Speaking Up: Understanding Language and Gender

Author: Allyson Jule

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ISBN:
9781783099610
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Multilingual Matters
Number of pages:
144
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From slut-shaming to the allegedly shrill voices of female politicians, from vocal fry to online misogyny, the language women use (and the language used about them) is as controversial as it has ever been. Our language use and our gender have an enormous impact on the way we understand ourselves and the world around us, and the way we are treated by society. Using the latest academic research, Allyson Jule tackles some of the most pressing issues facing feminism today, including how language use and related ideas about gender play out in the home, workplace and online. It turns out that many popular ideas about gender and language are more complicated than they first appear. This book will change the way you think about language, and give you the tools to challenge the world around you. 

Fascinating and hugely informative, Allyson Jule will make you realise just how powerful language is in creating the gender norms that many of us are trying to battle against. This is a brilliant way to understand how language has shaped women's experience in a patriarchal world. Timely, rigorous, and so important, Jule's research gives substance and weight to the current feminist conversation.

Marisa Bate, contributing editor at The Pool and author of The Periodic Table of Feminism

A highly accessible beginner's guide for the era of #MeToo and LGBTQ+, but also of neoliberalism and Trump. It will be a welcome addition to the field of gender and language.

Mary Talbot, author of Language and Gender

I can't wait to read it!

Sofie Hagen, stand-up comedian and podcaster

Speaking Up is so much more than a book about the linguistic habits of men and women. It is a journey through feminist history, a retrospective of the successes and failures of the research that has shaped the study of language and gender, and a close look at the underlying social forces that influence our language patterns daily in personal relationships, the workplace, and beyond.

A rich, insightful journey through the hidden dynamics behind language in action.

Ada Brunstein, writer and editor

This book should be included on reading lists for anyone interested in gender, language, and classroom or workspace dynamics. The first two chapters contain accessible language to introduce gender studies, feminism, and gender and language connectivity. The second section clearly deals with various gendered spheres familiar to all, encouraging readers to consider their own relationship with language. The glossary is a reader-friendly bonus, either offering support to those with a limited background in the field or serving as a refresher on the terminology to others.

JALT Journal, 42.1

In its own words Speaking Up was written to be an "accessible introduction to academic research in this dynamic field", and I think Jule absolutely achieves this. The book assumes no prior knowledge of language and gender studies and is unintimidating, accessible and gives a good introduction to language and gender, while applying our understanding to current world challenges.

BAAL News, Issue 116, Winter 2020

Speaking Up is more than an introduction to theoretical research about language and gender: it is a call to action and transformation of social realities through self-reflection about our own practices.

Language in Society 48 (2019)

I anticipate recommending this book to the many secondary-level students who ask me for advice on resources for their language-and-gender projects. It is clearly aimed at a general rather than a specialist audience, but it will also be valuable to those enrolled in various introductory third-level courses. Even experienced scholars will find useful the crystal-clear definitions and discussion of basic concepts, as well as the succinct and well-selected glossary items.

Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 2019

Reading [this book], we feel that [the author] has studied everything that has ever been said on gendered linguistics; she references Foucault and the Kardashians with equal rigour.

The Bookbag

Speaking Up has spoken, and we should listen. What is at stake is nothing less than our humanity.

Women & Language, Volume 42, Issue 1 Spring 2019

Allyson Jule is an academic specialising in the interaction between language and gender. She is Co-Director of the Gender Studies Institute, Trinity Western University, Canada and an associate of the University of Oxford's International Gender Studies Centre. She has published widely, and her work has featured in TIME magazine and The Ladies Home Journal.

Part I: Understanding Gender and Language Use

Chapter 1. The Basics

Chapter 2. Language as Gendered

Part II: Understanding Gender and Language Use in the World

Chapter 3. Gender and Language Use in the Media and Technology

Chapter 4. Gender and Language Use in Education

Chapter 5. Gender and Language Use in the Workplace

Chapter 6. Gender and Language Use in Religion: Judaism, Christianity and Islam

Chapter 7. Gender and Language Use in Relationships

Chapter 8. An Anti-Conclusion

Glossary

References

Index

General
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