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Speaking Up

Speaking Up

Allyson Jule

(2018)

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Book Details

Abstract

From slut-shaming to the allegedly shrill voices of female politicians, from vocal fry to online misogyny, the language women use (and the language used about them) is as controversial as it has ever been. Our language use and our gender have an enormous impact on the way we understand ourselves and the world around us, and the way we are treated by society. Using the latest academic research, Allyson Jule tackles some of the most pressing issues facing feminism today, including how language use and related ideas about gender play out in the home, workplace and online. It turns out that many popular ideas about gender and language are more complicated than they first appear. This book will change the way you think about language, and give you the tools to challenge the world around you. 


A highly accessible beginner's guide for the era of #MeToo and LGBTQ+, but also of neoliberalism and Trump. It will be a welcome addition to the field of gender and language.


Allyson Jule is an academic specialising in the interaction between language and gender. She is Co-Director of the Gender Studies Institute, Trinity Western University, Canada and an associate of the University of Oxford's International Gender Studies Centre. She has published widely, and her work has featured in TIME magazine and The Ladies Home Journal.


I can't wait to read it!


Speaking Up has spoken, and we should listen. What is at stake is nothing less than our humanity.


Susan J. Behrens, Marymount Manhattan College, USA

Fascinating and hugely informative, Allyson Jule will make you realise just how powerful language is in creating the gender norms that many of us are trying to battle against. This is a brilliant way to understand how language has shaped women's experience in a patriarchal world. Timely, rigorous, and so important, Jule's research gives substance and weight to the current feminist conversation.


Speaking Up is so much more than a book about the linguistic habits of men and women. It is a journey through feminist history, a retrospective of the successes and failures of the research that has shaped the study of language and gender, and a close look at the underlying social forces that influence our language patterns daily in personal relationships, the workplace, and beyond.

A rich, insightful journey through the hidden dynamics behind language in action.


Reading [this book], we feel that [the author] has studied everything that has ever been said on gendered linguistics; she references Foucault and the Kardashians with equal rigour.


Florence Holmes

Table of Contents

Section Title Page Action Price
About the Author ii
DOI https://doi.org/10.21832/jule9603 iv
Contents vii
Prologue ix
I Understanding Gender and Language Use 1
1 The Basics 3
Feminism: A Quick Review 4
Sex and Gender 9
LGBTQ+ Terminology 14
Neoliberalism, the New Feminism and Globalization 16
Summing Up 18
2 Language as Gendered 19
Language and Power 23
Social Constructionism 27
Critical Discourse Analysis and Gendered Discourses 29
Summing Up 32
II Understanding Gender and Language Use in the World 33
3 Gender and Language Use in the Media and Technology 35
Gender Identity and the Mass Media 36
Advertising Gender 39
Media Discourse 41
Talk Shows, the News, TV and Film 44
Technology as Mediated Community 47
Misogynistic Abuse 48
Gaming and a Non-Gendered Community 48
Girls and Technology 51
Summing Up 52
4 Gender and Language Use in Education 53
Gender, Achievement, the Hidden Curriculum and Linguistic Space 53
What Do We Call the Toilets? 57
The Teacher as Gender Coach; Classrooms as Gender Stage 57
Speaking About Sex 61
Reporting Sexual Violence on Campus 63
Silence as Participation Strategy 65
Summing Up 67
5 Gender and Language Use in the Workplace 68
Framing Gender in Workplace Relationships 68
Chipping Away at the Glass Ceiling 70
Gender at Work 72
Lean In: Gender and Styles of Leadership 73
Summing Up 77
6 Gender and Language Use in Religion: Judaism, Christianity and Islam 78
Gender in the World Religions 79
Talking of God as Male 81
Gender-neutral Language 83
Gender and Expressions of Morality 84
The Myth of Gender 85
Gender Issues in Islam 86
Summing Up 88
7 Gender and Language Use in Relationships 89
The Role of Social Talk 89
Participating in Family Life 91
Gender and Friendships 93
Politeness and Complimenting 96
Summing Up 97
8 An Anti-Conclusion 98
Glossary 102
References 109
Index 123