3 Credits
This course meets with LING L113

Students must enroll in one discussion section.

Description:
This course is about language and gender: how women and men use
language and how language reflects the status of women and men in
society.  Many people have specific ideas about the way women speak:
women are more polite than men and they speak better than them, they
talk and gossip more than men, they use expressions like "kind of"
and seek approval for what they say by making their statements sound
like questions or by adding tag questions: it's a nice day, isn't
it?  In this course, we will ask ourselves whether any of the
stereotypes about women's language are true.  We will try to
determine how differently women and men really speak and understand
why this should be the case.  We will examine gender differences in
various cultures and seek to establish whether the differences are
genetic or social.  We will also examine claims that English and many
other languages are sexist and that they deny women a level of
recognition equal to men's.  For example, is the use of masculine
pronouns (he, him, his) and words such as mankind in passages that
are supposed to refer to females and males really gender-inclusive?
Is there any need to change language and make it more gender-neutral?

Requirements for the course include (1) a diary in which students
record observations on language and gender and reflect on them, (2)
critical evaluations of popular and scientific articles, (3) a mid-
term examination and (4) a final examination. Regular attendance is
required and will be encouraged through pop quizzes.