Tuesday, Feb 20: Reading due: Chapter 6 of Language, Society, and Power
Research due: Conduct an informal interview with a parent, grandparent, or “older” adult with whom you feel comfortable. Ask them about changing cultural perceptions toward gendered terms and pronouns: he/she/ze/they, use of the generic “he,” use of “Ms” instead of “Mrs.” or “Miss,” and changing use of actor/actress, stewardess/flight attendant, etc. Questions you might ask would target: do they remember the first time (or when people started to) use the term “flight attendant”? Use of “Ms”? Use of singular “they”? Did they notice any feelings or attitudes among their peers or in the media toward changing gender-loaded terms? If they feel comfortable, what was their own thoughts? (Not see the point at first? Afraid to get it wrong?)
Thursday, Feb 22: Reading due: Tannen, “Indirectness at Work”: Link
Research due: Complete your speech event observation and fill out one of these two surveys to document your findings:
Number and Length of Speech Acts Observation: https://wooster.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5cdM0CaVzxtkMzr
Interruptions: https://wooster.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_81zQPUHCc1ytr0x