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Chapter 4: The World of Words
Key Concepts
abstract
ambiguous
arbitrary
communication rules
constitutive rules
hate speech
I language
indexing
linguistic determinism
loaded language
punctuation
regulative rules
speech community
static evaluation
symbols
totalizing
you language
Chapter Outline
I.
The symbolic nature of language. Our language and many of our nonverbal behaviors
are symbolic.
A.
Symbols are arbitrary. There is no natural connection between the symbol and
what it represents. So, at any point in time, the symbol or what it represents
could change.
B.
Symbols are ambiguous because we have unique individual experiences. There is
a range of meanings on which most members of a culture agree.
C.
Symbols are abstract. Because symbols are not tangible, we do not touch the
symbols we use the same way we may touch the things (e.g., a chair or
computer) they represent.
II.
The principles of verbal communication give us an understanding of how symbols work.
A.
Because language and culture reflect each other, we learn a set of values,
perspectives, and beliefs when we learn to speak and read.
B.
The meanings of language are subjective.
Because there are no single definitions for symbols, we must interpret them in the
context of the present interaction to attach meaning, which is often subjective.
C.
Language use is rule-guided.
Communication rules help us develop shared understandings of what is happening
in a particular interaction and which is appropriate.
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1.
Regulative rules help us manage the when, how, where, and with whom
we talk about certain things.
2.
Constitutive rules define what messages mean in a particular situation by
specifying how to count or interpret specific kinds of communication.
D.
Punctuation defines the beginning and ending of particular interpersonal
interactions.
1.
A common pattern of conflict involving two people punctuating
interaction differently is the demand–withdraw cycle.
2.
Punctuation depends on subjective perceptions.
III.
The ability to use and understand symbols has an impact on the lives we lead.
A.
Language shapes meaning—We use symbols to define experiences,
people, relationships, feelings, and thoughts.
1.
The names or labels we attach to people, objects, or events shape our
perceptions by highlighting some aspects and de-emphasizing
others.
2.
When we totalize someone, our names or labels highlight just one aspect
of a person, object, or event.
3.
The language we use to define relationships shapes how we view and act
in those relationships.
B.
Language evaluates. Language is value laden and not neutral.
1.
The judgments and values that appear in our language choices affect how
we view or perceive people, objects, and events.
2.
Loaded language strongly affects our perceptions, usually by creating
inaccurate negative connotations.
3.
Language can degrade others because we are influenced by the names we
have for things.
a.
Hate speech—language that radically dehumanizes members of
a particular group.
C.
Language organizes perceptions. Symbols help us organize information and
perceptions into categories so that we do not have to remember every aspect of
every person, object, and event we encounter.
1.
Language allows abstract thought.
Being able to use language to organize information and perceptions allows
for abstract thought.
2.
Language can stereotype.
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In categorizing information and perceptions, language can stereotype,
which distorts thinking.
D.
We can use symbols to think hypothetically or beyond concrete situations.
E.
We can use symbols to label things that have happened in the past, are happening
now, and might happen in the future.
F.
Symbols help us foster personal growth.
G.
They also allow us to self-reflect and examine our actions so that we can monitor
our behavior in a particular situation as well as manage the impression of
ourselves we make on others.
1.
Self-reflection allows us to monitor communication.
2.
Self-reflection allows us to manage our image.
IV.
When a group of people share a set of norms about how to talk and the purposes talk
serves, they form what is called a speech community.
A.
Different speech communities use symbols in different ways.
B.
Speech communities are defined by shared ideas of how to communicate, not by
geographic locations.
C.
Gender is a prominent speech community.
a.
From a young age, men and women are socialized into specific gender
speech communities.
b.
Women tend to be more expressive and relationship-focused. Men tend to
be more instrumental and competitive.
c.
Because of the differences between gender speech communities, there are
some common misunderstandings that occur.
V.
Social media have impacted communication.
A.
Social media have resulted in the creation of new words as technology has changed the way
we interact.
B.
There are limitations to social media, however, because digital media do not allow us the full
range of nonverbal communication, which often helps us understand what speakers mean—
winks, scowls, and so forth.
VI.
We can use a set of guidelines for making our verbal communication more effective.
A.
Engaging in dual perspective, or recognizing the other’s viewpoint, asks us to
create and interpret messages with both our view and the other’s view in mind.
B.
Own your feelings and thoughts. Recognize that starting sentences with “I”
instead of “You” lead us to take responsibility for thoughts and feelings as well
as describe rather than blame others.
C.
Respecting what others say about their thoughts and feelings allows us to confirm
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rather than disconfirm them as people and helps us engage in dual perspective.
D.
Strive for accuracy and clarity. Be aware of levels of abstraction because
symbols are arbitrary, ambiguous, and abstract, and we need to find ways to
make our communication more accurate and make it as concrete as is necessary
for the situation at hand.
1.
Awareness of the levels of abstraction can help make our communication
more accurate.
2.
Using qualifying language reminds us of the limitations of a message.
3.
Static evaluation is an assessment that suggests that something is
unchanging or static.
4. Indexing reminds us that our evaluations should be applied only to a
particular time and situation.
Discussion Ideas
Language Shapes and Reflects Culture: If students are required to take a foreign language at
your university, ask them to find examples of words that do not have a direct translation into
English. What do these words demonstrate about what that culture values that our culture
does not? In American Sign Language, for example, there a sign that is produced with the
thumb and index finger starting in a backward “L” position. The sign starts at the temple of
the head and as the hand moves further away from the head, the fingers start to close
together, until they touch. This sign form symbolizes that something that was once near has
now gone off far into the distance. The sign is called “train gone,” as if a train has left the
station and has traveled out of sight. The closest spoken English equivalent is that a person
has lost his or her train of thought. This sign demonstrates the value placed on visual-spatial
forms of communication since the thumb and index finger closing off into the distance could
mean a number of things, but when it starts by the temple of the head, it signifies a thought
that has left the mind of the signer.
• Speech Communities and Meaning Are Subjective: As a class, generate a list of three to
five terms that you are going to use in conversation between now and the next class period.
Have students develop the definitions and appropriate usage. This can be done as a class or
in groups. Have students make a mental note of the reactions they receive when using the
new words. For this to be effective, the words have to represent things they would discuss in
their everyday activities or other classes. During the next class period, talk about the various
reactions they received and why they believe people reacted the way they did. This also
works well for a journal assignment.
• Gendered Speech Communities: As a class, divide into males and females. In each group,
develop words and symbols that you use to define the opposite sex. Have students make a
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mental note of the reactions they receive in response to each word. Have each group present
one word at a time. Talk about the different connotations that may arise from each word.
Some of the words may be very condescending and may suggest a more negative
perspective. During class, talk about the reactions that everyone had and why they reacted the
way they did. This works well as a journal assignment.
• Labels Shape Perceptions: If your courses are labeled based upon when students are
expected to take them (e.g., 100 is first year, 200 is second year), ask students to generate a
list of expectations for courses that are offered at the various levels. How and why do our
perceptions change based upon the labels we have for classes? You can do the same kind of
thing if you have a variety of labels for people who teach at your school (e.g., instructor,
GTA or TA, lecturer or adjunct, assistant professor, associate professor, full professor).
• Symbols Evaluate: Ask students to generate a list of neutral symbols/words in our
language. Chances are they will list articles (a, an, the), prepositions (over, under, with), and
conjunctions (and, but, or, neither). This is a good opportunity to point out that even these
seemingly innocuous words may have values attached to them. Remember from our
perception chapter about the differences between definite and indefinite articles; also, using
“but” as a conjunction verses “and” as a conjunction changes the tone of a sentence; and the
preposition we choose indicates a prioritizing (consider in verses into).
• Symbols Organize: Ask students to describe the campus library or classroom in which
you are sitting if we could not use organizing labels such as chalkboard, stacks, and
hallway.
This is usually a good eye-opening exercise on how much we depend on language to organize
our thoughts as well as how difficult it is to describe everything in concrete terms.
• Slang Language: Ask students to interview other individuals of various ages. Ask them to
name slang words that they use in their generation with their friends. Talk about how these
changes have been made over time.
• Rules of the Net, or Netiquette: Use of the Internet has acquired its own rules and
conventions for interaction known as netiquette. Lead a discussion about how to apply the
concepts of regulative and constitutive rules to interaction on the Internet. What are
regulative rules over the Internet (e.g., email should have a subject heading that reflects the
current topic of the message, greetings and salutations used in letters are not used in emails,
use emoticons such as smiley faces to communicate nonverbal elements)? What are
constitutive rules (e.g., using ALL CAPS counts as screaming, not replying to an email
message for over a day may count as being rude, not using paragraphs to break up long email
messages counts as being insensitive to the reader)? Ask students to identify rules, or norms,
they and others tend to follow for texting, tweeting, and using emoji and stickers.
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Activities
Title
Individual
Partner/
Ethno
Group
Demonstration/
Whole Class
Internet
1. Then and now
X
X–P
2. Is our language sexist and racist?
X–H
3. Euphemisms
X
4. African American teach-in
X
5. Breaking the rules
X–P
6. Image making
X–P
X
7. Chat room rules
X–P
X–P
8. Labels
X–P
9. Another word for
X
X = Marks type of activity H = Handout P = Preparation required for students/teacher
Then and Now
This assignment gives students insight into meanings and how they change over time. One week
prior to the class period you will discuss the principle that meanings change and give students
the following list of words. Assign them the task of interviewing two individuals—one between
40 and 50 and one over 60 years old—to find out what the words meant to them when they were
20.
Black
Girl
Gay
Pot
Chick
Crash
Rap
Straight
Bad
Partner
Pig
Grass
Queer
Ball
Heavy
Downer
During a class on language, ask students to share what they discovered about the meanings of
these words years ago. Be sensitive to variations in meaning that arise from interviewees’ race,
sex, or sexual preference and point these out to students to remind them that meanings are
subjective.
Is Our Language Sexist and Racist?
This exercise increases students’ awareness of ways in which language reflects cultural
assumptions by prompting them to notice common phrases that imply males are standard and
Caucasians are standard and better than people of color.
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Give students a copy of the handout titled Is Our Language Sexist and Racist?
Warning: Some of the statements are deliberately provocative; you will need to decide
whether the students in your class can address the statements constructively or whether you
should modify the organization for your particular students.
Organize students into groups of six to eight members. Instruct the groups that they will have 15
minutes to decide whether the statements on their handouts are sexist or racist. For each
statement or phrase the students consider racist or sexist, they should suggest an alternative
phrasing that is less race and sex biased.
After 15 minutes, stop the discussions. Write the numbers 1 to 10 on the chalkboard. Beside
each number, write “yes” (is racist or sexist) or “no” (is not racist or sexist). Then, ask how
many students thought the first statement contained sexist or racist language. Tally the groups’
“yes” and “no” responses for item #1. Discuss why the groups thought the statement was sex or
race biased and how the meaning might be conveyed without those biases. Continue this
procedure for the remaining nine items.
Here are some of the biases in the statements that you might wish to point out to your students:
1.
Man and wife are not parallel terms. The woman’s identity is defined only in relation to her
husband.
2.
Many English terms associate whiteness with goodness and blackness or darkness with
badness (items two and four).
3.
Are any women in the street giving interviews?
4.
Did Ann’s husband also keep HIS name? We notice when a woman doesn’t assume the
man’s name but consider it normal for the man’s identity to be unchanged by marriage.
5.
Have you ever heard it described as babysitting when a mother takes care of her child?
Referring to a father’s taking care of children as babysitting implies that being with a child
is primarily a mother’s responsibility.
6.
Is a “regular guy” a Western Caucasian?
7.
Do we ever hear the phrases “male lawyer” or “female nurse”? Referring to a female lawyer
and male nurse spotlights the professionals’ sex and implies that it is unusual in that
profession.
8.
Whose standards are being tacitly used to determine shortness? A Western Caucasian
standard is implied.
9.
Whose standards define confrontational? A middle-class Caucasian standard is implied.
Among African Americans, direct and assertive speaking style is not considered particularly
confrontational.
Conclude the class session by discussing the importance of language in shaping how we think
about ourselves and others. Talk with students about how self-concept is affected when a person
is defined as nonstandard.
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Euphemisms
This activity is a quick way to heighten students’ awareness of the importance we attach to
connotative meanings of language.
Create groups of five to seven students. On the chalkboard, write the following words:
Death
Sex
Prostitute
Vomit
Fight
Bathroom
Ask the groups to identify other words we use to avoid saying these “taboo” words. Ask the
group for other examples of euphemisms. Discuss with students why we use euphemisms—what
value do they serve?
African American Teach-In
This activity should enhance non–African American students’ appreciation of the richness
of communication styles used by African Americans.
Ask four or five African Americans to lead a 20-minute workshop in your class. The African
Americans may be students in your class or on the campus, or nonstudents. Explain to the guests
that your goal is to make non–African American students aware of the drama, wit, and style of
African American communication.
When the guests meet with your class, they should first demonstrate African American
communication practices using themselves as examples. They may demonstrate practices such as
signifyin’, rappin’, woofin’, crackin’ (also called snappin’), and callin’ out. Then the workshop
leaders should get students in the class to participate in the communication practices.
Breaking the Rules
This activity heightens students’ awareness of gendered prescriptions for verbal communication.
It also illustrates the principle that communication is rule-guided.
After students have read Chapter 4, instruct them to select one gender prescription for verbal
behavior and to violate it intentionally. Women might interrupt, give minimal responses, not
express empathy, reroute conversations, or be instrumental when others talk to them about
personal problems. Men might be emotionally expressive, use tag questions, respond
expressively to others’ feelings, or express empathy. Lead a discussion in which you guide
students to realize that others have gender-based expectations. Ask students what others did
when they violated the rules for their gender. Also, ask students how they felt when deviating
from expectations for their gender.
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Image Making
This activity heightens students’ awareness of the ways in which the language used by media
shapes our perceptions of people and social groups.
Prior to the day you plan to conduct this exercise, either tell students to bring a newspaper to
class on the day of the exercise or save enough newspapers yourself to give at least one and
preferably several to each group.
Assign students to groups of five to seven members. Give each group one or more newspapers if
students were not required to bring their own newspapers. Tell groups they will have 20 minutes
to read and discuss the language used by newspapers to represent women, men, and racial
groups. At the end of that time, each group should have a representative who will explain its
findings to the class. To guide students’ analyses of newspapers’ language, pose questions such
as these: Are men and women news figures described in parallel ways? How often are marital
status and appearance mentioned in stories about members of each sex? When is race noted in
newspaper articles? Is race identified only when the person in the story is not Caucasian? Does
this imply that Caucasian is the assumed standard? Are women’s and men’s athletic contests
given equal coverage? Are women and men athletes described in parallel ways? How much of
each story on women and on men is devoted to athletic accomplishments, appearance, and
personal details?
After 20 minutes, ask group representatives to report their findings to the class. As each group
reports, highlight evidence of language that reflects and reproduces the idea that men and
whiteness are standard and best.
Chat Room Rules
The purpose of this activity is to learn about regulative and constitutive rules in face-to-face
“chats” with friends as well as in online “chat” rooms.
Before class, go to your favorite search engine, such as www.altavista.com or www.google.com
and type in “chat room rules.” Pick one of these sites and review its list of rules and have the
students distinguish between regulative and constitutive rules. If your classroom does not have
Internet access, then save the web page to a disk beforehand.
Ask students to make a list of regulative and constitutive rules when chatting with their friends
(in a face-to-face setting). Write these rules on the board, an overhead, or project onto a screen
with a data show projector. Then, ask how many people have participated in an online chat room
(such as AOL, Geocities). Ask students to make a list of regulative and constitutive rules when
chatting in this virtual space (if the students have difficulty with these rules, don’t worry, just go
to the next step).
Next, show the list of chat room rules that you found in your web search. Ask students to
compare the list of rules for the students generated about chat rooms to the rules displayed on the
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web page.
Lead a discussion on the differences between the face-to-face and online chatting. Consider
whether or not face-to-face chatting has rules made explicit like online chat rooms do. Ask
students about more formal discussions they may have had (such as a group meeting or in a
class room) and how rules for interaction are communicated.
Variation: When searching for websites that display their chat rules, pick three different sites
whose chat rooms are set up for different purposes or topics (e.g., a hobby, religion, fan club,
financial information). Have students compare and contrast the rules for each type of chat room.
For more information on chat and chat rooms, visit http://www.techdictionary.com/ and search
by the term “chat.”
Labels
The purpose of this activity is to show how language can affect our perceptions of other people.
In turn, the labels that we give people can also affect our communication behaviors with others.
Before class, write the following words on note cards or you may type the words on the
computer. Then, print them out and cut them into little note cards: nerd, weirdo, depressed,
strange, retarded, snob, manic, smelly, psychotic, shy, rude, quiet, talk-active, scary, nosy, bossy,
pushy, pretentious, shallow, boring, angry, silly, stupid, argumentative, domineering, needy,
defense, funny, helpless, moron, and flaky. Also, make about five cards with the word “Popular”
and five cards with the word “Loser.”
Instruct the students to put a hand over their forehead. In a few moments, each student will
receive a note card, but they are NOT allowed to look at the card. Shuffle the note cards so that
they are random. Tell the students that they will be interacting with a variety of people. Each
person will get a card and you will respond to them as if they were that card.
The goal of the activity is to find the people who are “popular.” These people are the most
desirable and each student should desire to communicate with the “popular” people. The other
goal of this activity is to stay away from the people who are marked as “loser.” These people are
the least desirable and students should avoid them if possible. In addition, they need to respond
to each person based on the label on that person’s note card. For instance, you may laugh at
everything that the “funny” person says and you may yawn at everything the “boring” person
says.
Give each student a card to be placed on his or her forehead. Remind students to not look at their
cards and they cannot ask others what their card says. Give the students about 10–15 minutes to
mingle with the other students. You may need more time in larger classes.
Teachers are encouraged to participate as well. Within a few minutes, the “popular” people will
form one group and the “loser” people will form another group.Before the students look at their
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cards, ask them to tell the class what they thought they were labeled as. This is a great self-
awareness and perception exercise. Sometimes students are correct and sometimes they are
completely wrong.
After the students have guessed what they were labeled as, lead a discussion on how it felt to be
labeled as either positive or negative. Ask students how they felt to label others and if it made a
difference in their communication behaviors? Instructors might talk about stereotyping and how
labeling may be hurtful or detrimental.
Another Word for…
This activity works for smaller classes. Ask each student to take out a sheet of paper. Have each
student write one word and five words that can be used to describe that one word. For instance, if
the one word “Barbie” and five words to describe her would be “1. Toy, 2. Blonde hair, 3. Ken,
4.
Doll; 5. Mattel.” Collect all the papers. Randomly hand out the papers and make sure that
students do not get their own papers. Have each student come up to the front one at a time and
have the student try to guess his or her word.
The students cannot use the five words that describe the specific word. They will each have a
minute to get the class to identify the one word. This activity is similar to a game called “Taboo.”
Your students will really enjoy this activity because it teaches them to be creative with words.
Journal Items
• Analyze what happened and how you felt when you violated the verbal communication
rules for your gender.
Responses will vary, but students may receive perplexed or confusing looks from others,
extended gazing or staring, laughter, genuine interest in why they are doing something
outside of the norm, and so on. Students may feel embarrassed, silly, liberation, excitement,
or fun when they violate gendered communication rules.
• Attend a religious service in a church, synagogue, or temple that is attended primarily by
individuals whose race differs from yours. Do not take notes or otherwise appear
disrespectful while in the service, but do observe the communication of both leaders and
the congregation. Afterward, analyze how communication differs in your normal church
and the one you attended.
Answers will vary, but some students notice differences in the amount and type of music
played or the singing, more/less interaction between speaker and audience, more/less
formality in terms of language choices and rituals, more/less distance between speaker and
congregation (or perhaps very little distinction at all between the two), and so on.
• Attend a foreign grocery store, such as an Asian or Indian market in your town. Observe
88
the communication behaviors that occur among people in the store. Analyze how the
communication patterns are different among people who are Asian/Indian and people
who are a different race.
Answers will vary, but some students will notice various differences regarding language use
and nonverbal behaviors. Students will often notice things that they may overlook, especially
when another language besides English is present. The way other cultures use language can
be perceived differently by American students.
• Describe verbal communication between you and a close friend or romantic partner of the
other sex. Analyze the extent to which you and the other person follow patterns typical of
women and men in general.
Answers will vary, but students often notice that women tend to provide more verbal
encouragers, tend to interrupt to express similarity and understanding, may discuss a range of
topics that revolve around the issue, while men tend to talk more for instrumental reasons, to
assert oneself, and to interrupt to reroute topics.
• Identify at least one regulative and constitutive rule for interacting in face-to-face
situations and one of each type of rule when communicating over email. Reflect on
how you learned each of these rules.
Look for students to distinguish between regulative rules and constitutive rules in general.
Examples of regulative and constitutive rules for face-to-face interaction can be found on p.
129. Examples of regulative and constitutive rules for email could be that one should reply
to an email within 24 hours of receiving it (regulative) and using ALL CAPS counts as
“shouting” (constitutive). Depending on their backgrounds and age, students may have
learned face-to-face rules much earlier, and from different people, than they learned about
rules for email communication.
• Identify a situation where there was a huge misunderstanding and how it could have been
prevented.
Answers will vary, but students should be able to identify how words can have a huge impact
on perceptions. They should be able to discuss some of the principles for improving verbal
effectiveness.
89
Panel Idea
Invite one or more relationship counselors to talk with your class. Ask the guest(s) to describe
common problems in couples’ verbal communication and to explain counseling methods they
use to improve verbal communication between partners in romantic relationships.
Invite two or more international students. Ask the guests to describe common language
problems that occurred when they came to the university regarding things such as slang
words and misunderstandings. Ask the guest to describe how they began to understand
the language and what is still hard for them to comprehend.
Invite a person who is in a leadership position. Ask the guest to talk about how he or she needs
to be clear and concise with his or her communication with others. Have him or her talk about
how he or she communicates in his or her position.
Media Resources
Websites
Name: Your Baby’s First Words
Developer: WebMD
Brief Description: This article discusses milestones in language development.
URL: https://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby-talk-your-
babys-first-words#1
Name: Netiquette: Rules of Behavior on the Internet
Developer: Education.com
Brief Description: This website provides guidelines and rules for use of the Internet, or
netiquette.
URL: https://www.education.com/reference/article/netiquette-rules-behavior-internet/
Name: TechDictionary.com
Developer: TechDictionary.com and a lengthy list of international contributors
Brief Description: This website allows you to search by term or keyword; it includes chat terms
and emoticon meanings.
URL: http://www.techdictionary.com/
Name: SYMBOLS.com
Developer: HME Media.
Brief Description: SYMBOLS.com is an online encyclopedia of graphic symbols and contains
more than 2,500 Western signs, arranged into 54 groups according to their graphic
characteristics. In 1,600 articles, their histories, uses, and meanings are thoroughly discussed.
The signs range from ideograms carved in mammoth teeth by Cro-Magnon men to hobo signs
90
and subway graffiti.
URL: http://www.symbols.com/
Name: American Sign Language Browser
Developer: Michigan State University Communication Technology Library
Brief Description: Uses QuickTime videos to teach people how to produce certain signs. Sign
language constitutes symbolic communication, though not through verbal means.
URL: http://commtechlab.msu.edu/sites/aslweb/browser.htm
Name: What Should Social Networks Do about Hate Speech?
Developer: Electronic Frontier Foundation
Brief Description: A discussion of hate speech on social media.
URL: https://www.eff.org/mention/what-should-social-networks-do-about-hate-speech
Name: A Way with Words: Language and Human Nature
Developer: Steven Pinker
Brief Description: This site gives a brief insight into Psychologist Steven Pinker’s book. In his
book, he dissects language and says that studying how we use verbs provides a window into
human nature.
URL: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=14422701
Name: Theory and Praxis in Community-Based Language Development
Developer: David M. Eberhard
Brief Description: A study of language
development research methodologies.
URL:https://www.degruyter.com/view/j/opli.201
7.3.issue-1/opli-2017-0013/opli-2017-0013.xml
Film Ideas
Films such as Ordinary People, Fools Rush In, When Harry Met Sally, and Mr. and Mrs.
Bridge, Mr. and Mrs. Smith provide extended illustrations of gendered communication styles.
You might show all or parts of either or both films and ask students to take notes on the specific
ways in which women and men embody cultural expectations for gender in their communication.
Tootsie, Mrs. Doubtfire, and To Wong Foo are excellent films to supplement teaching about
both verbal and nonverbal communication. In Tootsie, Dustin Hoffman does a superb job of
embodying masculine verbal and nonverbal style when he is Michael and feminine verbal and
nonverbal style when he is Dorothy. In Mrs. Doubtfire, Robin Williams also does a great job of
maintaining a feminine style. In To Wong Foo, Patrick Swayze and Wesley Snipes provide
humor as they dress up as drag queens.
Good Morning Vietnam. This film illustrates how our language choices affect people’s
perceptions. Robin Williams does a very good job of creating a sense of reality for the people
who can pick up his radio broadcasts.
91
Days of Thunder. This film is essentially Top Gun but in stock cars rather than Navy fighter
jets. Play the scene where Tom Cruise’s character (Cole, a stock car driver) is talking with his
pit crew captain. Cole does not know the technical vocabulary of racing. Look to see how the
two negotiate rules and vocabulary for how they will interact. When we come across situations
we have not experienced before, how do we negotiate new rules for interaction?
The King’s Speech. This is a great film that shows how public speaking can be frightening and
hard for someone such as a royal. It shows how people’s perceptions are affected by the words
and how it is communicated.
Print Resources
He Said, She Said: Exploring the Different Ways Men and Women Communicate, You
Just Don’t Understand, and Talking from 9 to 5: Women and Men in the Workplace:
Language, Sex, and Power are three books written by Deborah Tannen that deal with gender
issues. Both make excellent books for students to include as part of their popular press book
analysis paper. What theory of gender differences does Tannen base her claims on in these
books? How does it relate to how the issue of gender is discussed in the textbook?
Do You Speak American? is a book that is written by Robert MacNeil and William Cran. This
book illustrates how different parts of the United States use many different linguistic variations
on words. It discusses how American English may be on the decline.
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Handout: Is Our Language Sexist and Racist?
Read the following 10 statements and discuss each one with other members of your group.
Determine if each statement contains language that is racist (suggests one race is BEST or the
standard) or sexist (suggests one sex is better or the standard). Propose alternative language for
any sentences you consider sexist or racist in their current form.
1. I now pronounce you man and wife.
2. We’re the good guys—we wear white hats.
3. The news program features man-in-the-street interviews.
4. Let’s see if we can’t make something good happen by using a little white magic.
5. I can’t believe Ann kept her name when she married.
6. John stayed home to babysit his son, while his wife went out to take care of some business.
7. My friend Hachividi is from India, but he acts like a regular guy.
8. I know a woman lawyer and a male nurse.
9. Asian people are really short. Most of the women are about 5 feet tall, and the men aren’t
much taller.
10. Blacks are really confrontational.
