Language and Masculinity

This is the first extensive account of men′s language – of male ways of speaking and of language in the construction of masculinity. Feminist linguistics has come of age. Yet, in more than two decades of research, male speaking patterns have largely been taken for granted. So, what have we learned specifically about men′s language and masculinity? Is it right to assume that men′s use of language is the mirror image of what have been considered typically female patterns of interaction? In what ways does the study of language and masculinity throw new light on traditional assumptions about language and gender? Language and Masculinity puts the study of male speech and communication on the linguist′s – and feminist linguist′s – agenda. It will be widely read by students of language, discourse and gender.

List of Contributors. Acknowledgements. Introduction: Ulrike Hanna Meinhof and Sally Johnson (Bradford University and Lancaster University). 1. Theorizing Language and Masculinity: A Feminist Perspective: Sally Johnson (Lancaster University). 2. ′Box–out′ and ′Taxing′: Roger Hewitt (Institute of Education, London). 3. Performing Gender Identity: Young Men′s Talk and the Construction of Heterosexual Masculinity: Deborah Cameron (University of Strathclyde). 4. Power and the Language of Men: Scott Fabius Kiesling. 5. Masculinity in a Multilingual Setting: John Pujolar (Lancaster University). 6. ′One–at–a–Time′: The Organization of Men′s Talk: Jennifer Coates (Roehampton Institute). 7. Do Men Gossip?An Analysis of Football Talk on Television: Sally Johnson and Frank Finlay (Lancaster University). 8. The Role of Expletives in the Construction of Masculinity: Vivian de Klerk (Rhodes University). 9. ′Aceptarlo con hombria′: Representations of Masculinity in Spanish Political Discourse: JoAnne Neff van Aertselaer (Universidad Complutense). 10. ′Randy Fish Boss Branded a Stinker′: Coherence and the Construction of Masculinities in a British Tabloid Newspaper: Mary M. Talbot (Odense Universitet). 11. ′The Object of Contempt is the Object of Desire′: Representations of Masculinity in Straight to Hell Magazine: John Heywood (Lancaster University). 12. ′The Most Important Event of My Life!′A Comparison of Male and Female Written Narratives: Ulrike Hanna Meinhof (Bradford University). Bibliography. Index.

Sally Johnson is Lecturer in German Language and Linguistics at Lancaster University. Ulrike Hanna Meinhof is Professor of Cultrual Studies in the Department of Modern Languages at Bradford University.