A First Look At Communication Theory, 10e (Griffin)
Chapter 33 Muted Group Theory
1) Kramarae found that women were notable mostly by their ________ in cartoons.
A) subservience
B) negative stereotype
C) absence
D) family orientation
2) Kramarae starts with the assumption that “women perceive the world differently from men
because of women’s and men’s different:
A) functions in reproduction.”
B) experience and activities rooted in the division of labor.”
C) needs and wants.”
D) beliefs and cognitive structures.”
3) Kramarae lists a variety of back-channel routes that women use to discuss their experiences—
diaries, journals, letters, oral histories, and other forms of discourse that women use. She labels
these outlets the female ________ that runs beneath the surface of male orthodoxy.
A) “sub-masculine”
B) “minding”
C) “sub-version”
D) “anti-masculine”
4) The ultimate goal of muted group theory is to:
A) transcend the “normal” world and place women in a special place.
B) reduce the status of men and increase that of women.
C) return to an earlier era of stable gender roles.
D) change the man-made linguistic system that keeps women “in their place.”
5) In the Feminist Dictionary, the term used for the human story as told by women about women
is known as:
A) gossip.
B) herstory.
C) sub-version.
D) female stream.
6) Which of the following words is included in the Kramarae and Treichler dictionary and
illustrates a major achievement in feminist communication scholarship more than any other
single entry in the dictionary?
A) glass ceiling
B) date rape
C) sexual harassment
D) pornography
7) Cheris Kramarae is convinced that “males have more difficulty than females in understanding
what members of the other gender mean.” She suggests that this happens because:
A) of the biological differences between the sexes.
B) men have not made the effort to find out.
C) women do not share their experiences with men.
D) men tend to overthink about what women want, think, or feel.
8) In the context of muted group theory, which of the following statements is true about the
Internet?
A) It enables women to remake language with new words.
B) It eliminates gatekeeping.
C) It ensures that all algorithmic gatekeepers are females.
D) It works on the principle that computers are gender-biased.
9) Kramarae discovered that compared with the simple, forceful statements voiced by cartoon
males, the words assigned to female characters were:
A) vague.
B) flowery.
C) peppered with adjectives like “nice” and “pretty.”
D) All of the answers are correct.
10) Muted group theory has been criticized because it:
A) relies too heavily on empirical data.
B) has not adequately considered issues of power and dominance.
C) has ignored the issue of sexual harassment.
D) is difficult to prove the assumption that men are trying to control women.
11) Although Kramarae and Tannen disagree on many issues, they both believe that men are
trying to control women.
12) Kramarae is certain that the language of a particular culture does not serve all its speakers
equally.
13) Kramarae thinks advances in technology create new spaces where women can make their
voices heard to some extent.
14) The idea of women as a “muted group” was first proposed by Kramarae and received highly
negative responses from the male-dominated intellectual circles.
15) Along with his Oxford co-worker and wife Shirley Ardener, Edwin Ardener began to realize
that mutedness means that low-power groups are completely silent.
16) Cheris Kramarae believes that men’s dominant position in society limits women’s access to
communication in public spaces.
17) Kramarae acknowledges that men accept rather than ridicule or ignore women’s statements
about the problems of being heard in a male-dominated society.
18) Man-made language “aids in defining, depreciating, and excluding women.”
19) ________ refers to people belonging to low-power groups who must change their language
when communicating publicly—thus, their ideas are often overlooked; for example, women.
20) In the context of muted group theory, ________ is defined as traditional mainstream mass
media, which is controlled by men.
21) Can it be argued that women are less heard simply because they have less desire to speak?
What are the consequences of making such an assertion?
22) “The problem facing women, according to Kramarae, is that further discussions about how
the world works never take place on a level playing field.” Discuss the statement.
23) How does Kramarae support her argument that men dominate language and society? Do you
find her argument persuasive?
24) Textbooks are important modes of communication. Griffin indicates that his textbook is
susceptible to analysis and critique using muted group theory. Do you believe this is true? What
evidence would you marshal to support your position?
25) Are the arguments made by Kramarae about the linguistic domination of women by men
equally applicable to the arena of racial justice? Are African Americans, Hispanics, and other
minority groups oppressed by the language use of Americans of European descent? Discuss the
degree to which the comparison can be made.
26) Why is sexual harassment such an important issue in today’s society? In Kramarae‘s terms,
have women made progress in this area in the last twenty years? Do you agree?
27) What current linguistic practices on your campus could be said to perpetuate male
dominance?
28) Discussing the importance of language in his analysis of symbolic interactionism (Chapter
5), Griffin mentions, “The book of Genesis in the Bible states that Adam’s first job was to name
the animals—the dawn of civilization.” What would Kramarae have to say about this point?
29) Imagine that Julia Wood, Cheris Kramarae, and Deborah Tannen meet at a fundraising event
for NOW (The National Organization for Women). What might they have to say to one another?
What might their dialogue be like?
30) What is the connection between the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis and muted group theory?
31) How would Kramarae respond to Geertz and Pacanowsky’s and Aristotle’s interest in
metaphor?
32) Compare the media ecology of McLuhan and his theoretical descendants and Katz position
on the uses and gratifications of media with Kramarae’s view of the Internet and electronic
interactivity.