Deborah Tannen Essay

The theory that differences are fabricated early in a child’s life and are not biological doesn’t account for everything. David Cohen, in his article regarding Tannen’s findings points out a mystery in the connections she made. "Since women are primarily responsible for child-rearing and therefore disproportionately responsible for teaching the species to speak, when is it that boys learn to speak in the male style?"

Women are relationship-oriented, emotional and cooperative whereas men are assertive, demanding and self-assured. This is the widely held gender stereotype that some people hold around us. Whether men and women in fact communicate differently or behave differently in communication, there is clearly a perception that they might. It is important to address these perceptions, because they contribute to behaviours and expectations that flow from assumptions. This review will focus on the effect of our preconceived or learned assumptions of gender and interpersonal styles by looking at supporting evidence, and the effects of that behavior. We will also be looking at whether there are noticeable differences in the way men and women negotiate and handle conflict. Furthermore, the review will discuss whether these differences result in whether if gender should be considered an important aspect of culture.

Deborah Tannen is the author of the book You Just Don't Understand where she analyzes the different meanings of communication between men and women. Her research shows that women and men use the same words and phrases and yet can interpret and react to those same words and phrases differently. Tannen compares the two sexes to find men use their conversation as a type of competition or to preserve their independence. For example, men talk about their knowledge regarding sports, cars, women, exc. Meanwhile, women try to foster intimacy through communication. For instance, women often talk and relate on a personal level. Throughout Tannen's book she uses "cross-cultural communication" to describe the differences between the language of

“Sex Differences” is an essay written by a professor of linguistics named Ronald Macaulay. In the essay, he pointed out that there were no gender differences regarding to language development. He talked about various stereotypes about how men and women speak. He also explains in depth about how social environment made an impact on the talking between men and women. He also concluded that those linguists who still believe in that theory only continue to do so even if what they found in their research is not statistically significant. In many ways, Macaulay’s essay is persuasive. Through this essay, one would agree with him that there is no different form of language in which women and men speak.

In her essay, "But What Do You Mean?" Deborah Tannen discusses how men and women 's conversation styles differ in how they communicate with one another. The problem is that men and women have different perspectives. Tannen explains that the "conversation rituals" among women are designed to be polite and sensitive to others, while the "conversation rituals" among men are designed to maintain superiority (328). Tannen explores seven ways in which men and women miscommunicate : apologies, criticism, thank-yous, fighting, praise, complaints, and jokes. Being no fault of either party, conversation strategies between men and women are just naturally different, these miscommunications can make conversation awkward and sometimes can be misunderstood.

Did you know, “men and women talk differently because they are raised in something like two different cultures: a male culture from which young men learn to speak like men and a female culture in which young women learn to speak like women?”(Cooper and MacDonald 9). Well, not actually from two separate cultures, but the idea of men and women being opposites as pointed out in the opening. Deborah Tannen has made her theory that a male culture and female culture each exist, very popular with the human population and has written an extensive book on her theory.

Anthropologists and sociologists agree that people commonly learn communication skills in younger years specifically in “sex-separate peer groups” (Tannen 345). Young girls are typically more reserved and generally confide their feelings and ideas in smaller groups with close friends. On the contrary, boys enjoy competing for attention in larger groups. The article mentions, “boys are expected to use language to seize center stage: by exhibiting their skill, displaying their knowledge, and challenging and resisting challenges” (Tannen

Tannen (1994) suggests that the two sexes have very different modes of communication, and she suggests that in fact, communication between man and woman should be viewed as inter-cultural communication. She also has given set of differentiations: (1) Men live in a world of hierarchy; women live in a world of connection. (2) Men require individuality and freedom; women require intimacy and familiarity. (3) Men live in a world of action; women live in a world of feeling.(p,67) The issue Tannen tries to address is that sometimes women and men don’t understand each other because they come from different cultures. These findings on gender stereotypes offer a great help to them for understanding each other and thus enhance their relationship. Women

As in many other gender differences, miscommunication between males and females can be explained by either the biological aspect or the cultural/environmental aspect. Deborah Tannen, a University professor of linguistics at Georgetown University and an Author, suggests the biological explanation to

Deborah Tannen’s case study entitled “Can’t We Talk?” is the most relevant reading that I have ever done for any class. It relates to a problem that every person regardless of age, race or sex, will have to face many times in his or her lifetime. The problem is that men and women communicate differently and these differences can often lead to conflict. This case study is very informative because it helps to clarify the thought process of each sex. That said this reading leaves the reader somewhat unfulfilled because Tannen does not offer a solution to the problem.

According to Deborah Tannen, a linguistic professor of Georgetown University, men and women talk differently and sometimes it might be very complex as she stated that many coupes 'grew in diverse cultures.' Men consider communication as a primary language of 'report.' They feel more

This conversation shows how men and women communicate, but it doesn’t explain everything? Tannen provides us with her theory of genderlect styles to apply this information not only to our professional lives but also our everyday lives.

In the article “HE SAID, SHE SAID. “Mine’s Higher” vs. “We’re the Same”, Deborah Tannen explains that men and women have different conversation styles. Although conversation styles of men and women are not quite same, but the ultimate goal of communication for both men and women always stays the same, to connect with others and to be more powerful. Men like talking while focusing on hierarchy, on the contrary, women like talking topics that can reinforce the relationship. The author states that verbal communication is similar to rituals, and differences of rituals can cause misinterpretations and behavior changes.

There are major differences in the world, such as the disparity between a solid and a liquid. But there are also alterations that are subtle that often go unnoticed. Such as the difference between someone who is hurting on the inside and someone who is not, the contrasts that people usually do not want others to notice or people often miss. But what about the differences that are so obvious but people are oblivious towards? Such as the differences between males and females; which consists of a very large and obvious difference but I believe that the differences do not stop at their appearances but is rooted further into themselves or their genders.

Male and female differ in their use of communication because their reasons for communicating are different. Men