Dialectology and Sociolinguistics

Lecture 4: Language and Gender

Katherine McDonald, km440@cam.ac.uk

Gender differences in speech

Gros Ventre (Montana)

Men say djatsa ‘bread’, women say kjatsa

Japanese

Women: kare wa isya yo

he TOP doctor Focus ptc

Men: kare wa isya da yo

he TOP doctor is Focus particle

‘He is a doctor.’

Types of gender differences in language

Gender-exclusive terms: only used by one or other

gender.

Gender-preferential terms: more frequently used by one

gender or other, but can be used by both.

Gendered language in English?

1. That ____ dog just ____ed on my shoe!

(to a friend, to your mum/dad, to a supervisor?)

2. What colour is this square?

Gendered language in English?

3. Who is more likely to say the following sentences, a

man or a woman? Young or old?

(a) He was like, “That’s not fair.”

(b) She was, like, at least forty-five.

4. Would you compliment a friend on their appearance

when you see them? (e.g. “Hey, you look great! I love

your scarf.”)

Swearing

J. Coates (2004) Women, Men, and Language.

Colour vocabulary

7 colours…

…vs 24 colours

Gendering using colour

Quotative like and focuser like

Jennifer Dailey-O’Cain (2000) The sociolinguistic distribution of and attitudes

toward focuser like and quotative like. Journal of Sociolinguistics 4.1, 60-80

Quotative like and focuser like

Compliments

In general:

• women compliment each other lots

• women compliment men somewhat less

• men compliment women somewhat less (and in ways that

can be taken as patronising or a threat)

• men rarely compliment men

The content of compliments is also gendered, e.g.

appearance vs achievement.

Female voices from the ancient world

Hermione Grammatike – now in Girton

Female voices from the ancient world

The ‘Colossus of Memnon’

Iulia Balbilla, 1st-2nd century AD

Vindolanda text 291

Gravestone for a child

Commentary - Plato

οἶσθα ὅτι οἱ παλαιοὶ οἱ ἡμέτεροι τῷ ἰῶτα καὶ τῷ δέλτα εὖ μάλα

ἐχρῶντο, καὶ οὐχ ἥκιστα αἱ γυναῖκες, αἵπερ μάλιστα τὴν ἀρχαίαν

φωνὴν σῴζουσι. νῦν δὲ ἀντὶ μὲν τοῦ ἰῶτα ἢ εἶ ἢ ἦτα

μεταστρέφουσιν, ἀντὶ δὲ τοῦ δέλτα ζῆτα, ὡς δὴ μεγαλοπρεπέστερα

ὄντα

(Socrates) ‘You know that our ancestors made good use of the

sounds of iota and delta, and that is especially true of women, who

best preserve the old form of speech. But nowadays they change

iota to ei or eta, […] thinking that they have a grander sound.’

(Plato Cratylus 418b-c)

Commentary - Scholia

παρὰ τοῖς νεωτέροις ὑπὸ γυναικῶν λέγεται ὦ μέλε μόνον ὡς

τὸ ὦ τάλαν παρὰ δὲ τοῖς παλαιοῖς καὶ ὑπ’ ἀνδρῶν

(Scholl. Plat. Theaet. 178e)

‘In more recent times ὦ μέλε is said only by women, like ὦ

τάλαν, but in earlier times it was also used by men.’

Commentary - Cicero

equidem cum audio socrum meam Laeliam - facilius enim

mulieres incorruptam antiquitatem conservant, quod

multorum sermonis expertes ea tenent semper quae prima

dedicerunt - sed eam sic audio ut Plautum mihi aut Naeuium

uidear audire: sono ipso uocis ita recto et simplici est ut nihil

ostentationis aut imitationes afferre uideatur.

(Cicero de Oratore III xii 45-7)

Commentary – Medical writing

hic autem multo simplicius uolui loqui et ut uerius dicam

muliebribus uerbis usus sum, ut etiam inperitae

obstetrices licet ab altera sibi lectam rationem facile

intellegere possint

(Mustio Gynaecia)

Thetis in Iliad 1.

καρπαλίμως δ᾽ ἀνέδυ πολιῆς ἁλὸς ἠΰτ᾽ ὀμίχλη,

καί ῥα πάροιθ᾽ αὐτοῖο καθέζετο δάκρυ χέοντος,

χειρί τέ μιν κατέρεξεν ἔπος τ᾽ ἔφατ᾽ ἔκ τ᾽ὀνόμαζε:

τέκνον τί κλαίεις; τί δέ σε φρένας ἵκετο πένθος;

ἐξαύδα, μὴ κεῦθε νόῳ, ἵνα εἴδομεν ἄμφω.

Aristophanes Ecclesiazusae 155-160

B: ἐμοὶ μὲν οὐ δοκεῖ μὰ τὼ θεώ

Πραξ: μὰ τὼ θεώ; τάλαινα ποῦ τὸν νοῦν ἔχεις;

Β: τί δ᾽ ἔστιν; οὐ γὰρ δὴ πιεῖν γ᾽ ᾔτησά σε

Πραξ: μὰ Δί᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἀνὴρ ὢν τὼ θεὼ κατώμοσας,

καίτοι τά γ᾽ ἄλλ᾽ εἰποῦσα δεξιώτατα

Β: ὢ νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω

Aristophanes Ecclesiazusae 155-160

B: ἐμοὶ μὲν οὐ δοκεῖ μὰ τὼ θεώ

Πραξ: μὰ τὼ θεώ; τάλαινα ποῦ τὸν νοῦν ἔχεις;

Β: τί δ᾽ ἔστιν; οὐ γὰρ δὴ πιεῖν γ᾽ ᾔτησά σε

Πραξ: μὰ Δί᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἀνὴρ ὢν τὼ θεὼ κατώμοσας,

καίτοι τά γ᾽ ἄλλ᾽ εἰποῦσα δεξιώτατα

Β: ὢ νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω

Aristophanes Ecclesiazusae 155-160

B: ἐμοὶ μὲν οὐ δοκεῖ μὰ τὼ θεώ

Πραξ: μὰ τὼ θεώ; τάλαινα ποῦ τὸν νοῦν ἔχεις;

Β: τί δ᾽ ἔστιν; οὐ γὰρ δὴ πιεῖν γ᾽ ᾔτησά σε

Πραξ: μὰ Δί᾽ ἀλλ᾽ ἀνὴρ ὢν τὼ θεὼ κατώμοσας,

καίτοι τά γ᾽ ἄλλ᾽ εἰποῦσα δεξιώτατα

Β: ὢ νὴ τὸν Ἀπόλλω

Aristophanes Thesmophoriazusae 590-5

Κλεισθένης

ἀφηῦσεν αὐτὸν κἀπέτιλ᾽ Εὐριπίδης

καὶ τἄλλ᾽ ἅπανθ᾽ ὥσπερ γυναῖκ᾽ ἐσκεύασεν.

Μνησίλοχος

πείθεσθε τούτῳ ταῦτα; τίς δ᾽ οὕτως ἀνὴρ

ἠλίθιος ὅστις τιλλόμενος ἠνείχετο;

οὐκ οἴομαι 'γωγ᾽ ὦ πολυτιμήτω θεώ.

Aristophanes, Lysistrata 78-84

Λυσιστράτη

ὦ φιλτάτη Λάκαινα χαῖρε Λαμπιτοῖ.

οἷον τὸ κάλλος γλυκυτάτη σου φαίνεται.

ὡς δ᾽ εὐχροεῖς, ὡς δὲ σφριγᾷ τὸ σῶμά σου.

κἂν ταῦρον ἄγχοις.

Λαμπιτώ

μάλα γ᾽ οἰῶ ναὶ τὼ σιώ:

γυμνάδδομαι γὰρ καὶ ποτὶ πυγὰν ἅλλομαι.

Καλονίκη

ὡς δὴ καλὸν τὸ χρῆμα τιτθίων ἔχεις.

Aristophanes, Lysistrata 78-84

Λυσιστράτη

ὦ φιλτάτη Λάκαινα χαῖρε Λαμπιτοῖ.

οἷον τὸ κάλλος γλυκυτάτη σου φαίνεται.

ὡς δ᾽ εὐχροεῖς, ὡς δὲ σφριγᾷ τὸ σῶμά σου.

κἂν ταῦρον ἄγχοις.

Λαμπιτώ

μάλα γ᾽ οἰῶ ναὶ τὼ σιώ:

γυμνάδδομαι γὰρ καὶ ποτὶ πυγὰν ἅλλομαι.

Καλονίκη

ὡς δὴ καλὸν τὸ χρῆμα τιτθίων ἔχεις.

Terence Adelphi 288-293

SO. Obsecro, mea nutrix, quid nunc fiet?

CA. quid fiet, rogas? recte edepol spero.

SO. modo dolores, mea tu, occipiunt primulum.

CA iam nunc times, quasi numquam adfueris, numquam tute

pepereris?

SO. Heu me miseram, habeo neminem solae sumu'; Geta autem

hic non adest qui arcesserat Aeschinum.

CA. pol is quidem iam hic aderit.

Terence Adelphi 288-293

SO. Obsecro, mea nutrix, quid nunc fiet?

CA. quid fiet, rogas? recte edepol spero.

SO. modo dolores, mea tu, occipiunt primulum.

CA iam nunc times, quasi numquam adfueris, numquam tute

pepereris?

SO. Heu me miseram, habeo neminem solae sumu'; Geta autem

hic non adest qui arcesserat Aeschinum.

CA. pol is quidem iam hic aderit.

Terence Adelphi 288-293

SO. Obsecro, mea nutrix, quid nunc fiet?

CA. quid fiet, rogas? recte edepol spero.

SO. modo dolores, mea tu, occipiunt primulum.

CA iam nunc times, quasi numquam adfueris, numquam tute

pepereris?

SO. Heu me miseram, habeo neminem solae sumu'; Geta autem

hic non adest qui arcesserat Aeschinum.

CA. pol is quidem iam hic aderit.

Terence Adelphi 288-293

SO. Obsecro, mea nutrix, quid nunc fiet?

CA. quid fiet, rogas? recte edepol spero.

SO. modo dolores, mea tu, occipiunt primulum.

CA iam nunc times, quasi numquam adfueris, numquam tute

pepereris?

SO. Heu me miseram, habeo neminem solae sumu'; Geta autem

hic non adest qui arcesserat Aeschinum.

CA. pol is quidem iam hic aderit.

Round-up

• Ancient languages vary depending on time and space

• They also vary with the age, class and gender of the

speaker

• Each speaker’s idiolect is internally variable

• Our sources can be limited for some of this variation,

but we keep looking!

Thanks everyone!

Enjoy your break!