men showed more fear than women when measured physiologically. I found this interesting because men are supposed to be the unafraid and protective gender but according to this study, men actually scare easier.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 19:11:00
I also found it strange that headlines state things such as “female senate member” or “women’s soccer team” opposed to senate member or soccer team. It’s strange that male is normative, but it is also understandable in the sense that from the time we are young, “man” is used to describe people as a whole. I feel as if this tactic is used with a lot of minorities as well as genders. Sometimes you hear things like “African American politician”.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 21:28:57
I agree that both of those points made in chapters five and six are interesting. Before reading about the phenomenon in chapter five, I did not think twice about how male is normative. It’s just the way things are. I think it is interesting how wired our brains are in this culture. It makes me wonder how other cultures would relate to this phenomenon. Is the idea that male is normative worldwide?
In chapter six I also found it interesting that men show more fear than women. I wouldn’t think that that would be the case. Fear is not an emotion that men tend to show very often.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 16:05:03
The most interesting thing I read in chapter five was the part about nonsexist language. In this part of the chapter, they came up with ways to avoid being sexist within our everyday language. The thing I found most interesting was the solution of new singular pronouns that are gender neutral. The one they displayed in the book was tey for “he” or “she,” tem for “him” or “her,” and ter for “his” or “her.” I had no idea that people were coming up with new pronouns in order to avoid sexism in our language, so this really interested me. I think it is one of the less likely solutions to be used; however, it still interested me. In my opinion, I think we should just watch what we say and use the other solutions they provide in the book, like switching from singular to plural or rewording the sentence so there are no pronouns. I think we just need to become cautious of when we are being sexist in our language and try to avoid it.
The most interesting thing I found in chapter six was the specific emotions for females and males. The chart displaying the stereotypes of emotions that females and males experience stood out to me. It really bothered me how males only had anger, contempt, and pride as emotions that they experience, and how the only gender-neutral emotions are amusement, interest, and jealousy. I feel like males experience a lot of the similar emotions that females experience, like happiness, sadness, love, surprise, and shame. These are all common emotions that everyone experiences throughout their lifetime. The book made a good point about the female emotions having both positive and negative ones, while the males only have negative ones. I thought these stereotypes were interesting, but I think I would have added some of the females emotions with the males as well.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 21:47:55
I also agree and find it strange that certain emotions are associated with men and women. It just does not make sense because both men and women experience all of the same emotioins. And based on personality some men and women display these emotions more than others.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 22:14:35
I agree with this, all people experience the same emotions, but I think that they are manifested in different ways. From day one males are taught to be strong, heroic and tough. This can be seen in everything from fairy tales to children’s action figures. Children are taught gender roles and it is constantly reinforced due to family dynamics as well as social constructs and pressure from friends. I agree with the fact that men and women experience the same emotions, but our cultural norms dictate how each gender should express them.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 12:54:02
I also like most found the emotions to be interesting. Every human feels the same emotions it is just the different ways men and woman go about showing their feelings.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 22:51:12
I also agree with the he/she things that were mentioned. It also made me think of when an envelope is addressed why is the man always first. It is always Mr. and Mrs. John Smith. The women is hardly mentioned. I wonder why this is not sexist but he/she rather than she/he is?
Sep 27, 2012 @ 11:30:29
Alyssa,
I really liked what you had to say about the new singular pronouns they are trying to come up with now to avoid sexism. I had no idea they were trying to do this either and I think its really interesting as well.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 22:59:38
I agree with how interesting it is that people are trying to find new words to replace he or she. I doubt any of us have heard of any of this being used within conversations and especially in schools. As for the emotions being placed with certain genders, it is easy for us to just categorize them but like Nicole said, it is ridiculous to place either one for one emotion. Both men and women experience all of these emotions but just because one sex shows the emotion more, doesn’t mean only they feel it.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 16:39:33
I found Tannen’s research on tentativeness in women’s speech to be fascinating. I told two of my roommates about the tag questions ( adding short phrases to sentences to turn them into questions) as well as adding disclaimers to sentences while speaking and we all realized we do it. I thought it was strange that men do not use this type of language, and I can see how it exerts confidence not too. I usually add hedges and disclaimers when I am not sure of myself. I also found the use of intensifiers to be interesting. I know that this is another aspect of speech in regards to gender that I often utilize. It was funny to me how much I actually use these types of language, and how I am filling a gender role in that sense.
One aspect of gender and language in chapter five that I disagree with is when they touch on interruptions. The book states that researchers have found that men interrupt women significantly more than women do to men. Maybe I am biased since I live with 5 girls, but I know there is constant interruption and I find that my female friends tend to talk more than my male friends do. I personally interrupt my boyfriend constantly and usually talk twice as much as he does while in conversation.
The notion of interpersonal distance was also interesting. Going back to our class discussion, I feel as if this is a cultural phenomenon that varies greatly depending on the societal norms.
One notion that was brought up in both chapters 5 & 6 was smiling and emotion. In chapter 5 they delved into the fact that women are “expected” to smile; it is socially appropriate and part of the female role. This immediately made me think of the college roster photos. For the most part, the majority of the female athletes are smiling and the majority of the male athletes are expressionless, and tough looking. I think this ties into female’s role in chapter 5 as well as the gender stereotypes about emotion touched on in chapter 6. The culture in America dictates that “male emotions” are ones such as pride, contempt and anger. The “Female emotions” are emotions such as love, happiness, sadness, sympathy and fear. These emotions are what participants say when they are asked about American cultural stereotypes. I think it is very funny how we pick up gender roles and adopt them for ourselves. The college athlete roster photos are a perfect example of living up to and trying to fill our cultures gender stereotypes. This also can be tied into the socialization by peers. Our friends and the people around us are a strong influence on how we are going to behave and portray ourselves to the world. Does this mean that everyone on the men’s soccer team is angry and tough and all the Women’s basketball players are smiling and happy? No. It means that they are buying into gender stereotypes and behaving the way in which our society expects them too.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 21:45:46
I agree with the fact that women do interrupt more than men do. I know that whenever I am talking to a guy I am almost never interrupted. But on the other hand when I am talking to girls I am constantly being interrupted and each girl is trying to talk over the other to get their point across and into the conversation.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 23:04:31
I honestly believe it depends on the girl or guy, Nicole. Everyone has different personalities, and express their emotions differently. I am friends with a lot of guys who interrupt me all the time, but I do think that girls are much more interruptive than guys.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 17:30:31
I also agree that women do interrupt more than men. I feel like women like to talk more than men do. I know that I interrupt my girl friends more while I tend not to interrupt my guy friends as much. I also think personality has something to do with it. If a person is sociable, outgoing and friendly, I feel like they would be talkative, while, a person who is shy would not be as talkative.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 11:07:06
Anna, I thought your example of the athletic photos was creative and completely accurate. Sports photos, and even sometimes high school yearbook photos, often depict men with a straight face and women grinning widely. I think this is definitely socially imposed, and I thought it was really smart of you to mention that it might well be cultural, too.
Sep 30, 2012 @ 14:24:14
I also found the part about interruptions to be interesting. I think it all depends on your personality and the person you are talking to. I would interrupt both my girl friends and guy friends just as much, however, I would never interrupt a professor talking to me or someone I did not know. I think it depends on the situation you are in and the circumstances. Most people know when it is inappropriate to interrupt, so they will not do so unless they are comfortable. I do not think it matters what gender you are that will determine how much you interrupt someone.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 19:49:20
In Chapter 5, I thought that the quote that started off the chapter got me thinking. I read it to my roommate to get her opinion. “Women are a decorative sex. They never have anything to say, but they say it charmingly.” — Oscar Wilde
I thought it was an interesting quote that made me think of what it meant. My roommate instantly said, “Wow, if a man said that to a woman today, he would get slapped in the face… at least by me.” After she said that, it made me think, wow, she’s right. Many years ago women were regarded as housemakers and did what they were told by their husbands. If they didn’t, they could get beaten. Feminists would be in an uproar if this STILL happened today. It makes me think if that stuff happens today… and it probably does! There are still very naive women out there and women who let their boyfriend or husband take control over them. It is very sad and should NOT happen. Anyway, this quote was of interest to me for chapter 5. Deborah Tannen ties along with what I mentioned because she talks about her “different cultures hypothesis” in which she says that women and men belong to different cultures. She says that men and women have different ways of reaching goals when they speak. Women want to maintain and establish relationships, whereas men want to use control , preserve their independence and enrich their status. I thought this was interesting and tied along well with the quote that starts off the chapter. The part of the quote that says “but they say it charmingly” made me think. I believe that line to mean that women say things on an easier more calm manner than men would. Men are blunt and straight to the point. (Hopefully this makes sense) Women will say they don’t have anything to say, bu t when they do say it, they get their point across. I feel like that is what the quote means. I believe it can be interpreted in many ways…
In Chapter 6, I found the information about gender and ethnicity in stereotypes to be interesting. I learned something that I did not know when it said that in African American culture, it is acceptable for women to express anger as much as men do. In American culture, it is not acceptable for white women to express their anger. It is deifnitely a socialized concept that if a women expresses anger, she is thought of as crazy. If a white male were to express their anger, it would be socially acceptable. Men can get angry, women cannot. I found that concept to be of interest to me.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 11:09:44
I think its interesting that someone of Oscar Wilde’s status made a comment like this. It shows how much the view of women has changed over the years and the progress they’ve made when it comes to gender stereotypes. If a man of importance were to say something like that today, it would not be good! It might ruin their career but back then, it was perfectly normal. Our society still has a long way to go when it comes to gender inequality but women have been able to overcome many of the stereotypes out there and be strong members of society.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 20:29:03
The most interesting thing that I read in chapter five was actually on the very first page when the authors are talking about the different approaches men and women take when the speak. “Women aim to establish and maintain relationships, whereas men aim to exert control, perserve their independence, and enhance their status.” After reading this I wonder if this is driven by gender-schemas and gender stereotypes or if gender schemas and stereotypes are driven by these kind of findings.
I trust the authors of this book and all the research that they’ve done to get it published but I would disagree with this statement if someone off the streets were to tell me the same thing. Are we conditioned to not notice these language differences because we view them as “normal” and therefore pay no attention? Or are these differences not common enough to notice?
The most interesting aspect of chaper six was when the authors posed this question, “Do women and men differ in their experiences of emotion or do they differ in their expressions of emotion?” These questions are incredibly interesting in that there can be an arguement made for each. As human, both men and women share the same biological make-up with a few hormonal differences so it seems a little extreme to think we cannot share experiences. In chapter five, it talked about how differences in language are present even in young children, so I wonder if these differences are learned as babies when we are like sponges to the world around us while listening to the different speaches of Mom and Dad. I think the differences in acceptable emotions for each gender make for different expresssions toward various situations, not different emotions all together.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 21:40:43
Meghan,
I agree with what you had to say here. I asked myself the same questions. It seems like the authors are basing their research off of very stereotypical male and female behaviors. I think this class is a lot about how males and females differ and that the authors are searching for those differences. However, in the end we are all human and we are all different. I think they have to base their research off stereotypes because it would be impossible not to. Every individual is different whether male or female. I think that a lot of what we are learning depends on the situation and the individual person.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 22:55:18
Meg, I also love the quote “Women aim to establish and maintain relationships, whereas men aim to exert control, perserve their independence, and enhance their status.” It really makes you think. I agree with the women always wanting to establish relationships part but not so much the men always want to exert control part. If you think about it women are always looking for new relationships and friends and guys well sometimes do the same but other times relationships are not the first thing on their mind.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 21:38:11
In chapter 5 the section that I found most interesting was the section on parallel words. This stated how paralle words for men do not have the same meaning as they do for women. For example, when a male is called a stud this same connotation can be turned around so when it is referring to a woman it means that she is a slut. I find this very demeaning to women. It does not make any sense that when a man gets lots of girls it is seen as an accomplishment but when a girl gets alot of guys she is just seen as a dirty “slut”. I have to admit that sometimes I find myself having the same assumptions about people I do not even know. It is like I have been sucked into the mainstream stereotype.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 11:45:34
Nicole,
I thought this part was really interesting too. I disagree with the comparison that you used however. I don’t think that the male counterpart of a “stud” is a “slut”. At least in m opinion, stud is used in a more positive way than is a slut. I don’t think a male would take offense to the term “stud”. I do, however, think that any girl would take offense in being called a “slut”. Maybe these words are technically parallel, but I do not think that we modernly use them as parallels.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 14:53:21
I also agree that the whole aspect of parallel words is interesting and also demeaning towards women. It isn’t right for a guy to be as a stud and women would be a slut.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 11:15:04
I found the parallel words to be fascinating as well. There is such a stigma against women who have multiple partners but when a man does it, he’s seen as a “stud.” I have experienced this first hand many times in my life. Throughout high school and college girls are called sluts and can get a lot of bullying from peers because of it but males who have many partners are often seen as “players” and their friends are envious of them. I think it’s unfair that men can fool around with as many girls as they want but girls can’t do the same without being subject to name calling and bullying.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 11:22:22
Yes, I definitely agree. I had mentioned this in class on Tuesday. It is awful how girls can be referred to as sluts and men at studs. But there is such a negative connotation to girls being called sluts. They are looked down upon. Whereas men do not face the negativity that women do.
Sep 24, 2012 @ 21:42:26
In chapter 6 the section that I found most interesting was the section on socialization by peers. This section told a story of when a young boy showed emotion at school and was severely ridiculed for it. To the point of actually being beaten up at school. I found this so interesting because I am sure that if the roles were reveresed and he was a girl showing emotion at school he would not have been made fun of at all. But because he was a boy and is supposed to be “strong” and “manly” he was mad fun of for it. I do not agree with this at all because crying is a natural human emotion and neither boy nor girl should be ridiculed because they are just showing the emotions that they are so deeply feeling.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 17:43:05
I think everyone feels the same emotions whether you’re male or female. However, society looks down upon men who show sadness which I think is wrong. We are all human and I don’t think gender should have anything to do with emotions. I think the same would have happened if a girl showed emotions of anger and started to fight other girls. She would be made fun of by other girls for not being “girly” and acting like a boy.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 09:03:05
I found chapter 5 to be particularly interesting overall. I thought that the idea of intensifiers in language actually reducing the strength of a statement interesting, as you’d think it’d have the opposite effect. A concept I found interesting in the way that I don’t think I fully understand its meaning/significance was when they talked about euphemisms– specifically how our language has more euphemisms for “woman” than for “man.” It was suggesting that we maybe create these euphemisms because we, for some reason, feel uncomfortable using just the word woman. I find myself wondering why and how true this is.
In Chapter 6, the most interesting concept to me by far was the idea that women are often stereotyped as the “emotional” gender. The text said that this stereotype can often harm women, whether it be advancing in the work place, etc. I think this should be explored further, such as why would being perceived as emotional be a harmful thing? Will this perception ever change or shift to men?
Sep 25, 2012 @ 10:36:35
In Chapter 5 I found it interesting that studies show that women smile more than men. I have never really thought of or noticed that men smile less. I do not believe that women smile more because they feel it is the “appropriate thing to do” and that by smiling more that they are subordinate to men. Yes, I believe men tend to show less emotion but I do not agree that they smile less than women. I also found interesting the fact that the way we talk and refer to general people as “men” makes a big impact in our lives. I do not think that by us referring to everyone as men has an effect on the way we view others or changes our opinions on the subject. Men has been used as a general term since the beginnings of the English language and I do not think it needs to be changed now. I don’t think it should be called sexist and the thing with it affecting children is hard to judge because at a young age children do not understand as much as adults of course, thus making it hard to say that children’s views on women are affected because of we teaching them to use “men”. Eliminating sexist language would be very hard.
In Chapter 6 I did agree that women are externalizers and men are more internalizers. From what I see with the women around me, I do notice them expressing their emotions more whether in person or via Internet than men do. I also think it depends on the person on whether they can judge another’s emotions by their facial expressions because there are many women out there that cannot pick up another’s signals or know when they are mad or sad. It is also hard to judge children on this because girls typically develop quicker than boys do so maybe them being able to control their emotions in public more could be because they are more developed.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 12:35:26
There were several points in chapter five that stood out and interested me. The quote that started off the chapter especially interested me. It stated, “Women are a decorative sex. They never have anything to say, but they say it charmingly.” — Oscar Wilde. I think this quote is degrading and just simply outdated. Women definitely used to be seen as “decorations” for men, and were basically only good for attending to their husbands every need. I think a women’s way of expressing herself has been looked down upon just because it’s different than how a man would express himself. This ties into the different approaches women and men take to speaking discussed in the chapter. The author states, “Women aim to establish and maintain relationships, whereas men aim to exert control, preserve their independence, and enhance their status.”
What I found most interesting in chapter 6 was the emotions specifically specified for males and females. I don’t agree with anger, pride and contempt being the only emotions males experience. I believe that both males and females experience the same emotions throughout their lifetimes. Different emotions may be more present in a gender, but just because a different gender shows an emotion more than the other doesn’t mean the other gender doesn’t have the capacity to feel that certain emotion.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 12:51:19
In chapter 5 of our reading I found a number of things that stood out to me when comparing both men and women. One that stood out to me was the belief that women use heavily descriptive words in order to make their point across. The fact that women use words with tentativeness suggests that women assume less dominant roles, allowing men to become the dominant factor in social relationships. These statements and questions offered by women are usually followed by tag question which displays complete tentativeness in nature. These statements are generally true as i’ve experienced in my realation with women.
In chapter 6 of our reading, I found it interesting that there was emphasis put on how women are seen as the emotional sex. Chapter 6 capitalized on the stereotypes and stigmas that are associated to both males and females but mainly females in general. The passage about the young child who was beaten up sheds light onto the society we live in , where males are stigmatized by their gender and how crossing gender boundaries can result in backlash from your peers. The fact that females are allowed to exert their emotions allows them to be able to control their emotions as younger adults. Subtle social acceptances like the ones given to women further the gap between equality because it dismisses the possibility that both men and women can possibly ever be render as pretty much the same
Sep 26, 2012 @ 19:38:28
Hey, Joshua, I really like what you had to say! I agree that females use descriptive words; I often throw in a “really,” “very,” etc. I feel like I use these words not to assert dominance/or because I don’t feel dominant, but rather, to be grammatically exciting, and provoking to my reader/listener.
I often listen to females that say “is that right?” after putting their opinion across, and I think it happens because she may be unsure, hesitant, shy. I also think that females add a question at the end of a discussion to try and engage another in the conversation, and encourage them to share their point of view.
Sep 25, 2012 @ 14:49:14
What I found most interesting in chapter 5 was how women used more intensifiers than men. I found this interesting because I had never really thought that hard about it , but it is true to a point. I also found the interpersonal distance to be interesting because I disagree with it. It all depends on the situation and environment, considering I’m usually around a football environment where all the guys are close and don’t prefer a greater distance from each other. In chapter 6 I found Table 6.1 to be interesting on its choice of stereotypes. For example Male emotions were stereotyped to be anger , contempt, and pride which all seems to portray the whole manly “macho” look.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 19:02:25
Chris, I agree with what you said about personal space. It is deffinately circumstantial and there are some situations, as you mentioned mens sports teams where the spacial barrier is broken. I wish the text mentioned something about mixed gender – how close a male will sit to a female and vise versa. I think that would be really interesting to compare.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 19:27:19
Hey, Chris, I really like what you had to say! I also found Table 6.1 interesting, and fairly accurate in it’s choice of identifying “masculine” characteristics. Do you feel like the female characteristics are accurate? Also, do you think any characteristics from the female side could be applicable for the male, and neutral, lists?
Sep 25, 2012 @ 20:00:53
I found the section on eye contact most interesting in Chapter 5. In our American culture we usually correlate eye contact with power and dominance; eye contact is exercised by those of high-status (Wealthy persons, parents), and disparaged by those of lower-status. In our culture we see eye contact as polite, yet in other cultures, I learned, that this doesn’t always apply; some cultures view eye contact as disrespectful.
Data collected from an experiment on eye contact, omitted that in a neutral conversation; males make eye contact more so while they are speaking, and females make eye contact more when they are listening. In conversations where a female feels like she is taking a “powerful” role; she made eye contact more while speaking, and vice versa. I found all of this information very interesting, and didn’t know there was so much linked to something so innate within our everyday lives.
In chapter 6, I found the section regarding gender stereotypes of emotions most interesting. I don’t like assigning stereotypes to gender; but I do feel like this table is pretty accurate. I thought it was funny that females have 13 characteristics under “female” emotions, and there are 3 “male emotions.” It made me feel like females are seen as much more emotional than males. I think that men definitely visually display many of the characteristics under the feminine list. However, I do think it is harder to “read” men’s nonverbal cues, more so than women, so I think it just depends mostly on the individual person and what emotions they display, and how they display them.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 01:24:44
In Chapter 5 there was lots of talk about tag questions and unsure statements that women would say. I find these statements to be very true and am guilty of saying these things everyday. The more I think about it the more I feel that women are very insecure when talking to anyone especially a man. That is why they always seem like they are talking with a question of whether the information they are saying is right or wrong. I also found it interesting that the words lady and girl were said to be improper to call a women. Like we mentioned in class many refer to women as an older adult-like women and girls or ladies as young adults or our age type of women. Someone calling me a girl or a lady or even a woman does personally not bother me, but I am more used to girl and lady. I also feel that lady is very proper I mean you always hear your mother saying behave like a lady not like a woman or a girl but a lady. Babe and baby I feel are more of a pet name from your close friends or significant other. If a random person came up to me and called me babe I would feel very uncomfortable.
In Chapter 6 just as many others I found the separate emotions for men and women interesting. I feel that if a man feels the emotions of love or sadness he is too afraid to show it because that is girly and more sensitive which men are not suppose to be. Women do show their emotions a lot more than men however that does not men that men have no emotion. Just as I think guys pick on guys a lot but the guys never act on it. That does not mean they are not hurt I just feel they are afraid to show how they really feel. When girls pick on other girls there is a day full of waterworks and the whole world knows. This is the exact stereotype that society labels for men and women.
Sep 26, 2012 @ 12:52:07
In chapter 5, I found that on the first page was what really interested me. “Women aim to establish and maintain relationships, whereas men aim to exert control, perserve their independence, and enhance their status,” this quote says a lot to me. It is basically saying how woman try and always have a relationship and car more about being close to someone then a male would. I find this to be true to some extent because in a “typical” relationship according to stereotypes the woman is always considered the “obsessive” one or “crazy girlfriend.” Simply because they normally show they care more then a male would show his love for his partner.
In chapter 6, I found the different emotions for men and woman most interesting. In todays society this is totally relivant i believe. Woman when angry would not go and punch walls or other people they are more likely to show anger through maybe tears or yelling. The quote from chapter 5 also relates to this because men normally do not show their love or sadness often because it is considered feminine to be sensitive towards something, which is why they keep their independence and are always focused on their status as a male. Females are not technically more emotional then men we just tend to show our emotions a little more.
Sep 27, 2012 @ 23:02:33
In chapter 5, the topic that interested me the most was how women are treated in language. Parallel words for males and females that have different connotations such as dog vs. bitch, master vs. mistress, or stud vs. slut, is very demeaning to me. Most of the words towards women are sexually charged. Men do not have that problem because if anyone called a man a “dog,” they would probably take that as a compliment. I have never realized how disrespectful it is to call a women a bitch. In my opinion, parallel words are more degrading towards women than men and that they display power for men.
In chapter 6, the topic that interested me the most was the gender stereotypes about emotions. I honestly do believe that women are much more emotional than men. Women have estrogen and hormones that cause us to have mood swings and be much more emotional. Generally speaking, I do not believe it is bad for a man to express his emotions once in a while. Just as long as its not like everyday that he is crying. Women can cry everyday and it would be considered normal.