Deborah Tannen’s essay “But What Do You Mean?” with its precise diction and conversational tone, elucidates the ways women form their speech and the flaws with which they come when speaking to men. Being that “conversation is a ritual,” we often expect what we think is obvious to be said by the other person; “unfortunately, women and men often have different ideas about what’s appropriate, different ways of speaking.” Women tend to apologize when they need not to and men see it as a mask over a person’s competency when they do so. While most women try to cushion your ego’s fall when criticizing, men are directly to the point and tend to let it fall from a mile high onto the concrete. This is because women tend to regard feelings when speaking while men operate “on an assumption that feelings aren’t involved.” Often a woman will thank someone for doing what is required and if that person happens to be a man he most likely will not counter that person’s thank you with his own, he’ll instead say “your welcome,” leaving the woman at the receiving end of an apparent favor that really is not a favor at all. “Men expect the discussion of ideas to be a ritual fight — explored through verbal opposition,” but most women try to be non-confrontational. This makes it easy for women who do not know how to play this adrenaline logic game susceptible to hurt feelings. It is proven to be helpful that women learn how to verbally spar when dealing with men, because their ideas are taken more seriously and their opinions are better heard. Women give praise in hopes that they will receive it, but men find ways to critique instead. This rebuttal-a-praise-with-a-critique method can be a way for men to one-up themselves or simply a misunderstanding of intentions. Whatever the case, it helps to know when and whom to ask indirect questions. The consequences of complaining for women can be serious. “A man might take a woman’s lighthearted griping literally, and she can get a reputation as a chronic malcontent. . . she may [even] be seen as not up to solving the problems that arise on the job.” As is well known the ways men and women joke are almost polar opposites. While men tend to razz, tease, and use mock-hostility, women self-mock. “Women often mistake men’s teasing as genuinely hostile [and] men often mistake women’s mock self-deprecation as truly putting themselves down.” Whatever the case, if men and women learn to understand the ways the one another speak they will have much better communication.
Vocabulary
deprecation
commiserating
Tone
conversational
scholarly
Rhetorical Devices
1. Anecdote- ". . . a well known columnist once interviewed me and gave me her phone number in case I needed to call her back. I misplaced the number. . . When our conversation was winding down and we'd both made ending-type remarks, I added 'Oh, I almost forgot -- I lost your direct number, can I get it again?' 'Oh, I'm sorry,' she came back instantly, even though she had done nothing wrong. . ." (p. 391)
Why Effective: It is used to illustrate a case in which a woman apologized without being at fault so it's a good example.
2. Logical Fallacy- “The logic is that when are challenged you will rise to the occasion: Adrenaline makes your mind sharper; you get ideas and insights you would not have thought of without the spur of battle.” (p. 392)
Why Effective: It helps the reader's know that when men argue to get ideas out it helps them to think a little sharper, but for women it kind of makes them defensive and they seem a little week if they can't handle it.
3. Metaphor- "When the other speaker doesn't reciprocate, a woman may feel like someone on a seesaw whose partner abandoned his end." (p. 392)
Why Effective: It helps explain what the exact feeling of someone not saying what is expected of them is like for a woman.
4. Irony- "A woman manager I know starts meetings by thanking everyone for coming, even though it's clearly their job to do so." (p. 392)
Why Effective: It helps the reader to better understand that what the woman does makes no sense at all, that it is merely her ritual.
5. Sarcasm- "This made her feel like responding, 'Thanks for nothing!'"
Why Effective: it illustrates how it feels to assume that someone will cancel out what you have just said even though they are not really obligated to do so.
Discussion Questions
Clarification- Would it help or hinder a woman if she were to take on the speech characteristics of a man?
Application- Are these speech barriers between men and women solely apart of American culture or do they exist elsewhere?
Style- With the conversational and teacher like style of this essay, who exactly is the intended audience?
Quotation
‘Oh that’s too dry! You have to make it snappier!’
Vocabulary
deprecation
commiserating
Tone
conversational
scholarly
Rhetorical Devices
1. Anecdote- ". . . a well known columnist once interviewed me and gave me her phone number in case I needed to call her back. I misplaced the number. . . When our conversation was winding down and we'd both made ending-type remarks, I added 'Oh, I almost forgot -- I lost your direct number, can I get it again?' 'Oh, I'm sorry,' she came back instantly, even though she had done nothing wrong. . ." (p. 391)
Why Effective: It is used to illustrate a case in which a woman apologized without being at fault so it's a good example.
2. Logical Fallacy- “The logic is that when are challenged you will rise to the occasion: Adrenaline makes your mind sharper; you get ideas and insights you would not have thought of without the spur of battle.” (p. 392)
Why Effective: It helps the reader's know that when men argue to get ideas out it helps them to think a little sharper, but for women it kind of makes them defensive and they seem a little week if they can't handle it.
3. Metaphor- "When the other speaker doesn't reciprocate, a woman may feel like someone on a seesaw whose partner abandoned his end." (p. 392)
Why Effective: It helps explain what the exact feeling of someone not saying what is expected of them is like for a woman.
4. Irony- "A woman manager I know starts meetings by thanking everyone for coming, even though it's clearly their job to do so." (p. 392)
Why Effective: It helps the reader to better understand that what the woman does makes no sense at all, that it is merely her ritual.
5. Sarcasm- "This made her feel like responding, 'Thanks for nothing!'"
Why Effective: it illustrates how it feels to assume that someone will cancel out what you have just said even though they are not really obligated to do so.
Discussion Questions
Clarification- Would it help or hinder a woman if she were to take on the speech characteristics of a man?
Application- Are these speech barriers between men and women solely apart of American culture or do they exist elsewhere?
Style- With the conversational and teacher like style of this essay, who exactly is the intended audience?
Quotation
‘Oh that’s too dry! You have to make it snappier!’