G O O D M A N N E R S A N D G E N D E R ROLE A S T W O A S P E C T S O F C O M M U N I C A T I V E C O M P E T E N C E I N

ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND

M A R Í A ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

Universidad de Málaga

R E S U M E N

El presente artículo defiende que la adquisic ión de la competencia c o m u ­nicativa por los niños se ha traducido tradicionalmente en que éstos demues­tren buenas maneras y su ident idad en cuanto a pertenencia a uno u otro sexo. El análisis del discurso de u n capítulo de Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Las Aventuras de Alicia en el País de las Maravillas) se presenta c o m o u n ejemplo de c ó m o una obra literaria del siglo X IX refleja esta idea. Además, el análisis encuentra u n paralel ismo entre la manera de hablar de niños y mujeres con res­pecto a la forma de expresión de respeto hacia la autor idad del adul to y del varón respectivamente.

P A L A B R A S CLAVE

Competencia comunicat iva; análisis del discurso; ident idad de género; len­guaje infant i l .

A B S T R A C T

This article supports the v i e w that the acquisi t ion o f communicat ive c o m ­petence by chi ldren has tradit ional ly been associated to the verbal display o f g o o d manners and gender identity. The discourse analysis o f a chapter o f Alice's

Adventures in Wonderland is s h o w n as an example o f the w a y in w h i c h a nine­teenth century literary w o r k encodes such concept. The analysis also f inds a paral lel ism between chi ldren and female speech in the expression of respect for the adult and the male authori ty respectively.

CAUCE. Raima tie PthlcQfa y SU DUUcllca. n" 20-21. 1997-9RI pdgs. 427-442

4 2 7

MARIA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESP1NOSA

RÉSUMÉ

Cet article soutient que l 'acquisi t ion de la compétence communicat ive par les enfants s'est traduite t radi t ionnel lement par leurs bonnes manières et leur identité p o u r ce qu i est de leur appartenance à Y u n des deux sexes. L'analyse d u discours d ' u n chapitre d 'Al ice au Pays des Merveil les est présentée p o u r il lustrer comment une oeuvre littéraire du XIXème siècle reflète cette idée. Cette analyse révèle, en outre, l 'existence d ' u n paraléll isme entre l 'expression res­pectueuse de l 'enfant envers l 'autorité de l 'adulte d 'une part, et celle de la femme envers l ' h o m m e d'autre part.

M O T S - C L É

Compétence communicat ive , anlyse du discours; identité de genre; langa­ge d'enfant.

I N T R O D U C T I O N

T h e c o n c e p t o f c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c e e v o l v e d a s a r e s u l t o f a

sh i f t i n e m p h a s i s a m o n g t h e o r i s t s i n l i n g u i s t i c s , a m o v e a w a y f r o m t h e

r u l e s o f l a n g u a g e f o r m s t o w a r d s a n e m p h a s i s o n t h e a b i l i t y t o u s e t h e

l a n g u a g e 1 . A c c o r d i n g t o t h i s t h e o r y , a c h i l d ' s a c q u i s i t i o n o f c o m m u n i c a ­

t i v e c o m p e t e n c e i n v o l v e s n o t o n l y l e a r n i n g t o c o r r e c t l y u s e a f o r m a l s y s ­

t e m o f p h o n o l o g y , l e x i s a n d s y n t a x , b u t a l s o l e a r n i n g h o w t o u s e t h a t

s y s t e m a p p r o p r i a t e l y .

T e a c h i n g a c h i l d g o o d m a n n e r s c a n b e s e e n a s a l a r g e n e t t h r o w n

o v e r c h i l d r e n f r o m a v e r y y o u n g a g e , t h r o u g h w h i c h t h e y a c q u i r e t h e

1. For general surveys of the history of communicative competence see Canale and Swain (1980), Canale (1983) and Munby (1981).

4 2 8

K E Y W O R D S

Communicat ive competence; discourse analysis; gender identi ty; chi ldren's speech.

GOOD MANNERS AND GENDER ROLE AS TWO ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

4 2 9

p r o p e r w a y t o b e h a v e , v e r b a l l y a n d n o n - v e r b a l l y , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n c o n t e x t s w h e r e a d u l t s p l a y a s i g n i f i c a n t r o l e . C h i l d r e n l e a r n s o o n t h a t A d u l t s w i e l d A u t h o r i t y a n d t h a t t h e y s h o u l d b e p r o p e r l y r e s p e c t e d .

A c o r o l l a r y t o t h i s p r i n c i p l e o f g o o d m a n n e r a c q u i s i t i o n , is t h e p r i n ­c i p l e o f g e n d e r r o l e a c q u i s i t i o n , o r t h e p r o c e s s b y w h i c h c h i l d r e n d e v e l ­o p a s e n s e o f t h e i r g e n d e r r o l e b y a c q u i r i n g d i f f e r e n t i a t e d p a t t e r n s o f m a l e o r f e m a l e s p e e c h a s e v i d e n t i n t h e c u l t u r e .

I n t h e p r e s e n t a r t i c l e , t h e a n a l y s i s o f C h a p t e r F i v e , ' A d v i c e f r o m a C a t e r p i l l a r ' f r o m t h e b o o k Alice's Adventures in Wonderland b y L e w i s C a r r o l l , w i l l s e r v e t o s u p p o r t b o t h o f t h e s e a s p e c t s o f c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c e : t h e a c q u i s i t i o n o f g o o d m a n n e r s b y c h i l d r e n , a n d t h e i r a c q u i s i t i o n o f g e n d e r r o l e s .

T E X T I N T R O D U C T I O N

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland was w r i t t e n i n 1 8 6 5 a s a b o o k f o r c h i l d r e n - L e w i s C a r r o l l c r e a t e d a f a n t a s y w o r l d i n w h i c h A l i c e , a c h i l d , i s t h e c e n t r a l c h a r a c t e r - a n d a t first, t h e i m p r e s s i o n is t h a t t h e r e a r e n o a d u l t c h a r a c t e r s i n t h e s t o r y , a t l e a s t i n r e c o g n i s a b l e f o r m . W h a t t h e r e a d e r c o m e s t o f i n d is t h a t a c t u a l l y , m o s t o f t h e c h a r a c t e r s a r e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f a d u l t s ; t h e y h a v e m e r e l y b e e n d i s t o r t e d o r t r a n s f o r m e d i n t o w o n d r o u s c r e a t u r e s , u s u a l l y a n i m a l s . O n e w o u l d t h i n k t h a t t h u s r e d u c i n g t h e s i z e a n d d i s g u i s i n g t h e s h a p e o f t h e s e a d u l t i n t e r l o c u t o r s , A l i c e w o u l d b e m u c h l e s s s o c i a l l y b o u n d i n t h e n e t o f ' p r o p e r m a n n e r s ' , i . e . t h e c o r r e c t v e r b a l a n d n o n - v e r b a l b e h a v i o u r c h i l d r e n a c q u i r e a n d p r a c t i s e w i t h a d u l t s .

H o w e v e r , t h e r e a d e r f i n d s t h a t t h i s is n o t g e n e r a l l y s o i n t h e s t o r y . E v e n i n t h e f a n t a s t i c c o n t e x t o f W o n d e r l a n d , A l i c e r e m a i n s c o n s t a n t l y a w a r e o f t h e ' A d u l t s ' w i t h i n t h e a d v e n t u r e s , a n d t h r o u g h o u t s o m e r a t h e r c o n f u s e d , a m b i g u o u s , a n d e v e n r u d e i n t e r a c t i o n s w i t h t h e c r e a t u r e s , A l i c e c o n s i s t e n t l y a c t s v e r y m u c h t h e " g o o d l i t t le g i r l " , i m p e c c a b l y p r o p ­e r i n h e r s p e e c h a n d m a n n e r s .

I n w r i t i n g t h i s b o o k f o r c h i l d r e n i n t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , L e w i s C a r r o l l h a s t h u s p r o v i d e d a w o n d e r f u l e x a m p l e o f t h e w a y s i n w h i c h c h i l d r e n o f t h a t t i m e w e r e e x p e c t e d t o d e m o n s t r a t e t h e i r c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c e i n t h e r e a l m o f p r o p e r m a n n e r s . F u r t h e r m o r e , h e h a s a l s o s h o w n t h a t c h i l d r e n , i n t h i s c a s e g i r l s , c o u l d a l s o d e m o n s t r a t e c o m p e ­t e n c e i n g e n d e r r o l e b e h a v i o u r .

MARÍA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

T E X T U A L A N A L Y S I S

C h a p t e r F i v e , ' A d v i c e f r o m a C a t e r p i l l a r ' f r o m t h e b o o k Alice's Adventures in Wonderland c o n s i s t s o f a c o n v e r s a t i o n b e t w e e n A l i c e a n d a b l u e c a t e r p i l l a r i n w h o s e c o m p a n y A l i c e b e h a v e s t h r o u g h o u t i n h e r b e s t l a d y l i k e m a n n e r .

Coalescence of the two competencies

T h e f o l l o w i n g a n a l y s i s p r e s e n t s a d i s c u s s i o n a n d e x a m p l e s o f b o t h c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c i e s w h i c h a c h i l d a c q u i r e s . It i s , h o w e v e r , v e r y d i f f i cu l t t o k e e p t h e t w o s t r a n d s o f d e v e l o p m e n t s e p a r a t e . T h e r e a s o n is t h a t first , b o t h b o y s a n d g i r l s t o g e t h e r l e a r n t h e c o r r e c t A d u l t / C h i l d i n t e r ­a c t i o n p a t t e r n s . T h e s e a r e p a t t e r n s o f v e r b a l a n d n o n - v e r b a l b e h a v i o u r w h i c h e q u a t e t h e c o n c e p t s o f A d u l t n e s s ' w i t h A u t h o r i t y ' , w h i c h is a l o n g - t i m e t e n e t o f c h i l d - r e a r i n g .

A f t e r c h i l d r e n h a v e u n d e r s t o o d t h i s first d i f f e r e n t i a t i o n h o w e v e r , t h e s e c o n d s t r a n d o f d i f f e r e n t i a t e d M a l e / F e m a l e g e n d e r - a s s o c i a t e d b e h a ­v i o u r s t a r t s t o d e v e l o p . At t h i s p o i n t t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e b o y s w i l l t a k e a d i f f e r e n t p a t h t o t h a t o f t h e g i r l s . T h e b o y s w i l l g e n e r a l l y p r o g r e s s t o w a r d s t h e M a l e A d u l t A u t h o r i t y m o d e l , w h i l e t h e g i r l s w i l l o n l y p r o ­g r e s s h a l f w a y ; t h e y w i l l b e c o m e F e m a l e A d u l t s , b u t t h e y w i l l r e t a i n a n o n - a u t h o r i t a t i v e s t y l e o f s p e e c h .

A s A l i c e is a f e m a l e c h i l d p a r t i c i p a n t i n t h i s c o n v e r s a t i o n , s h e e x h i b ­i ts b o t h s t r a n d s o f c o m p e t e n c e , b u t h e r r e s p o n s e s c a n n o t b e l a b e l l e d a s e x c l u s i v e e v i d e n c e f o r o n e o r t h e o t h e r . I n t h e n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y , m u c h o f w h a t A l i c e w o u l d h a v e l e a r n e d i n o r d e r t o b e a w e l l - m a n n e r e d c h i l d i n t h e p r e s e n c e o f a d u l t s , w o u l d h a v e b e e n r e t a i n e d t h r o u g h o u t h e r l ife a s a f e m a l e a d u l t i n t h e p r e s e n c e o f m a l e s .

I n l o o k i n g a t t h i s c h a p t e r t h e n , m o s t o f t h e e v i d e n c e w i l l b e p r e ­s e n t e d a s s u p p o r t f o r t h e M a l e / F e m a l e s t y l e o f s p e e c h d i c h o t o m y , t h e r e ­b y s u b s u m i n g t h e f ac t t h a t A l i c e h a s a l r e a d y d e v e l o p e d a c o m p e t e n c e f o r r e s p e c t i n g a d u l t a u t h o r i t y w i t h i n h e r c o m p e t e n c e f o r g e n d e r r o l e b e h a v i o u r .

Three traditional beliefs about female speech

I n t h e f o l l o w i n g t h r e e c a t e g o r i e s o f p o l i t e n e s s , d e f e r e n c e , a n d c o n ­v e r s a t i o n a l g o a l s , s o m e t r a d i t i o n a l l y - h e l d b e l i e f s a b o u t h o w w o m e n ' s s p e e c h d i f f e r s f r o m m e n s h a v e b e e n i n c l u d e d .

4 3 0

GOOD MANNERS AND GENDER ROLE AS TWO ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

4 3 1

P o l i t e n e s s : w o m e n a r e m o r e p o l i t e t h a n m e n

P o l i t e n e s s h a s a l w a y s b e e n a v e r y i m p o r t a n t f a c e t o f c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c e . It i s i n c u l c a t e d e a r l y i n c h i l d h o o d , b u t t h e r e m a y n o w b e s o m e e v i d e n c e f r o m a s t u d y d o n e b y G l e a s o n i n 1 9 8 0 t h a t c h i l d r e n a c t u a l l y s e e o n l y t h e i r m o t h e r s c o n s i s t e n t l y m o d e l l i n g p o l i t e s p e e c h , a n d t h e r e f o r e t h e y c o m e t o a s s o c i a t e it w i t h f e m a l e a d u l t b e h a v i o u r ( C o a t e s 1 9 8 6 : 1 3 0 ) . If t h i s is t r u e , t h e n p o l i t e n e s s w o u l d b e a b e h a v i o u r r e t a i n e d b y g i r l s , b u t n o t s o m u c h b y b o y s , i n t o a d u l t h o o d , t h e r e b y i d e n t i f y i n g it a s a f e a t u r e o f ' f e m a l e s p e e c h ' . T h i s is o n l y a w a y o f e x p l a i n i n g a t r e n d , h o w e v e r . It d o e s n o t m e a n t h a t p o l i t e n e s s i s e x c l u s i v e l y a f e m a l e b e h a ­v i o u r . O n t h e c o n t r a r y , p o l i t e n e s s is v e r y m u c h a f e a t u r e o f E n g l i s h -s p e a k i n g c u l t u r e .

G . N . L e e c h ( 1 9 8 3 ) l i s t s s i x m a x i m s o f t h e P o l i t e n e s s P r i n c i p l e i n t e r m s o f p o l a r i t y b e t w e e n t h e m i n i m i s a t i o n o r m a x i m i s a t i o n o f a f f e c t i v e c o s t t o b o t h S p e a k e r a n d H e a r e r . W h e n a p p l i e d t o t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n b e ­t w e e n A l i c e a n d t h e C a t e r p i l l a r , it i s s e e n t h a t A l i c e , b e i n g a w e l l - m a n ­n e r e d c h i l d , c o n s i s t e n t l y i n c o r p o r a t e s e a c h o f t h e s i x m a x i m s i n t o h e r s p e e c h . T h e C a t e r p i l l a r , o n t h e c o n t r a r y , s e e m s q u i t e r u d e a s h e c o n s i s t ­e n t l y v i o l a t e s t h e m a x i m s .

T a b l e 1 d e l i n e a t e s t h r e e e x c h a n g e s , s h o w i n g h o w , i n e a c h c a s e , t h e C a t e r p i l l a r v i o l a t e s , a n d A l i c e u p h o l d s t h e s t a t e d m a x i m s . B e c a u s e t h e C a t e r p i l l a r d o e s d i s r e g a r d t h e p r i n c i p l e o f p o l i t e n e s s s o o f t e n , t h e c o n ­s e q u e n c e is t h a t t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n b e c o m e s v e r y d i f f i cu l t t o m a i n t a i n . B u t , w e c a n a l s o n o t i c e t h a t a s a w e l l - b r o u g h t u p ' y o u n g l a d y ' , A l i c e d o e s m a n a g e t o m a i n t a i n h e r c o m p o s u r e a n d t a c t , d e s p i t e t h e s o m e w h a t dif­f icu l t e x c h a n g e s w i t h t h e C a t e r p i l l a r . T h e l e s s o n t h a t C a r r o l l r e i n f o r c e s i n t h i s d i a l o g u e f o r h i s r e a d e r s , is t h a t p o l i t e r e s p o n s e s a r e a l w a y s t h e n o r m f o r c h i l d r e n , a n d a l s o f o r l a d i e s .

D e f e r e n c e : w o m e n s h o u l d b e m o r e d e f e r e n t i a l t h a n m e n d u e t o t h e i r l o w e r p o s i t i o n o f s t a t u s

T h e c o n c e p t o f d e f e r e n c e is a s o c i a l a t t i t u d e r e f l e c t e d i n l i n g u i s t i c a n d n o n - l i n g u i s t i c b e h a v i o u r . D e f e r e n c e is u s u a l l y a n i s s u e o f s t a t u s a n d t h e r e a s o n t h a t a n y s o r t o f d e f e r e n t i a l r e s p o n s e w o u l d o c c u r i n c o n v e r ­s a t i o n is t h a t b o t h p a r t i c i p a n t s w o u l d p e r c e i v e o n e o f t h e m s e l v e s t o h a v e a h i g h e r s t a t u s t h a n t h e o t h e r .

I n t h i s c h a p t e r , t h e C a t e r p i l l a r is c l e a r l y t h e c h a r a c t e r o f h i g h e r s t a ­t u s , b u t t h e r e a s o n s f o r t h i s p e r c e p t i o n a r e n o t e n t i r e l y c l e a r ; o r r a t h e r ,

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GOOD MANNERS AND GENDER ROLE AS TWO ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

4 3 3

t h e r e m a y b e s e v e r a l o v e r l a p p i n g r e a s o n s c o n t r i b u t i n g t o t h i s p e r c e p t u a l j u d g e m e n t . W h a t a r e t h e f a c t o r s w h i c h c o u l d m a k e a c a t e r p i l l a r a f i g u r e o f h i g h e r a u t h o r i t y a n d p e r c e i v e d s t a t u s t h a n a h u m a n b e i n g ? F i r s t o f a l l , e v e n t h o u g h A l i c e is a h u m a n , a t t h e c u r r e n t p h a s e o f t h e s t o r y , s h e is o n l y t h r e e i n c h e s ta l l , t h e s a m e h e i g h t a s t h e c a t e r p i l l a r . T h i s s i m i l a r i t y i n s i z e s h o u l d h e l p t o e q u a l i s e t h e d i f f e r e n c e i n s t a t u s , b u t i n f ac t it d o e s n ' t b e c a u s e t h e C a t e r p i l l a r is s i t t i n g o n t o p o f a m u s h r o o m w h i c h is a l r e a d y A l i c e ' s h e i g h t . T h i s m e a n s t h a t A l i c e c a n j u s t p e e r o v e r t h e t o p t o s e e t h e C a t e r p i l l a r . S o t h e e n t i r e c o n v e r s a t i o n s e t t i n g t a k e s o n i m p l i ­c a t i o n s o f a n a u d i e n c e b e i n g g r a n t e d b y a p e r s o n a g e f r o m h i s t h r o n e , h i s " s e a t o f a u t h o r i t y " .

T h i s i m a g e is r e i n f o r c e d b y t h e a d d i t i o n a l p r o p o f a l o n g h o o k a h p i p e w h i c h t h e C a t e r p i l l a r is s m o k i n g a p p a r e n t l y l o s t i n c o n t e m p l a t i o n w h e n A l i c e first m e e t s h i m . T h e s e p r o p s c o n j u r e a n i m a g e o f t h e ' S a g e o f t h e E a s t ' , w h i c h i m p l i e s a s e c o n d s t a t u s f ac to r . T h e C a t e r p i l l a r p o s s e s s m o r e k n o w l e d g e a n d e x p e r i e n c e o f t h e w o r l d t h a n A l i c e d o e s . T h e r e f o r e , h e is e n t i t l e d t o d i s p e n s e a d v i c e a s t h e c h a p t e r h e a d i n g s t a t e s .

B o t h o f t h e s e f a c t o r s a r e a t t h e f o r e f r o n t o f a c h i l d ' s p e r c e p t i o n o f a d u l t s : t h e y a r e t a l l e r , o l d e r , w i s e r a n d m o r e e x p e r i e n c e d , t h e r e f o r e c h i l ­d r e n p a y t h e m d e f e r e n t i a l r e s p e c t . T h e r e is a l s o a t h i r d f a c t o r a t p l a y i n t h i s c o n v e r s a t i o n b e t w e e n A l i c e a n d t h e C a t e r p i l l a r : A l i c e is f e m a l e a n d t h e C a t e r p i l l a r i s m a l e . W h y d o e s A l i c e p e r c e i v e t h i s t o b e t h e c a s e ? C a r r o l l n e v e r e x p l i c i t l y a s s i g n s a g e n d e r t o t h e C a t e r p i l l a r ; t h e r e f e r e n t i a l p r o n o u n u s e d is a l w a y s it. N e i t h e r t h e t e x t n o r t h e i l l u s t r a t i o n s s h o w a n y o b v i o u s s e x u a l d i f f e r e n c e s i n t h e b l u e c a t e r p i l l a r s o f W o n d e r l a n d , s o w h y d o e s A l i c e i m m e d i a t e l y i d e n t i f y t h e C a t e r p i l l a r a s m a l e a n d a s s u m e a d e f e r e n t i a l r o l e t o w a r d s h i m ? W e c o u l d s u g g e s t t h a t it is b e c a u s e s h e a l r e a d y h a s r e a l - l i f e a n d s t o r y b o o k s c h e m a t a f o r g e n d e r r o l e s a n d a u ­t h o r i t y f i g u r e s , a n d f u r t h e r m o r e , t h a t s h e h a s a l r e a d y a c q u i r e d t h e a p p r o ­p r i a t e c o m p e t e n c i e s f o r i n t e r a c t i n g w i t h s u c h f i g u r e s i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h h e r g e n d e r r o l e .

T e r m s o f A d d r e s s

O n e o f t h e m o s t o b v i o u s e x a m p l e s f r o m t h e d i a l o g u e t o s u p p o r t t h i s s u g g e s t i o n is t h e c o m p a r i s o n o f t h e t e r m s o f a d d r e s s u s e d b y b o t h t h e C a t e r p i l l a r a n d A l i c e . O n l y o n c e d o e s t h e C a t e r p i l l a r " c o n t e m p t u o u s l y " r e f e r t o A l i c e a s "You!" O t h e r w i s e , h e s i m p l y m a k e s a b r u p t r e p l i e s t o h e r

MARÍA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

w i t h n o n o m i n a l r e f e r e n c e . A l i c e , o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , p o l i t e l y re fers t o t h e Ca te rp i l l a r f o u r t i m e s as "Sir".

M a n n e r o f A d d r e s s

T h e m a n n e r o f address u s e d b y t h e Ca te rp i l l a r i n th is c o n v e r s a t i o n is m a r k e d l y d i f f e r e n t t o tha t u s e d b y A l i c e . T h e f o l l o w i n g tab les s h o w t h e a d v e r b s a n d ve rbs o f s p e e c h u s e d b y C a r r o l l t o n a r r a t i v e l y r e i n f o r c e t h e d i f f e r e n c e s i n status a n d g e n d e r o f t h e t w o characters:

T a b l e 2 A d v e r b s

CATERPILLAR ALICE

said the Caterpillar sternly Alice repl ied rather shyly said the Caterpillar contemptuously Alice repl ied very politely said the Caterpillar decidedly she said, rather gravely said the Caterpillar angrily said Al ice timidly merely remarking Alice hastily repl ied

T a b l e 3 Verbs o f S p e e c h

CATERPILLAR ALICE

addressed repl ied called began asked pleaded said said

T h e a d v e r b s i m p l y a d i s t i n c t i v e d e f e r e n t i a l a t t i t u d e i n A l i c e ' s m a n n e r o f r e s p o n d i n g t o t h e Caterp i l l a r 's r e m a r k s . T h e c h o i c e o f s p e e c h v e r b s r e i n f o r c e s t h e a u t h o r i t y o f t h e Caterp i l la r , as w e l l as i m p l y i n g h is p r e r o g ­a t i ve i n u s u a l l y i n i t i a t i n g t h e e x c h a n g e s , w h i l e A l i c e p r e d o m i n a t e l y rep l i es .

H e d g i n g

H e d g i n g is o f t e n c o n s i d e r e d t o b e a f e a t u r e o f w o m e n ' s s p e e c h i n t h e sense o f n o t m a k i n g d i r e c t s ta tements . A d e f e r e n t i a l f e a t u r e o f A l i c e ' s

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GOOD MANNERS AND GENDER ROLE AS TWO ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

4 3 5

speech in this conversation is that she never directly asserts statements or comments as the Caterpillar does. She tentatively phrases her replies, often with prefaces or lengthy qualifiers. In the two instances where she implies a question, she states them through the form of tag questions, hoping to elicit the Caterpillar's concurrence with her views, which inci­dentally, he never gives.

The following exchange shows the tentative indirectness of Alice's speech in contrast with the more aggressive directness of the Caterpillar:

C: Who are you? A: I - I hardly know, Sir, just at present - at least I know who I was when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then. C: What do you mean by that? Explain yourself!

In this exchange, Alice begins her reply by stuttering, which seems odd because she has not had the problem up to this point, and because elsewhere in her adventures she displays quite a lack of fear. So, why does she stutter with the Caterpillar? Also, she never gives him the expected answer which would be her name. Instead, she launches into a personal topic with this stranger, first saying that she doesn't really know; then qualifying that to mean that at the moment she doesn't know; then further qualifying that by saying that she did know this morning; and finally ends with a passive construction saying she must have been changed in size several times since then. All of this when an 'I don't know' or her name could have directly sufficed.

Another pertinent example of Alice's indirect hedging is her manner of requesting that the Caterpillar make her taller:

C: What size do you want to be? A: Oh, I'm not particular as to size, only one doesn't like changing so often, you know. C: I don't know [Silence] Are you content now? A: Well, I should like to be a little larger, Sir, if you wouldn't mind.

This is very much an example of the Tact Maxim of the Politeness Principle, but it is applied in this situation to one asking a favour of one in power to grant it. Alice hedges in her answer, not wishing to sound

MARÍA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

g r e e d y , w h i c h w o u l d b e b o t h i m p o l i t e a n d u n l a d y l i k e . T h e i m p e r s o n a l " o n e " , t h e m o d a l " s h o u l d l i k e " , a n d t h e e m p h a s i s e d r e d u c t i o n o f "a lit­tle l a r g e r " a r e f u r t h e r m a r k e r s o f h e r i n d i r e c t n e s s . I n t o t a l d u r i n g t h i s c o n ­v e r s a t i o n , t h e r e a r e s e v e n i n s t a n c e s w h e r e A l i c e g i v e s a n i n d i r e c t a n s w e r t o a q u e s t i o n p u t f o r t h b y t h e C a t e r p i l l a r , w h i l e h i s a n s w e r s a r e p a i n f u l l y d i r e c t .

R e s p e c t o f S i l e n c e

T h e r e a r e s i x p e r i o d s o f n o t i c e a b l e s i l e n c e w h i c h o c c u r d u r i n g t h i s p i e c e o f d i s c o u r s e . W i t h t h e e x c e p t i o n o f t h e in i t i a l p r e - c o n v e r s a t i o n p a u s e , e a c h p e r i o d o f s i l e n c e is i n i t i a t e d b y a r e m a r k m a d e b y t h e C a t e r p i l l a r . A d d i t i o n a l l y , a l l s i x s i l e n c e s a r e b r o k e n b y a r e m a r k m a d e b y t h e C a t e r p i l l a r . T h i s c o u l d b e s e e n a s a v e r y s t r o n g n a r r a t i v e t e c h n i q u e u s e d b y C a r r o l l t o r e i n f o r c e t h e d i c t u m t h a t " C h i l d r e n s h o u l d b e s e e n a n d n o t h e a r d " , a n d t h e i d e a l t h a t s i l e n c e is t h e b e s t o r n a m e n t o f a w o m a n 2 .

T h e e v i d e n c e f r o m t h e t e x t d o e s u p h o l d t h e v i e w t h a t A l i c e is v e r y c o n s c i o u s o f b o t h o f h e r r o l e s a s t h e q u i e t " o b e d i e n t " c h i l d a n d a s t h e s i l e n t " o b e d i e n t " w o m a n w h i c h C a r r o l l n o d o u b t a s s u m e s s h e w i l l b e ­c o m e o n e d a y . I n d e e d , i n t h e o n e e x c h a n g e w h e r e A l i c e f i n a l l y d i d m a k e a t e n t a t i v e r e b u t t a l t o t h e C a t e r p i l l a r ' s r u d e n e s s , s h e first o f a l l " d r e w h e r s e l f u p " ( b e c a u s e h e i g h t = s t a t u s ) a n d t h e n r e p l i e d t o h i m " v e r y g r a v e l y " , a c h o i c e o f a d v e r b s w h i c h i m p l i e s t h a t a s a f e m a l e , s h e m u s t d i s a g r e e i n a q u i e t , s e r i o u s m a n n e r .

F u r t h e r s u p p o r t f o r t h e n o t i o n t h a t c h i l d r e n a n d f e m a l e s s h o u l d r e m a i n q u i e t , a r e t h e t h r e e i n s t a n c e s i n w h i c h A l i c e "felt a l i t t l e i r r i t a t e d " , w a s " s w a l l o w i n g d o w n h e r a n g e r " , a n d w h e r e " s h e fel t t h a t s h e w a s l o s i n g h e r t e m p e r " . Ye t , a l t h o u g h h i g h l y p r o v o k e d , s h e d o e s n o t l e t t h o s e f e e l i n g s s h o w i n t h e p r e s e n c e o f t h e C a t e r p i l l a r , a v e r y g o o d l e s ­s o n i n d e e d f o r c h i l d r e n .

I n b r i e f s u m m a r y o f t h i s s e c t i o n , t h e n o t i o n t h a t w o m e n s h o u l d b e m o r e d e f e r e n t i a l t h a n m e n is s u p p o r t e d i n t h i s c o n v e r s a t i o n t h r o u g h t h e f o u r f e a t u r e s u s e d b y A l i c e : t h e t e r m s o f a d d r e s s , t h e m a n n e r o f a d d r e s s , h e d g i n g , a n d a r e s p e c t o f s i l e n c e .

2. Jennifer Coates (1986:33) describes a woman's silence as having been made synonymous with obedience.

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GOOD MANNERS AND GENDER ROLE AS TWO ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

3. By 'conversational style' we mean what is talked about (topics), and how it is talked about (conversational management).

4 3 7

C o n v e r s a t i o n a l G o a l s : w o m e n t a l k a b o u t d i f f e r e n t t h i n g s d i f f e r e n t l y t h a n m e n d o

F e m a l e s p e e c h is o f t e n l u m p e d u n d e r t h e g e n e r a l c o m m e n t " W o m e n t a l k t o o m u c h " . P e r h a p s t h i s n o t i o n h a s o r i g i n a t e d a n d b e e n g i v e n i ts n e g a t i v e c o n n o t a t i o n b e c a u s e w o m e n ' s c o n v e r s a t i o n a l s t y l e i s s i m p l y dif­f e r e n t f r o m m e n ' s c o n v e r s a t i o n a l s t y l e 3 .

I n h e r b o o k Women, Men and Language ( 1 9 8 6 ) , C o a t e s r e f e r s t o s e v e n a s p e c t s o f c o n v e r s a t i o n w h i c h a c c o r d i n g t o M a l t z a n d B o r k e r ( 1 9 8 2 , i n C o a t e s 1 9 8 6 : 1 5 2 ) , a r e a r e a s o f p o t e n t i a l m i s c o m m u n i c a t i o n i n m i x e d c o n v e r s a t i o n s b e t w e e n m a l e s a n d f e m a l e s . A s t h e s e a r e a s w e r e o n l y a n a l y s e d a n d l i s t e d i n t h e 1 9 8 0 ' s , it is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t o f t h e s e v e n f e a t u r e s l i s t e d , s i x o f t h e m d o i n d e e d c a u s e p r o b l e m s i n t h e c o n ­v e r s a t i o n b e t w e e n t h e C a t e r p i l l a r a n d A l i c e . T h e o n e e x c e p t i o n is t h e p r o b l e m o f I n t e r m p t i o n , h o w e v e r , t h i s is p r o b a b l y d u e t o t h e f ac t t h a t t h i s is a t e x t u a l c o n v e r s a t i o n r a t h e r t h a n a n a c t u a l s p o k e n c o n v e r s a t i o n . C a r r o l l ' s b o o k , w r i t t e n o v e r a c e n t u r y a g o , s e e m s t o b e a r o u t t h e p r o ­p o s i t i o n t h a t t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n a l s t y l e s o f m a l e s a n d f e m a l e s d i f fe r . It a l s o s h o w s t h a t A l i c e , a t h e r y o u n g a g e , h a s a l r e a d y a c q u i r e d a g e n d e r - a s s o ­c i a t e d c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c y a s s h o w n in h e r e f f o r t s t o t r y a n d c a r r y o n a ' f e m a l e - t y p e ' c o n v e r s a t i o n w i t h t h e C a t e r p i l l a r w h o is s i m u l ­t a n e o u s l y t r y i n g t o c a r r y o n a ' m a l e - t y p e ' c o n v e r s a t i o n .

F o l l o w i n g a r e t h e s i x r e m a i n i n g a r e a s o f m i s c o m m u n i c a t i o n w i t h a d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e p r o b l e m s c a u s e d in t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n ( p a r a p h r a s i n g f r o m C o a t e s 1 9 8 6 : 1 5 2 - 1 5 5 ) :

1. The Meaning of Questions: W o m e n u s e q u e s t i o n s a n d t a g q u e s ­t i o n s t o m a i n t a i n a c o n v e r s a t i o n , w h i l e m e n s e e t h e m s i m p l y a s r e q u e s t s f o r i n f o r m a t i o n . A l i c e u s e s t a g q u e s t i o n s t h r e e t i m e s i n h e r r e p l i e s t o t h e C a t e r p i l l a r , i n v i t i n g h i m t o a c k n o w l e d g e , a n d h o p e f u l l y t o a g r e e w i t h w h a t s h e h a s j u s t s t a t e d . I n e a c h c a s e h o w e v e r , h e is o b s t i n a t e l y u n c o ­o p e r a t i v e b y a b r u p t l y d i s a g r e e i n g w i t h h e r . T h i s f o r c e s A l i c e t o t r y a n d m a i n t a i n t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n b y r e i n t r o d u c i n g t h e t o p i c s h e r s e l f a n d e l a b o r ­a t i n g o n t h e m . A s w e h a v e s e e n e a r l i e r i n h e r v e i y i n d i r e c t r e p l i e s t o t h e C a t e r p i l l a r ' s q u e s t i o n s , A l i c e d o e s s e e m t o a n s w e r i n d i r e c t l y i n a n e f f o r t t o k e e p t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n g o i n g .

MARÍA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

2 . Links Between Speaker Turns: T h e female pattern i s to acknow­ledge the prev ious speaker 's contr ibut ion f i rs t , before adding to that topic, or before introducing a new topic. Men do not necessari ly f o l l ow th i s pattern. T h e y may ignore the directly p rev ious contr ibut ion and immediately present their o w n point. Except w h e n the Caterpi l lar 's remarks have si lenced her i n the conversation, Al ice always acknow­ledges h i s contr ibut ion before making her o w n point:

A: . . . I should think you' l l feel it a little queer, wo'n't you? C: Not a bit. A: Well, perhaps your feelings may be different. A l l I know is , it would feel very queer to me.

3. Topic Shifts: Women sh i f t topics gradually, preferr ing to organise conversat ions on elaboration and continuity, wh i l e men tend to sh i f t topics abruptly. T h e fo l low ing excerpt exempl i f ies the Caterpi l lar 's domi­nant ro le i n the conversation by directing wh ich topics w i l l be d iscus­sed. H e abruptly sh i f t s topics by ignor ing Al ice's last contr ibut ion and choosing instead to ask about the penult imate one:

A: I'm afraid I am, Sir. I ca'n't remember things as I used- and I don't keep the same size for ten minutes together! C: Ca'n't remember what things?

T h e changing-of-size topic greatly concerns Alice. T h i s occurrence i s the th i rd t ime i n the conversation that she has tr ied to introduce it, yet the Caterpillar deliberately avoids it each t ime.

Table 4 s h o w s the topics and topic sh i f t s that occur i n th i s chapter and the character w h o introduces them.

Tab le 4. Top ic sh i f t s

1st . Topic: Who are you?

l . C : Question 2. A.: Reply

Elaboration Elaboration

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GOOD MANNERS AND GENDER ROLE AS TWO ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

3. C : Quest ion Demand

4. A.: Reply Elaboration + Tag

5. C : Reply (Negative) 6. A.: Reply

Elaboration

2nd. Topic: Changing sizes

A.: Comment l.C: Reply (Disagreement) 8. A.: Reply

Statement Comment + Tag

9. A. Reply (Disagreement) 10. A.: Reply

Comment

3rd. Topic: W h o are you?

11. C : Nominat ive Quest ion

12. A.: Demand/Request 13- C : Quest ion

4th. Topic: Temper

14. C : Directive Declarative Directive

15. A.: Quest ion 16. C : Reply (Negative)

5th. Topic: Memory

C : Quest ion 17. A.: Reply (Positive)

Declarative (Topic) Declarative (Previous topic -2nd.)

18. C : Quest ion (Topic) 19. A.: Reply 20. C : Command 21. A.: Compliance (Recitation)

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MARÍA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

22. C : Evaluation (Negative) 23. A.: Reply (Agreement)

Elaboration (Excuse) 24. C : Evaluation (Negative)

6th. Topic: Size

Quest ion 25. A.: Reply

Comment + Tag 26. C : Reply (Negative)

Quest ion 27. A.: Reply/Request

Comment 28. C : Reply (Disagreement) 29. A.: Reply/Excuse

(Comment - silent) 30. C : Reply/Declarative

Declarative

4 . Self-Disclosure: W o m e n t e n d t o s e e c o n v e r s a t i o n a s a n o p p o r t u ­n i t y t o d i s c u s s p r o b l e m s , s h a r e e x p e r i e n c e a n d o f f e r r e a s s u r a n c e a n d a d v i c e . O n t h e o t h e r h a n d - C o a t e s p o i n t s o u t - m e n , w h e n c o n f r o n t e d w i t h s u c h t o p i c s , " t a k e o n t h e r o l e o f e x p e r t a n d o f f e r a d v i c e , o f t e n l e c ­t u r i n g t h e o t h e r s p e a k e r . " ( p . 1 5 3 ) . It s e e m s a s t h o u g h C o a t e s w a s l i s t e n ­i n g i n o n t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n b e t w e e n t h e C a t e r p i l l a r a n d A l i c e !

5 . Verbal Aggressiveness: A g g r e s s i v e s p e e c h is a c o m m o n f e a t u r e o f m e n ' s t a l k , w h i l e w o m e n t e n d t o a v o i d v e r b a l a g g r e s s i v e n e s s . A q u i c k r e v i e w o f t h e v e r b s a n d a d v e r b s d e s c r i b e t h e C a t e r p i l l a r ' s s p e e c h d o e s s e e m t o s u p p o r t t h i s . T h e C a t e r p i l l a r s p e a k s " s t e r n l y " , " d e c i d e d l y " , a n d " a n g r i l y " , w h i l e A l i c e s p e a k s " s h y l y " , " t i m i d l y " , a n d " g r a v e l y " .

6 . Listening: C o a t e s i n t e r p r e t s t h i s n o t i o n t o m e a n t h a t w o m e n g r e a t l y v a l u e t h e r o l e o f l i s t e n i n g w h i l e m e n d o n o t . T h e r e f o r e , m e n t h i n k w o m e n d o n o t p a r t i c i p a t e w e l l i n c o n v e r s a t i o n s b e c a u s e t h e y a r e n ' t s p e a k i n g , w h i l e w o m e n t h i n k m e n d o n ' t a l l o w t h e m t h e c h a n c e t o s p e a k b y d o m i n a t i n g t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n .

T h e a m o u n t - o f - s p e a k i n g r u l e d o e s n o t h o l d t r u e i n t h i s c o n v e r s a t i o n , a s A l i c e d e f i n i t e l y s p e a k s m o r e t h a n t h e C a t e r p i l l a r d o e s . H o w e v e r , t h e r e is s o m e e v i d e n c e t o s u p p o r t t h e d i f f e r i n g a t t i t u d e s t o w a r d s t h e r o l e o f

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G O O D MANNERS A N D GENDER ROLE AS T W O ASPECTS OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE

C O N C L U S I O N

T h e p r e s e n t a r t i c l e s u p p o r t s t h e a r g u m e n t t h a t t h e a c q u i s i t i o n o f c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c e b y c h i l d r e n h a s t r a d i t i o n a l l y b e e n a s s o c i a t ­e d t o t h e v e r b a l d i s p l a y o f g o o d m a n n e r s a n d g e n d e r i d e n t i t y . T h e t e x ­t u a l a n a l y s i s o f a c h a p t e r i n Alice's Adventures in Wonderland s h o w s t h e w a y i n w h i c h a n i n e t e e n t h c e n t u r y l i t e r a r y w o r k e n c o d e s s u c h n o t i o n . B e s i d e s , t h e f ac t t h a t p a r t o f t h i s a n a l y s i s h a s b e e n b a s e d o n c u r r e n t v i e w s o n m a l e a n d f e m a l e s p e e c h r e v e a l s i ts r e l e v a n c e t o t h o s e i n t e r e s t ­e d i n t h e a c q u i s i t i o n a n d m a n i f e s t a t i o n o f c o m m u n i c a t i v e c o m p e t e n c e .

REFERENCES

CANALE, M., (1983), "From communicat ive competence to communicat ive lan­guage pedagogy", in Richards, J. C . and R. W. Schmidt, (eds.), Language and Communication, London , Longman.

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l i s t e n i n g . I n m a n y o f t h e e x a m p l e s a l r e a d y g i v e n , t h e C a t e r p i l l a r d o e s n o t s e e m t o b e a c t i v e l y l i s t e n i n g , a t l e a s t n o t i n t h e s e n s e t h a t t h r o u g h l i s t e n ­i n g , h e w i l l b e a b l e t o a d d u s e f u l c o n t r i b u t i o n s t o A l i c e ' s s t a t e m e n t s . C o n v e r s e l y , t h e f o l l o w i n g e x a m p l e s h o w s t h a t s h e t h i n k s l i s t e n i n g is i m p o r t a n t :

"Alice thought she might as w e l l wait , as she had noth ing else to do, and perhaps after all it might tell her something w o r t h hearing."

T o b r i e f l y s u m m a r i s e t h i s s e c t i o n , w e c a n c o n c l u d e t h a t t h e r e a r e c o n s i d e r a b l e d i f f e r e n c e s i n t h e c o n v e r s a t i o n a l g o a l s a n d m a n a g e m e n t s t y l e s o f A l i c e a n d t h e C a t e r p i l l a r . T h i s p a r t h a s t r i e d t o s h o w h o w t h e s e d i f f e r e n c e s m a t c h C o a t e s ' l ist o f a r e a s o f p o t e n t i a l m i s c o m m u n i c a t i o n b e t w e e n m a l e s a n d f e m a l e s , b u t w o u l d a l s o c o n c e d e t h a t m u c h o f t h e d i f f e r e n c e c o u l d a l s o b e e x p l a i n e d b y o t h e r f a c t o r s d i s c u s s e d e a r l i e r , s u c h a s t h e q u e s t i o n o f h i g h a n d l o w s t a t u s , o r t h e q u e s t i o n o f p o l i t e ­n e s s a n d r e s p e c t f o r a d u l t a u t h o r i t y . I n a n y c a s e , t h e t h r e e b e l i e f s t r a d i ­t i o n a l l y h e l d a b o u t f e m a l e s p e e c h d o s e e m t o b e b o r n e o u t i n C a r r o l l ' s s t o r y , w h i c h a l s o s e e m s t o s u p p o r t t h e o r i g i n a l p r o p o s i t i o n t h a t A l i c e s u i t a b l y d e m o n s t r a t e s p r o p e r c o m p e t e n c y f o r b o t h p r o p e r m a n n e r s a n d f o r g e n d e r r o l e .

MARÍA ELVIRA BARRIOS ESPINOSA

CANALE, M. y. SWAIN., "Theoretical Bases o f Communicat ive Approaches to Second Language Teaching and Testing", Applied Linguistics 1 /1 , (1980), pp . 1-47.

CARROLL, L. (1865): Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, Revised ed. 1970, Middlesex, Penguin Books.

COATES, J. , (1986), Women, Men and Language, London, Longman. LEECH, G. N., (1983), Principles of Pragmatics, London, Longman. M U N B Y , J. , (1978), Communicative Syllabus Design, Cambridge, Cambridge

University Press.

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