Right now I'm in between studying and preparing for three midterms, so I am limited with the free time I have to post much material. I'm hoping to do an article this weekend on that Balloon Boy but I don't want to promise anything. In the meantime, here's something that I've been wanting to post for the past two weeks.
I'm taking sociolinguistics this semester and one of my responses got a really positive feedback and I would like to get your opinion of the situation. Most of the chapter dealt with how women and men are defined by the kind of language they choose to utilize. One section in particular deals with interactions between members of the same sex, as well as members of the opposite sex. Interruption, gossip (yes, men do gossip.) and feedback are all examples of interaction. My response comes from a statement made in the book that claims in cross-gendered interactions, almost all the interruptions came from males." The author, who happens to be a woman, is implies that men have no trouble breaking into a conversation. However, based on my personal experiences, I find this to be a fallacy. I decided to give my take on the issue and my professor commended me for offering a contradicting explanation to what the book claims. Here it is and please feel to post your thoughts.
“In cross-gender interactions, almost all the interruptions were from males.” (pg. 306.) This line really stood out to me because there have been number of times that this has happened to me. There have been a number of times where I have wanted to put my two cents into a conversation that I found interesting, but most of the time I find it difficult to find the perfect spot to jump in. I sometimes feel hesitant about breaking into a conversation, especially if it’s with a group of girls, because I don’t want to blurt out something that comes off stupid. I guess that’s where my typical male ego kicks in, but I’m sure a lot of guys will agree that unless a girl brings you into a conversation, it’s not so easy finding the right time to break in. I personally feel that it’s easier for a guy to start a conversation with a girl and then have other people join in whenever they feel it’s necessary. One thing that a guy should not do is wait until the discussion is over to make a comment because girls will give you a look that reads, “Dude, that was five minutes ago.”
I do notice that people rarely have a problem with interruptions when it comes to talking to members of the same sex, especially for women. I’ve seen women go from being strangers to finishing each others sentences after one class and that’s amazing. I also get the feeling that most women know the right time to “break the ice” and I think a lot of that has to do with body language and the detection of certain cues. I’m sure that guys have similar cues but I’ve never taken the time to make note of it. In the end, we can assume that both males and females interact better with members of their gender.
This has been Ian Feldman speaking words of wisdom.
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