Pamela Fishman (1980)

Fishman's Experiment

Pamela Fishman conducted an experiment which involved listening to fifty-two hours of pre-recorded conversations between young American couples.

Five out of the six subjects were attending graduate school; all subjects were:

• Either feminists or sympathetic to the women’s movement
• White
• Between the ages of twenty-five and thirty-five

Fishman listened to recordings and concentrated on two characteristics common in women’s dialect, including tag questions for example ”you know?”

Fishman also analyses the frequent use of the phrase ”you know” used by women. ”You know” is an attention-getting device to discover if the conversational partner is listening. Fishman therefore concludes again that women’s style of communicating is not from lack of social training, but to the inferior social position of women.



She argues in interaction with the work women do (1983) that conversation between the sexes sometimes fails, not because of anything inherent in the way women talk, but because of how men respond or don't respond. Women ask questions to try to get a response from men, not because of their personality weaknesses.

 

Dominance Theory

 

The dominance theory states the power imbalance between men and women is due to men being dominant and controlling their interactions.

All the theorists in this field believed it was not down to inferiority of women speakers, but more the dominant style that men had. some ideas from theorists in this category suggest that compared to women, men talk for longer on average, they interrupt more and they control the language system.

Fishman focuses on some of the features of women's language considered by Lakoff but interprets them in a very different way. For example, she asserts that questions do not signal uncertainty or powerlessness, but are instead one of a variety of tools used by women as a means of keeping a conversation going.

Fishman argues that women have to do the majority of the 'conversational shitwork' when interacting with men, because men, in their more dominant role, are less concerned to do so. For Fishman the differences in male and female conversational behaviour are explained in terms of expectations - men are more dominant (linguistically) because that is what society expects.

 

 

 

FEMINISM

 

First Wave Feminism

 

First-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity during the 19th and early 20th century throughout the world, especially in the UK, Canada, the Netherlands and the United States. It focused on legal issues, primarily on gaining women's suffrage, e.g. the right to vote.

 

The efforts that led to the women having right to vote in 1920 are referred to as ‘first-wave feminism’. These women were concerned with women’s political equality and the right to vote. These women were largely white and upper class, and were not concerned about the rights of working class women.

Founding Beliefs -

• Required approval of male voters,
• forced to adopt any argument necessary
• intensified racism, nativism and class bias                 

After the Votes -

• Birth control pills were available
• Expansion of education opportunities
• Crusade against lynching and other race based violence and injustice
• Fight for improved working conditions         

 

 

 

 

Second Wave Feminism

 

Second-wave feminism is a period of feminist activity that first began in the early 1960s and spread throughout the world. This was focused upon -

• The rights of women in the workplace
• Equal pay for men and women
• Fair employment opportunities for married women
• Reproductive rights

 

The second wave feminism expanded upon the issues raised and focused on matters such as reproductive rights, e.g. the pill and domestic violence. Although the pill gave women great control over their reproduction, they were still unable to seek a safe abortion in some cases.

 

There were a number of effects due to this feminist act such as the civil rights act. This made it illegal for employers to discriminate upon sex, race and religion.