27.1671, FYI: Call for Papers: Sex, Gender and Linguistic Taboo

Mon Apr 11 15:16:19 UTC 2016

LINGUIST List: Vol-27-1671. Mon Apr 11 2016. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 27.1671, FYI: Call for Papers: Sex, Gender and Linguistic Taboo

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Date: Mon, 11 Apr 2016 11:16:12
From: Carey Benom [careybenom at gmail.com]
Subject: Call for Papers: Sex, Gender and Linguistic Taboo

Sex, Gender and Linguistic Taboo
Proposed forum at the 3rd International Conference of AMPRA, Nov 4-6, 2016,
Indiana University

Deadline for submissions: April 14, 2016

The relationship between linguistic taboo and sex and/or gender is not
unexplored, but despite recent advances, much remains unknown or poorly
understood. Just a few decades ago, the leading, groundbreaking voice in the
study of language and gender claimed that women did not use (strong) taboo
words (Lakoff 1975/2004), though later research did not support this (e.g.
Coates 2004, Eckert 2000, Vincent 1982).  While more recent, data-driven
research has improved our understanding of the connections between sex,
gender, and taboo language, the picture is still far from complete, even for
languages as well-studied as English.  Additionally, factors such as the
perceived strength and social connotations of taboo words and the cultural
affordances or possibilities for the linguistic performance of gender are
constantly changing, and therefore updating knowledge of current research is
essential.

The aim of this panel is to elucidate the relationship between linguistic
taboo and sex and/or gender based on data-driven, empirically sound approaches
to analysis. We will focus primarily on four questions, all of which can be
asked with respect to a single language or can be approached contrastively or
typologically:

1) (Use by sex or gender) Do people of different sexes or genders employ taboo
terms differently? We can ask this question with respect to the forms employed
(i.e. which taboo terms are favored by which sex or gender?) or the functions
elicited (e.g. do men and women use taboo terms for the same purposes? Do they
employ the same usage types with similar frequencies?)

2) (Use referring to / talking about sex or gender) Do speakers employ
different taboo terms or usage types when speaking about different sexes or
genders? If so, which terms or categories of terms are used to label the sexes
or genders, and which (categories of) terms are used in conjunction with these
terms, e.g. to modify them?

3) (Perception based on sex or gender) To what extent, and in what ways, does
the perception of the use of taboo terms depend on the gender or sex of the
speaker of these terms, or that of the listener, or of any others present?

4) (Application to sex or gender) What linguistic taboos specifically apply to
one sex or gender? For instance McCormick (2001) notes that in Mongolia and
some parts of southern Africa, a  wife cannot speak the name of her husband or
his family, nor any similar-sounding words, though this taboo does not apply
to husbands.

References cited:

Coates, Jennifer. 2004. Women, Men, and Language: A Sociolinguistic Account of
Gender Differences in Language. Pearson Longman.

Eckert, Penelope. 2000. Linguistic Variation as Social Practice: The
Linguistic Construction of Social Meaning in Belten High. Oxford: Blackwell.

Lakoff, Robin. 1975. Language and Woman’s Place. New York , Harper and Row

Vincent, Diane. 1982. Pressions et impressions sur les sacres au Qu´ebec.
Quebec: Gouvernement du Qu´ebec, Office de la langue française.

Abstracts of 300 words or less are due by April 14 2016 (strict). They, as
well as any questions regarding this panel, should be sent to the panel
organiser:

Carey Benom
Kyushu University
careybenom at gmail.com

Linguistic Field(s): Pragmatics

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