Gender, Power and Political Speech explores the influence of gender on political speech by analyzing the performances of three female party leaders who took part in televised debates during the 2015 UK General Election campaign. The analysis considers similarities and differences between the women and their male colleagues, as well as between the women themselves; it also discusses the way gender - and its relationship to language - was taken up as an issue in media coverage of the campaign.
In this vitally important and engaging text, leading feminist linguist, Deborah Cameron, explores the role of language and discourse in perpetuating sexism and misogyny in the twenty-first century. Covering how the linguistic expression of prejudice against women has evolved during the last fifty years, the author of the blog, Language: A feminist guide, pays attention both to the persistence of familiar problems, such as the dominance of men in many interactional settings and to the emergence of new challenges, such as the global rise of misogynist extremism online. The book provides students and general readers with an up-to-date survey of ideas, debates and research on a wide range of key topics, including sexist attitudes to women's speech, verbal sexual harassment in public spaces offline and online, biases in vocabulary and grammar, the discourse of the online "manosphere" and the way violence against women is reported by the news media. Moreover, Cameron/the author outlines the efforts activists have made to change sexist and misogynist language, asking what has been achieved so far, and how a new generation is addressing current concerns. Accessible, non-technical and informed by scholarship from a wide range of disciplines from linguistics and anthropology to history, media studies and sociology, this text is essential reading for courses on language and gender in English Language, linguistics, women's and gender studies, media and communication studies.
In this vitally important and engaging text, leading feminist linguist Deborah Cameron explores the role of language and discourse in perpetuating sexism and misogyny in the twenty-first century. Covering how the linguistic expression of prejudice against women has evolved during the last fifty years, the author of the blog Language: A feminist guide pays attention both to the persistence of familiar problems, such as the dominance of men in many interactional settings, and to the emergence of new challenges such as the global rise of misogynist extremism online. The book provides students and general readers with an up-to-date survey of ideas, debates and research on a wide range of key topics, including sexist attitudes to women’s speech, verbal sexual harassment in public spaces offline and online, biases in vocabulary and grammar, the discourse of the online "manosphere" and the way violence against women is reported by the news media. Moreover, the author outlines the efforts activists have made to change sexist and misogynist language, asking what has been achieved so far, and how a new generation is addressing current concerns. Accessible, non-technical and informed by scholarship from a wide range of disciplines from linguistics and anthropology to history, media studies and sociology, this text is essential reading for courses on language and gender in English language, linguistics, women’s and gender studies, media and communication studies.
The author takes a critical look at sexism in language and argues that even in feminist circles it has become a problematic concept. Drawing on conversational and textual data collected over the last ten years, Mills suggests that there are two forms of sexism - overt and indirect.
The first comprehensive undercover look at the terrorist movement no one is talking about. Men Who Hate Women examines the rise of secretive extremist communities who despise women and traces the roots of misogyny across a complex spider web of groups. It includes eye-opening interviews with former members of these communities, the academics studying this movement, and the men fighting back. Women's rights activist Laura Bates wrote this book as someone who has been the target of many hate-fueled misogynistic attacks online. At first, the vitriol seemed to be the work of a small handful of individual men... but over time, the volume and consistency of the attacks hinted at something bigger and more ominous. As Bates went undercover into the corners of the internet, she found an unseen, organized movement of thousands of anonymous men wishing violence (and worse) upon women. In the book, Bates explores: Extreme communities like incels, pick-up artists, MGTOW, Men's Rights Activists and more The hateful, toxic rhetoric used by these groups How this movement connects to other extremist movements like white supremacy How young boys are targeted and slowly drawn in Where this ideology shows up in our everyday lives in mainstream media, our playgrounds, and our government By turns fascinating and horrifying, Men Who Hate Women is a broad, unflinching account of the deep current of loathing toward women and anti-feminism that underpins our society and is a must-read for parents, educators, and anyone who believes in equality for women. Praise for Men Who Hate Women: "Laura Bates is showing us the path to both intimate and global survival."—Gloria Steinem "Well-researched and meticulously documented, Bates's book on the power and danger of masculinity should be required reading for us all."—Library Journal "Men Who Hate Women has the power to spark social change."—Sunday Times
Misogyny is a hot topic, yet it's often misunderstood. What is misogyny, exactly? Who deserves to be called a misogynist? How does misogyny contrast with sexism, and why is it prone to persist - or increase - even when sexist gender roles are waning? This book is an exploration of misogyny in public life and politics by the moral philosopher and writer Kate Manne. It argues that misogyny should not be understood primarily in terms of the hatred or hostility some men feel toward all or most women. Rather, it's primarily about controlling, policing, punishing, and exiling the "bad" women who challenge male dominance. And it's compatible with rewarding "the good ones," and singling out other women to serve as warnings to those who are out of order. It's also common for women to serve as scapegoats, be burned as witches, and treated as pariahs. Manne examines recent and current events such as the Isla Vista killings by Elliot Rodger, the case of the convicted serial rapist Daniel Holtzclaw, who preyed on African-American women as a police officer in Oklahoma City, Rush Limbaugh's diatribe against Sandra Fluke, and the "misogyny speech" of Julia Gillard, then Prime Minister of Australia, which went viral on YouTube. The book shows how these events, among others, set the stage for the 2016 US presidential election. Not only was the misogyny leveled against Hillary Clinton predictable in both quantity and quality, Manne argues it was predictable that many people would be prepared to forgive and forget regarding Donald Trump's history of sexual assault and harassment. For this, Manne argues, is misogyny's oft-overlooked and equally pernicious underbelly: exonerating or showing "himpathy" for the comparatively privileged men who dominate, threaten, and silence women. ^l
Misogyny Online explores the worldwide phenomenon of gendered cyberhate as a significant discourse which has been overlooked and marginalised. The rapid growth of the internet has led to numerous opportunities and benefits; however, the architecture of the cybersphere offers users unprecedented opportunities to engage in hate speech. A leading international researcher in this field, Emma A. Jane weaves together data and theory from multiple disciplines and expresses her findings in a style that is engaging, witty and powerful. Misogyny Online is an important read for students and faculty members alike across the social sciences and humanities.
Do women participate in and influence meetings equally with men? Does gender shape how a meeting is run and whose voices are heard? The Silent Sex shows how the gender composition and rules of a deliberative body dramatically affect who speaks, how the group interacts, the kinds of issues the group takes up, whose voices prevail, and what the group ultimately decides. It argues that efforts to improve the representation of women will fall short unless they address institutional rules that impede women's voices. Using groundbreaking experimental research supplemented with analysis of school boards, Christopher Karpowitz and Tali Mendelberg demonstrate how the effects of rules depend on women’s numbers, so that small numbers are not fatal with a consensus process, but consensus is not always beneficial when there are large numbers of women. Men and women enter deliberative settings facing different expectations about their influence and authority. Karpowitz and Mendelberg reveal how the wrong institutional rules can exacerbate women’s deficit of authority while the right rules can close it, and, in the process, establish more cooperative norms of group behavior and more generous policies for the disadvantaged. Rules and numbers have far-reaching implications for the representation of women and their interests. Bringing clarity and insight to one of today’s most contentious debates, The Silent Sex provides important new findings on ways to bring women’s voices into the conversation on matters of common concern.
Whether in classrooms, in workplaces, on social media, on college campuses, at public venues, or within the political arena, subtle as well as blatant sexism and misogyny still permeate society on many levels. The effects manifest themselves in offensive language, unequal treatment and opportunities, sexual harassment, and violence. They can devastate self-esteem, emotional and physical health, academic achievements, and personal ambitions. While delivering an insightful glimpse into the prevalence and negative influences of sexism and misogyny in modern culture, this resource also offers practical, empowering, and proactive coping strategies. Readers also glean useful information through features including Myths and Facts.
“As funny as it is informative, this book will have you laughing out loud while you contemplate the revolutionary power of words.” —Camille Perri, author of The Assistants and When Katie Met Cassidy A brash, enlightening, and wildly entertaining feminist look at gendered language and the way it shapes us. The word bitch conjures many images, but it is most often meant to describe an unpleasant woman. Even before its usage to mean “a female canine,” bitch didn’t refer to women at all—it originated as a gender-neutral word for “genitalia.” A perfectly innocuous word devolving into an insult directed at females is the case for tons more terms, including hussy, which simply meant “housewife”; and slut, which meant “an untidy person” and was also used to describe men. These are just a few of history’s many English slurs hurled at women. Amanda Montell, reporter and feminist linguist, deconstructs language—from insults, cursing, gossip, and catcalling to grammar and pronunciation patterns—to reveal the ways it has been used for centuries to keep women and other marginalized genders from power. Ever wonder why so many people are annoyed when women speak with vocal fry or use like as filler? Or why certain gender-neutral terms stick and others don’t? Or where stereotypes of how women and men speak come from in the first place? Montell effortlessly moves between history, science, and popular culture to explore these questions—and how we can use the answers to affect real social change. Her irresistible humor shines through, making linguistics not only approachable but downright hilarious and profound. Wordslut gets to the heart of our language, marvels at its elasticity, and sheds much-needed light on the biases that shadow women in our culture and our consciousness.
