Name : I Nyoman Sukejaye

Student Number :1901541021

Sociolinguistics A

Woman’s Language and Confidence

Some social dialectologists claim that women are status conscious, and this is
reflected in the use of standard forms of speech, but Robin Lakoff argues that women use
language that reinforces their subordinate status. According to her, the linguistic features of
women reveal uncertainty and a lack of self-confidence. Social dialect research focuses on
the differences in speech of women and men in the field of language pronunciation (like [in]
vs [iŋ]) and morphology (like past tense), with some attention to syntactic constructs (such as
multiple negation). Robin Lakoff shifts research focus to gender differences in syntax,
semantics and style. He suggested that the social status of female subordinates in American
society is reflected in the language women speak, as well as in the language spoken about
them. He identified a number of linguistic features that she claims are used more by women
than by men, and which he says expresses uncertainty and a lack of self-confidence.

Features of ‘women’s language’

Lakoff suggested that women„s speech was characterised by linguistic features such
as the following :

a. Lexical hedges or fillers, e.g. you know, sort of, well, you see.
b. Tag questions, e.g. she‟s very nice, isn‟t she?
c. Rising intonation on declaratives, e.g. it‟s really good?
d. „Empty‟ adjectives, e.g. divine, charming, cute.
e. Precise colour terms, e.g. magenta, aquamarine.
f. Intensifiers such as just and so, e.g. I like him so much.
g. „Hypercorrect‟ grammar, e.g. consistent use of standard verb forms.
h. „Superpolite‟ forms, e.g. indirect requests, euphemisms.
i. Avoidance of strong swear words, e.g. fudge, my goodness.
j. Emphatic stress, e.g. it was a BRILLIANT performance.

Lakoff's claim is based on his own intuition and observations, but it sparked a spate of
research because it seemed—very specific and easy to investigate.
Lakoff’s linguistic features as politeness devices

There are the use of tag questions in woman‟s language:

1. Using tag question to express uncertainty

2. Using tag question as facilitative or positive politeness devices
3. Using tag question to soften a direct criticism
4. Using tag question to express concern rather than uncertainty
5. Using tag question as confrontational and coercive devices

The Complex Function of Linguistic Forms

Linguistic forms have complex functions and used in different contexts. Different
meanings according to their pronunciation, their position in speaking, speech acts, who uses
them and to whom. Like tags for example, they are often used as a politeness device rather
than to express uncertainty.

Usage of Politeness

Women are more likely to respond positively to their interlocutors by accommodating

their speech as an aspect of consideration for their interlocutors. Differences in speech
behavior of women and men are distinguished based on the dimensions of status or power,
and dimensions of social distance/solidarity. Many features characterize women's language as
a positive politeness device for expressing solidarity. The use of politeness between male and
female speech may differ in each country.

Interaction

In terms of interaction, despite the widespread stereotypes about women as the sex
talking a lot, and the saying “A woman's tongue is like a sheep's tail; they are never silent,”
but in a variety of contexts, especially non-personal ones such as television interviews, staff
meetings, and conference discussions, where talking can elevate your status, men dominate
talk time.

Interruptions

According to research, in same-gender interactions, interruptions are fairly even

among speakers. However, in cross-gender interactions, almost all interruptions are male. In
another context as well, it was found that men interrupt others more often than women.