Gender and Politeness

Gender and Politeness challenges the notion that women are necessarily always more polite than men.

Sara Mills (Author)

9780521009195, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 10 July 2003

280 pages
21.7 x 13.9 x 2 cm, 0.393 kg

'… a timely reconsideration of gender and politeness … this book has a great deal to offer researchers in various sub-disciplines of linguistics. It challenges taken-for-granted assumptions which will enable linguistic analysis to become a more theoretically complex activity, and I firmly believe that this publication will be a highly influential and authoritative text in gender and politeness research for many years to come.' Journal of Politeness Research

Gender and Politeness challenges the notion that women are necessarily always more polite than men as much of the language and gender literature claims. Sara Mills discusses the complex relations between gender and politeness and argues that although there are circumstances when women speakers, drawing on stereotypes of femininity to guide their behaviour, will appear to be acting in a more polite way than men, there are many circumstances where women will act just as impolitely as men. The book aims to show that politeness and impoliteness are in essence judgements about another's interventions in an interaction and about that person as whole, and are not simple classifications of particular types of speech. Drawing on the notion of community of practice Mills examines the way that speakers negotiate with what they perceive to be gendered stereotypes circulating within their particular group.

Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Rethinking linguistic interpretation
2. Theorising politeness
3. Politeness and impoliteness
4. Theorising gender
5. Gender and politeness
Conclusions
Bibliography
Index.

Subject Areas: Gender studies: women [JFSJ1], Gender studies, gender groups [JFSJ], Sociolinguistics [CFB]