Ling 410/510: Language and Gender (Summer 2005)
(aka Communicating Gender Thru Language)
Jeff Conn connjc@pdx.edu 503-725-4099 East Hall 241
Office Hours: Tues 1–3 & by appointment
Course description
This course introduces students to the study of language and gender, an interaction that has received increasing attention from linguists since the 1960s. Although the term “gender” has a technical meaning in linguistics, we will discuss and investigate this term in its more widespread sense and talk about it with regard to the socially constructed roles having to do with sex. The field is vast and the literature extensive; part of the class will be devoted to exploring the some of the literature critically. The focus will be on the linguistic side but with broad consideration of social issues associated with the distribution of linguistic forms, for the study of language has indeed expanded and now involves considerable overlap with other traditional fields of study such as Anthropology, Sociology, and Psychology, but also newer ones such as Women’s Studies and Queer Studies.
Students are expected to make significant contributions to the class in terms of classroom discussion but also in terms of deciding the nature and direction of the course. Students with little background in linguistics should work with others or with me.
My Goal for this course is not to make you an expert in this vast and ever-changing field, but to introduce you to some of the literature and to give you the tools to examine future literature in a critical way, as well as to look at the interaction between language and gender from a more scientific perspective.
Required:
Coates, Jennifer (ed.) 1998. Language and
Gender: A Reader.
Recommended and Other
Texts:
Cameron, Deborah. 1985. Feminism and
Linguistic Theory.
Eckert, Penelope
and McConnell-Ginet, Sally. 2003. Language and
Gender.
Janet Holmes and Miriam Meyerhoff (eds.). 2003. The Handbook of Language and Gender. Oxford: Blackwell.
Livia, Anna and Hall, Kira (eds.). 1997. Queerly Phrased: Language, Gender and
Sexuality.
Hall, Kira and Bucholtz, Mary (eds.). 1995. Gender
Articulated: Language and the Socially Constructed Self.
Classroom atmosphere. The nature of a course dealing with gender often brings up personal experiences and strong emotional reactions to things. It is critical that we promote the sharing of these experiences and reactions in a constructive, safe and positive atmosphere. Please be respectful of others.
Not a competition. This course is meant to be an individual and group exploration, even a team effort. You are strongly encouraged to discuss the readings and the assignments together, both in and outside of class. Written assignments should be yours and/or your team’s alone. In other words, talk things over as much as you like beforehand, but when you write your paper, the work should be all yours or confined to the team.
Consultation. Feel free to come talk with me about assignments, issues, questions, comments, suggestions or frustrations at any point.
Requirements. Class participation is far and away the most important component of this course. Regular attendance, therefore, is crucial. Not only should you come to class prepared in terms of the reading or other assignment, but you should come ready to contribute actively to class discussion. You should also willingly contribute to class discussion and, perhaps more important, attentively listen to the contributions of others. Be conscious of letting everyone having a chance to say something and accord them the same attention and respect that you expect to receive.
Late assignments are strongly discouraged, although I will give extensions provided that you contact me before the assignment is due and your lateness is due to matters beyond your control (sickness, death in the family, etc.). Other late assignments will be accepted but knocked down a full mark, e.g., “A” to “B” and will also receive low priority for grading.
Evaluation. Grades will be decided on the following basis:
35% Class participation – 15% attendance, 15% chapter presentation, 5% participation
35% Gender Journals
15% Class presentation/Debate
15% Article/Chapter Critique
Class Participation includes regular attendance and participation in class discussions. Only one unexcused absence will not be counted against this part of your grade. Each absence after that will affect your participation grade. I will excuse absences if you let me know AHEAD of time that you will not be there (email, phone message, etc.). Also, each student will be responsible for preparing a summary of one chapter in the reading, as well as 3 questions/comments to instigate discussion.
Gender Journals are simply your personal thoughts and reactions
to the readings or life in general relating to the course (either language
and/or gender issues). There are a total of 5 journals due by the end of the
8-week term. These are not graded for content, but you are graded just for
doing them. They should be anywhere from ¾ of a single-spaced typed page to 2
pages (try not to make them too long). Please only submit one journal a week in
class Thursdays or by email. Any journal received after
Article/Chapter Critiques. Since there is so much literature that we will not get to, this assignment will hopefully encourage you to look at other articles or chapters in other texts, or chapters in our text that we will not get to. I will be happy to recommend articles or chapters with specific interests if you ask or need direction on where to look. For undergraduate credit, only one critique is due. For those pesky graduate degrees, please do 3. More details about the content of this assignment will be distributed a little later in the term.
Class presentation. This project/debate will be developed as the term progresses and the presentations will be part of the last class. We will examine a very small data set using 3 different frameworks from the literature (i.e., power, cultural difference, etc.). Each group will be assigned an article discussing the different frameworks from the text, and will analyze the data using that framework. They will then make a small presentation to the rest of the class discussing how the data can be analyzed with their particular lens. More details about this project will also be distributed.
The
Pros and Cons of Learning Baby's Sex
Should
you find out if you're expecting a boy or a girl?
By Julie Weingarden Dubin and Karin A. Bilich
Some
parents can't wait to learn the sex of their baby. Others are content to wait until
their baby makes its grand entrance. Here are the pros and cons of finding out
your baby's sex:
Reasons
to find out:
- You only have to agree on one name
- You can
buy sex-specific clothes
- You can decorate the nursery
- You can
better prepare for events after baby's birth, such as scheduling a bris (a Jewish circumcision ritual)
- You may feel more connected to your baby
- It may make the baby seem more real
- It helps assure you that everything is okay
Reasons
to wait:
- The surprise can be exciting
- The last
few weeks of pregnancy may be more bearable not knowing
- You could
have fantasies about a baby of either sex
- It's the
way people have been doing it for centuries
- It might annoy your relatives!
But what if you and your partner can't agree? One
solution is for one partner to learn the sex and not tell the other. Or find
out together and keep it a secret from the rest of the world. Either way,
you'll find out the sex of your child sooner or later, so stop worrying and
enjoy your pregnancy.
Class calendar
Jeff Conn, Ling 410/510: Language and Gender (Summer 04), T-Th
Text Romaine Communicating
Gender
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Tuesday |
Thursday |
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1 (T 22 June) Introduction The nature of this course |
2 (Th 24 June) Studying language and gender Read Ch 1 Doing gender (1-30) |
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3 (T 29 June) Read Ch 2 Boys will be boys? (31-61) |
4 (Th 1 July) Essentialism, nature-nurture Reflect on question 1 pp. 61-62; answer question 2, p. 62 (to hand in) Quiz on reading |
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5 (T 6 July) Sample topics Answer questions 4-5, p. 62 (to hand in) |
6 (Th 8 July) The linguistics of gender Read Ch 3 What’s gender got to do with grammar? (65-88) |
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7 (T 13 July) Early explanations Report on class projects Powerlessness, covert prestige, and maintenance of inequality |
8 (Th 15 July) English gender biases and asymmetries Read Ch 4 English – A man-made language? (91-117) |
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9 (T 20 July) Asymmetries and explanations Regard questions 1-5 pp. 117-18; chose one to answer (and hand in) |
10 (Th 22 July) Naming Read Ch 5 What’s in a name? (121-148) Answer questions 2 and 4 pp. 148-49 Guest lecturer: |
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11 (T 27 July) Discourse, French feminism Guest lecture ( Read Ch 6 Gendered talk: Gossip, shop talk, and the sound of silence (151-184) |
12 (Th 29 July) Discourse (cont’d) Answer questions 1-2, pp. 184-85 |
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13 (T 3 August) Socialization Read Ch 7 Learning how to talk like a lady (189-218) Lecture: Hlonipha |
14 (Th 5 August) Crimes against women Read Ch 8 Different words, different worlds? (221-248) Answer question 4 p. 249 using reports on the Kobe Bryant case |
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15 (T 10 August) What should be done? Read Ch 10 Language reform; A msguided attempt to change herstory? |
16 (Th 13 August) Language reform (cont’d) Give some thought to questions 1-6, pp. 318-320. Be prepared to answer one at length in class. |
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Project presentations 21 Oct: Reserved projector, laptop (with CD player), speakers |
Project presentations Distribute course evaluations 21 Oct: Reserved projector, laptop (with CD player), speakers |
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Final Exam: Th 11 Dec, Due: Electronic versions of class projects |
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