Differences in the Manner in Which Men and Women Use Language - Essay Example

Sex Differences In Relation To Language Use and Language Development For a long time, scholars have attempted to present claims and to counter claims that there is are or no significant differences in the manner in which men and women use language. As some scholars believe that there is differences in the way men and women speak, others argue that there are no much differences in the language use and acquisition between men and women. Sex differences in language acquisition, development and use are discussed in relation to speech and different activities among others. Generally, women are seen as being quicker to learn and to speak and that their speech is more advanced and superior than that of men. More so, women’s language development is quicker than that of men. This essay discusses some of the differences in the ways in which males and females use language. There is a popular belief that men and women do not use different forms of language, Ronald Macaulay disagree with this claiming that even though social background can generate some differences in the way sexes speak, it is pure myth and stereotyping that sex differences are present in language patterns (Macaulay, 2006). However, Otto Jespersen also focused on the subject of sex differences, he observed some of the differences in the way men, and women acquire and use language. To begin with, women are linguistically quicker than men in that, they are quicker to learn, hear and even to answer. On the contrary, men are linguistically slower as they hesitate to learn and hear in order to make sure of the taste of the words and in the process they easily discover the relationships between words thereby preparing themselves to use the most appropriate words. In addition, it has been noted that women follow the main road of language while men turn aside into a thin path or create a new path for themselves. That is, women like to move in the essential field of language as they avoid anything that is out of the way (Macaulay, 2006). However, this is not the case in men because men tend to create new words and expressions or even use the old-fashioned words but only if they are convinced that doing this will enable them find a more precise word or expression for their thoughts. Another difference is based on speech, that is, how the two sexes deliver speech. Arguably, women are always ready to deliver superior speech because they have smaller and central vocabulary as compared to that of men (Macaulay, 2006). Notably, some of the expressions used by novelists to introduce men’s and women’s speech include; said firmly as opposed to said quietly, urged as opposed to offered humbly, and grumbled as opposed to pleaded among others, to describe men and women respectively (Macaulay, 2006). Indeed, this dissimilarity reinforces the stereotypes of men and women and clearly show the differences experienced when speaking between the two sexes. While focusing on sex differences in language development, some scholars believe that girls are more advanced in language development as opposed to men at the same age. This is because girls learn to talk earlier and more quickly than their male counterparts. More so, their speech is more correct than that of the boys because girls tend to be more advanced in their speech. It has also been noted that the boys’ language development is slower and that their language is less fluent than that of the girls. Further, it is true that both men and women use various forms of language and styles that are appropriate to the activities they are involved in. Given that these activities differ, it is expected that their language will as well differ and so the difference is so obvious. Also when the sex difference is looked into in relation to position of power, those in power are always expected to treated with deference especially by those over whom they have power. In most case, men are in many positions of power as opposed to their female counterparts and so women sometimes find themselves using deferential language. Moreover, sex differences can as well be discussed in relation to violent activities such as fighting and contact sports. For a long time, fighting or contact sports have been exclusively a male thing and there are specific forms of language appropriate to them that may be less common among women. However, there are certain issues that need to be considered when trying to demonstrate differences in language development such as measures of linguistic proficiency especially among young children. Therefore, the samples of linguistic behavior will show infrequent differences between subgroups of the sample and such sex differences are much smaller as compared to those that have been related to social background. Given that most studies reveal no sex differences and that many findings of smaller differences have been contradicted in other studies, it is inappropriate to draw conclusions about the linguistic superiority of either sex. Nevertheless, there are some notable differences between men and women that do not rely on unreliable tests of language development. For instance, there is high possibility for boys to suffer from speech disorders like stuttering than girls, and it is true that adult males have deeper voices than adult females (Macaulay, 2006). These issues are very important and therefore should be considered when exploring the subject of sex differences in language use and development. In conclusion, the popular belief that men and women do not speak different forms of language has been supported by some scholars and refuted by others. Some of the notable sex differences in language use and development proposed by Jespersen include; women are linguistically quicker than men are, women follow the main road of language whereas men establish a new path for themselves. In addition, women have finer and more correct speech than men; women are more advanced in language development than men, and lastly, men and women use different forms of language and styles in relation to the activities that they are engaged in. However, problems such as linguistic proficiency among young children need to be put into consideration when demonstrating differences in language development. There should be no concluding remarks on the linguistic superiority of either sex because most studies show no sex differences and those studies that happen to reveal smaller differences are constricted in subsequent studies. Reference Macaulay, R. K. S. (2006). The social art: Language and its uses. New York, N.Y: Oxford University Press. Read More