Sociolinguistics in the Melting Pot
Sociolinguistics is the study of the language within a society. It affects all parts of a region. It shapes a culture and it connects people. “In its broadest conception, sociolinguistics analyzes the many and diverse ways in which language and society entwine” (Eble, 2005). While sociolinguistics is a very broad topic, it is possible to narrow it down and really focus on how it shapes people as individuals. There are many assumptions when it comes to the way that different genders speak. Men and women have different language patterns, which are proven through extensive research. Another factor that comes into play when talking about the individual is homosexuality and the speech patterns of the LGBT (Lesbian, …show more content…
As stated previously, women are expected to follow a certain set of rules. While women have come a long way, there are still expectations of what a woman should act like and how she should speak. Women are known to gossip and that is sometimes how they maintain their social behavior (Hazen). Jesperson (1922) wrote that “women are more refined in their speech, use less coarse and gross expressions, and they are very uninventive” (Broadbrige). It was believed that women were less vulgar than men. They did not use certain expressions that men would use. This is a traditional belief that has been around for a very long time. There were two studies conducted on a group of 11 couples. One measured the frequency of swearing in conversation and the other measured the amount of interruptions. It was found that the men swore a lot more than the women did and they did this with ease. When one of the women swore in her conversation, she was immediately embarrassed and felt that she used more vulgar terms than she really did. This could be linked to the traditional view of women being ‘lady like’ and many women today feel that they have to follow that …show more content…
Sexual orientation influences speech patterns more than one might think. It has been found that speakers represent their sexual orientation through their speech, which is quite intriguing. Interestingly enough is that this topic also involves the use of euphemisms. Kirk Hazen states, “some speakers represent their sexual orientation through their speech, but the phonetic parameters of homosexual and bisexual speech are not complete approximations of opposite-sex qualities” (Hazen). While many people frequently use the word gay, it is more appropriate to say homosexual. This is the same for the word dyke, it is much more appropriate to say lesbian. This is only considered as an outside (heterosexual or bi-sexual) perspective, but now it is time to focus on the inside view of linguistics when it comes to sexual orientation. Keep in mind that this involves many stereotypical views, but has been studied extensively. “It is a widespread folk belief that you can pick out nonstraight people, or at least nonstraight men, by their behavior, in particular by their speech”(Zwicky ). There was a study in 1994 that was conducted to differentiate gay male speech and straight male speech.
In Gaudio’s (1994) study on men “sounding gay,” judges (not selected on the basis of orientation) were asked to evaluate various characteristics (including “gay” versus “straight”) of eight male speakers,
Sociolinguistics is the study of the language within a society. It affects all parts of a region. It shapes a culture and it connects people. “In its broadest conception, sociolinguistics analyzes the many and diverse ways in which language and society entwine” (Eble, 2005). While sociolinguistics is a very broad topic, it is possible to narrow it down and really focus on how it shapes people as individuals. There are many assumptions when it comes to the way that different genders speak. Men and women have different language patterns, which are proven through extensive research. Another factor that comes into play when talking about the individual is homosexuality and the speech patterns of the LGBT (Lesbian, …show more content…
As stated previously, women are expected to follow a certain set of rules. While women have come a long way, there are still expectations of what a woman should act like and how she should speak. Women are known to gossip and that is sometimes how they maintain their social behavior (Hazen). Jesperson (1922) wrote that “women are more refined in their speech, use less coarse and gross expressions, and they are very uninventive” (Broadbrige). It was believed that women were less vulgar than men. They did not use certain expressions that men would use. This is a traditional belief that has been around for a very long time. There were two studies conducted on a group of 11 couples. One measured the frequency of swearing in conversation and the other measured the amount of interruptions. It was found that the men swore a lot more than the women did and they did this with ease. When one of the women swore in her conversation, she was immediately embarrassed and felt that she used more vulgar terms than she really did. This could be linked to the traditional view of women being ‘lady like’ and many women today feel that they have to follow that …show more content…
Sexual orientation influences speech patterns more than one might think. It has been found that speakers represent their sexual orientation through their speech, which is quite intriguing. Interestingly enough is that this topic also involves the use of euphemisms. Kirk Hazen states, “some speakers represent their sexual orientation through their speech, but the phonetic parameters of homosexual and bisexual speech are not complete approximations of opposite-sex qualities” (Hazen). While many people frequently use the word gay, it is more appropriate to say homosexual. This is the same for the word dyke, it is much more appropriate to say lesbian. This is only considered as an outside (heterosexual or bi-sexual) perspective, but now it is time to focus on the inside view of linguistics when it comes to sexual orientation. Keep in mind that this involves many stereotypical views, but has been studied extensively. “It is a widespread folk belief that you can pick out nonstraight people, or at least nonstraight men, by their behavior, in particular by their speech”(Zwicky ). There was a study in 1994 that was conducted to differentiate gay male speech and straight male speech.
In Gaudio’s (1994) study on men “sounding gay,” judges (not selected on the basis of orientation) were asked to evaluate various characteristics (including “gay” versus “straight”) of eight male speakers,