Language, Gender and Culture

Pre-Reading

Quickwrite

Choose two of the quickwrite topics below, and write at least a ½ page response to each. Be prepared to discuss.

   Some people assert that just one or two generations ago men and women seemed to have more rigid codes for how to behave: for example, men could be loud and assertive while women were expected to dress modestly and to use a “feminine” voice. Do you think these codes or “rules” for male and female behavior still hold true today? What experiences and observations can you point to as support for your position?

How do children and young adults learn what is “appropriate” behavior, either in general or for them as boys and girls or young men and women? What happens when a young person acts in some way his or her family or friends consider “not normal”? How is he or she treated? Refer to your own experiences and observations to support your points.

Based on your own observations, how do American women typically speak in their conversations? Consider volume and pitch of voice, choice of words, body posture (open or closed), proximity or closeness to other speakers, gaze/eye contact, use of hand gestures while speaking, etc. Now consider and describe the way American men typically speak.

Connecting Texts and Their Authors & Making Predictions

Look at each of the four texts in this module (Brooks, Tannen, Young, and Lorde), and write a three to four sentence response for each article after surveying the text.

 Examine the titles, and note the types of texts (New York Times Op-Ed piece versus book excerpt), and make any relevant predictions about the content of each piece.

 Examine the brief author biographies provided, and then imagine how each author’s identity and gender influence the text’s language, content, or purpose.

 Read only the first two paragraphs of each of the texts and make predictions based on who the audience might be and what the purpose is.