Language, Culture, and Gender Ascription

Kimberly D. Heeren (金貝利)

Department of English
National Pingtung University of Education

ABSTRACT

The aim of this study is to determine whether Native English speakers and Taiwanese
English speakers illustrate a tendency to empower men and debase women according
to occupational roles through the language they use. Specifically, it sought to
determine whether the participants could perceive a woman as a doctor when told a
forty-year-old riddle. In this respect, unconscious speech was verbally elicited in
order to collect natural data. In a separate investigation, participants were also asked
to ascribe pronouns to the roles of ‘doctor’ and ‘secretary.’ In this respect, the
answers were elicited in the written form and categorized as conscious language. It
was found that a greater majority of Taiwanese English speakers tended to empower
men through their unconscious language. In this respect, they failed to perceive a
woman as a doctor and therefore, could not solve the riddle. In addition, through
their conscious language, the Taiwanese participants associated ‘he’ with doctor and
‘she’ with secretary. Overall, we could conclude that although gender is generally
not distinguished in the Chinese language, Taiwanese English speakers tend to ascribe
gender that empowers males in their second language.

INTRODUCTION

The investigation of sexism in language is a prominent topic in the

sociolinguistic field. Throughout the past several decades, researchers have been
searching for a connection between thought and the gender roles that are ascribed to
men and women through language. It may be said that speakers demonstrate gender
perceptions through the language that they use. It may also be said that language
reinforces perceptions that are embedded in a particular culture. People tend to use
particular words to show a hierarchical importance of something in a culture. This
paper aims to investigate how certain cultures ascribe gender roles through language.
It will analyze how speakers associate an occupational role with a specific gender.
A study of language, culture, and gender roles must first take into account:
linguistic determinism (Humboldt), and linguistic relativism, (Boas). According to

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Saeed (2000), linguistic determinism claims that, “people’s thoughts are determined
by the categories available to them in their language (p. 41). There are two forms of
linguistic determinism, strong and weak. The strong form states that thoughts are
determined by language. This is the theory associated with Humboldt. The weak
form, also termed linguistic relativism, claims that thoughts are affected by language.
This form is associated with Boas. It may be said that Humboldt and Boas laid the
foundation upon which Sapir and Whorf built their theories. It is important to explore
these theories in order to understand how the Sapir-Whorf theory evolved.
Linguistic determinism is generally associated with Wilhelm von Humboldt.
In the early 1800s, he combined the knowledge of various languages with a
philosophical background. According to Humboldt, “Language is the formative
organ of thought. Intellectual activity, entirely mental, entirely internal, and to some
extent passing without trace, becomes through sound, externalized in sense, and
perceptible to the senses. Humboldt (1988) noted that, “thought and language are
therefore one, and inseparable from each other (p. 54). In other words, thoughts are
language. Without language, Humboldt concurred that thought was impossible.
An example of Humboldt’s notion is illustrated in George Orwell’s work,
“Nineteen Eighty-Four.” In this fictional account, Orwell created the language
‘Newspeak.’ The language itself omits words that describe crime, rebellion, and
freedom in order to support a totalitarian regime. The underlying theory claims, if
something cannot be said, it cannot be thought. Orwell (2000) stated, “There would
be many crimes and errors which it would be beyond his power to commit, simply
because they were nameless and therefore unimaginable” (p. 383). ‘Newspeak’ as a
language would dictate the inner feelings of its speakers. By omitting specific words,
there could be thought or feelings about them because they would never be uttered.
Therefore, Orwell’s ‘Newspeak’ would be a prime example of linguistic determinism.
Humboldt also equated language and thought in a hypothesis known as, the
‘Weltanschauung’ (world-view) hypothesis. Humboldt (2000) stated, “Language is
by no means a mere means of communication, but the mirror of the mind and of the
world view of the speaker (p. 19). The idea of a ‘world view’ indicates that a speaker
of one language may view the world differently than a speaker of a different language.
Hence, each culture has a unique view of the world.
Along with Humboldt, anthropologist Franz Boas influenced the theories put
forth by Sapir and Whorf. In the early 1900s, Boas expanded a scientific
investigation of the indigenous languages of native North America. Initially, Boas
(1911) stressed, “there is no necessary connection between language and culture” (p.
52). He believed that each language was equal, and competent in accomplishing the
goals of its culture. Boas argued that each language represents implicit classification

53 
 
of experience, and that these classifications vary across languages. However, later in
his life, “Boas gave a very cautious endorsement of ideas similar to those adopted
later by Whorf (Lucy 1985, p. 81). Boas began to question whether language could
be used as a tool to understand the differences between cultures.
Franz Boas was Edward Sapir’s mentor, and probably the impetus for Sapir’s
studies concerning language and culture. In 1907, Sapir began his investigation of the
indigenous languages of the Americas. From these studies, Sapir came to feel that
language could represent an analysis of speakers’ conceptual viewpoints and
interpretations. Sapir was not concerned with linguistic form or linguistic content.
He was concerned with the formal organization of meaning that is characteristic of a
language. This would include grammatical categories and patterns of semantic
composition. Sapir felt that “we see and hear and otherwise experience very largely
as we do because the language habits of our community predispose certain choices of
interpretation” (Sapir 1958 [1929], p. 69). Sapir disagreed with Humboldt because he
felt that language did not mirror ideals and beliefs. Sapir believed that language had
a deeper interaction with speakers’ perceptions.
B. J. Whorf extended this position in the 1930s by stating, “We cut nature up,
organize it into concepts and ascribe significances as we do, largely because we are
parties to an agreement to organize it in this way, an agreement that holds throughout
our speech community and is codified in the patterns of our language” (Carroll 1956,
pp. 212-14). Whorf analyzed specific linguistic structures, proposed mechanisms of
influence, and provided demonstrations of these influences on belief and behavior.
Whorf theorized that languages vary considerably in basic distinctions and in the
assemblage of categories into a system of reference. Therefore, each system of
categories within any language provides its speakers with a unique perspective. In
turn, each language is unique to its speakers.
The largest problem with the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis lies in the difficulty in
testing the validity of the idea. It is impossible to conduct objective research without
the use of language. Therefore, the results would be interpreted according to the
‘world view’ of the researcher. The hypothesis also has a number of opponents.
One argument debates the basic assumption that one culture is attributed to one
language. J.J. Gumperz points out, “The correlations between language, culture, and
society do not support this assumption” (Gumperz-Levinson 1999, p. 6). The fact
remains that culture can vary dramatically even within speakers of the same language.
Therefore, it is difficult to prove the influence of language when differences appear
between speakers of the same language.
Nevertheless, the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis does have it proponents. Gumperz and
Levinson also state, “It turns out that in non-linguistic tasks, speakers of languages

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that use, ‘North’/’South’/’East’/’West’ systems instead of ‘front’/’back’/’left’/’right’
systems do indeed remember spatial arrays differently, in ways that can be
demonstrated experimentally and observationally” (Gumperz-Levinson 1999, p. 27).
Gumperz and Levinson show how different category systems affect language.
Therefore, this stands as some proof to support Whorf’s idea concerning codified
patterns and speech communities.
The main idea of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis is that linguistic categories are
used as guides in habitual thought. When speakers attempt to interpret an experience
in terms of a category available in their language, they automatically involve other
meanings implicit in that particular category. Speakers tend to regard these
meanings as being intrinsic to the original experience rather than being a product of
linguistic analogy. Therefore, language tends not to blind speakers to some obvious
reality. Instead, it suggests associations that are not necessarily entailed by
experience. In this instance, linguistic shaping forces affect everyday habitual thought.
The absence of another language with which to talk about experience, speakers will
be unlikely to recognize the nature of their linguistically based understandings.
The hypothesis states that linguistic patterns guide our thoughts. These
patterns may be verbalized with or without the actual experience. These patterns
may also include unconscious ascription of gender roles to specific professions. It
may have been logical to describe a doctor as a male in the early nineteenth century.
The experience of visiting a male doctor was very common. Most doctors were
males and it would have been a rare occurrence to see a female doctor. However,
visiting a female doctor in the twenty-first century is no longer a rare occurrence.
Nevertheless, people tend to unconsciously choose specific pronouns and relate them
to specific professions out of habit. The word, ‘doctor’ tends to be associated with
the pronoun, ‘he’ for some unconscious reason. This could be a grammar pattern
that has become habitual since many people have had the experience of visiting a
female doctor. In this instance, a language pattern dictates thought even when the
experience is no longer consistent.

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this study is twofold. First, according to Sapir (1929), “the
real world is unconsciously built upon the language habits of a group” (p. 207). If
this is true, do speakers of a language unconsciously ascribe gender roles due to
habitual language? Second, according to Whorf, “The world is presented in a
kaleidoscopic flux of impressions which has to be organized by our minds. This
means largely by the linguistic systems in our minds” (Carroll, 1956, pp. 212-214).
When gender roles are ascribed by two different cultures, does this mean that certain

55 
 
cultures associate men with powerful roles and women with less powerful roles
according to patterned linguistic systems? In other words, does language dictate
cultures to empower men but debase women?
It may be said that the use of language devalues members of one sex, and thus
fosters gender inequality. It may also be said that language reflects culture. When
people choose certain words and associate them with certain roles in society, are they
essentially expressing the cultural meanings and values of a society? The
Sapir-Whorf hypothesis will be applied to the results that were obtained in the gender
related studies of this paper. The results will be interpreted to present how language,
as a representation of culture, reveals certain attitudes concerning gender roles.

Significance of the Study

The significance of this study is twofold. First, verbal investigations are
conducted where the participants are asked to solve a forty-year-old riddle. This
method is chosen to observe the responses that are given as the participants problem
solve. It is also used to observe any spontaneous speech data that may be collected.
Separate investigations are conducted where the participants are asked to ascribe the
pronouns, ‘he or she,’ to specific professions. Both investigations inquire about
how speakers of English view professional roles and the genders associated with these
roles.
Second, both native English speakers and Taiwanese English speakers are
interviewed. The study makes use of two different cultures to assess whether or not
one culture is more gender specific or ‘sexist’ than the other culture.

Motivation for the Study

The inspiration for this paper comes from a variety of observations. It has
been noticed that people continue to associate certain roles for men and certain roles
for women through the language that they use. For example, on several
Thanksgiving holidays, both a male and female made the dinner. After the dinner
was finished, the guests thanked the woman for a delicious meal. On a separate
occasion, both a male and female reconstructed a wall in their home. When guests
viewed the new shelving unit in its place, they complimented the male for a job well
done. The interlocutors in both situations assumed that a female did the cooking,
and a male reconstructed the wall. Even in casual conversations, a male was deemed
as the powerful builder, while the female was the less powerful homemaker.
When deciding on the types of instruments to use for research, the gender
related riddle was piloted. Due to the fact that the riddle was forty years old, it was
assumed that a major portion of the native English speakers would have previously

56 
 
heard it. However, there were enough native English-speaking participants who had
never heard the riddle. While observing the conversations that the riddle instigated,
its value became apparent. Therefore, personal observations and the pilot study
provided a majority of the motivation for this study.
Key Terms
Culture
Culture is something that is learned, it is not biological. We do not inherit culture in
our genes. Much of learning culture is unconscious and occurs through observation
and imitation. We learn culture from our families, peers, institutions, and media.
Gender
Gender is the cultural meanings assigned to the biological differences between men
and women. Sex, as in male or female, is biological while gender is cultural.
Linguistic Determinism
Linguistic Determinism refers to the idea that the language we use determines the way
in which we view and think about the world around us. According to some researchers,
linguistic determinism is also termed as a strong approach of linguistic relativity.
Linguistic Relativity
Linguistic Relativity is the idea that language shapes thought and experience but
differences in language lead to differences in the way people understand the world
around them. This is the main idea of the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis.
Native English Speakers
Native English speakers are referred to as those who originate from a country where
the official language is English. In this paper, these people were born and raised in
the United States and England.
Sexist
One who expresses discrimination on the basis of sex. This would specifically apply
to empowering men and debasing women according to specific professional roles.
Taiwanese English Speakers
Taiwanese English speakers are referred to as those who were born in Taiwan but are
proficient in English.
World View
A worldview may incorporate both perception and thinking. For the purpose of this
paper, it may be defined as a view that may be implicated from the words that people
utter.

LITERATURE REVIEW

This chapter will review the major published works that are applied to this paper.

57 
 
It will review the works and respective authors in chronological order. The theories
associated with each author, along with the relevant work in which it was published,
will be explained. This order has been chosen to show how the theories evolved.
Language and Thought
Wilhelm Humboldt’s “On Language,” was published posthumously in 1836. It
is in this work where Humboldt clarified that the character and structure of a language
expresses the inner life and knowledge of its speakers. He emphasized that sounds
become words when meanings are ascribed to them. Thereafter, that meaning
conveys the thoughts of the people who utter those words. Humboldt declared that a
community denotes relationships between parts of sentences, and that arrangement
reflects the worldview of those speakers. In essence, language structures have a
determining influence on the thought processes of their users. It is from these initial
theories of Humboldt that Boas would be indirectly influenced.
Some of the visions that Humboldt recorded tend to be unclear. Roger Brown
published, “Wilhelm von Humboldt’s Conception of Linguist Relativity” in 1967.
This work serves as a guide to explain some of Humboldt’s ideas that were unclear or
contradictory. Brown expresses Humboldt’s three main claims as: language
structures have a determining influence on the thoughts of their users, the structures of
different languages can differ in important ways, and the structures of languages are
stable and may not be manipulated or changed by the users. This book was essential
in understanding the meaning behind some of Humboldt’s complex notions.
Humboldt was the Prussian Minister of Public Worship and Education.
Although his connection to Boas has never been proven, Humboldt’s ideologies
permeated through the system in which Boas was educated. Boas was a key figure
because he educated Sapir in the perspective of language and culture. Boas
published, “Introduction to Handbook of American Indian Languages.” It is in this
published work where Boas distinguishes the inner form of language. When Boas
introduced new theories concerning language, he opened new areas in the study of
language and thought. It is in this book where Boas questions whether language
could be used as a tool to understand culture.
Sapir embraced the ideas concerning a relationship between language and
culture put forth by Boas, and expanded upon them in his book, “The Status of
Linguistics as a Science, Language” in 1929. In this work, Sapir maintains that in
order to truly understand a language; one must also understand the culture. In this
instance, language and culture walk hand in hand. Sapir emphasizes that language is
not an inherited biological function. Language is a cultural function that is taught
and learned. Ultimately, his book is not only a study of language and culture, but
also a study on how language influences thought. If language is taught, than inner

58 
 
thought must also be taught. Therefore, language is a reflection of the culture of
which it is taught.
J.B. Carroll published, “Language, Thought, and Reality: Selected Writings of
Benjamin Lee Whorf.” This published work is a collection of handwritten
manuscripts published posthumously by Carroll. It illustrates how Whorf believed
that a study of linguistics was a way to observe thinking. The book also provides the
notes by Whorf when he studied the Hopi. At that time, Whorf maintained that
cultures could be understood by observing their linguistic structures of which they
were unaware.
Language and Gender
A prominent topic in Sociolinguistics revolves around the structures, vocabulary,
and usage of languages and how they relate to the social roles of the men and women
who use these languages. If men and women use language in distinct ways, it could
lend to the validation of the Whorfian hypothesis.
As Wodak (1997) noted, “Gender is not a pool of attributes possessed by a
person, but something a person does” (p. 13). In this respect, gender may be directly
related to an occupation. Wodak later adds, “What it means to be a woman or to be a
man changes from one generation to the next and varies between different racialized,
ethnic, and religious groups, as well as for members of different social classes” (p. 4).
In relation to the study at hand, being a doctor was traditionally a male’s profession.
Therefore, in the past, it would be acceptable to refer to a doctor as ‘he or him.’
However, there are more women doctors than fifty years ago; therefore, we can no
longer solely ascribe the male gender to the word, ‘doctor.’ It would seem logical
that most people would be able to consider a woman or a man in this role.
In an alternate respect, gender roles are evident in every society. There tends to
be some aspect of ordering where certain roles are ascribed to particular genders. As
Eckert and McConnell-Ginet (2003), “The force of gender categories in every society
makes it impossible for us to move through our lives in a nongendered way and
impossible not to behave in a way that brings out gendered behavior in others” (p. 50).
In this respect, it is expected that certain roles in society be attached to specific
genders. Therefore, gender is a central role in identity.
When we consider occupational roles, some are considered to be more male
orientated while others more suitable for a female. The speech associated with these
roles then also transforms into male and female speech. One of the most notable
examples comes from England when Margaret Thatcher was advised to “speak more
like a man in order to fill a position previously filled only by men” (Wardhaugh, 2010,
p. 337). Specifically, Margaret’s voice failed to match the position of a British Prime
Minister; therefore, she was advised to “lower her pitch, diminish her range, speak

59 
 
more slowly, and adopt a more authoritative delivery to make herself heard”
(Wardhaugh, 2010, p. 337).
When we considering vocabulary usage, Lakoff has asserted that equivalent
words referring to men and women have different associations. Specifically, Lakoff
(1973) noted the underlying meaning of, “He’s a professional” and “She’s a
professional.” In the occupational sense, a man is a professional in the realm of
business or athletics. In contrast, a professional woman would imply that she is a
prostitute. However, this difference has diminished over time as more women have
entered the business industry and become professional athletes. Meanwhile, men
have also been known to be male prostitutes.
With the changes in occupational roles, there is now a greater effort to use
neutral language when talking about occupations. For example, firefighter, police
officer, flight attendant, mailman, and actor are encouraged over fireman, policeman,
stewardess, mail carrier, and actress. The significance of these changes lies in the
idea that language does reflect the changes in social structure. In this case, doctors
or nurses can be men or women. However, it can be debated whether or not changes
in vocabulary usage can change sexist attitudes. As Romaine (1999) concluded,
“Attitudes toward gender equality did not match language usage. Those who had
adopted more gender-inclusive language did not necessarily have a more liberal view
of gender inequalities in language” (pp. 312-313). It is this conclusion that this
study aimed to prove. Although the participants were under the age of forty-five and
had visited male and females doctors; however, a greater percentage still ascribed the
term doctor to the male gender.
When considering pronoun assignment, we could compare languages that use the
natural gender system such as English to Chinese where these same distinctions are
not made. In English, pronouns are used to indicate connections. For example,
‘Mary took her phone to be fixed.’ In Chinese, this type of gender specific
possessive pronoun does not typically exist in the spoken language. If the Chinese
language does not make gender distinctions through the use of pronouns, it cannot be
said that Chinese speakers are less sexist than English speakers. This study will
show that Chinese speakers, when using English, were less able to solve a gender
based riddle than English speakers. In result, we may question whether or not the
English language or the cultural beliefs about women influenced the Chinese
participants ability to problem-solve in their second language.

METHODOLOGY

This chapter will begin by describing the participants who were involved in the

60 
 
study. Next, it will describe the instruments used to conduct the study. Finally, it
will explain the procedure used to collect the data and how the data was analyzed.
Participants
Research participants were divided into two categories. Twenty-five native
English speakers from America, England, and Canada were in one focus group. This
group consisted of twelve females and thirteen males. The second focus group
consisted of twenty-five Taiwanese English speakers. This group consisted of
eleven females and fourteen males. All participants were between the ages of
nineteen and forty-five. All participants were university graduates or currently
studying in a university.
Instruments
The study took place over the course of two months. It was divided into two
parts, verbal and written. Participants were randomly selected and had no knowledge
that a study was being conducted. First, a riddle (see Appendix 1) was told to the
participants in a casual conversation setting. The riddle was a problem solving
exercise where the participants had to determine an answer that related to ascribing
gender to a specific profession. This half of the study was completely verbal.
The second half of the study took place a month later. The same participants
were given a pronoun worksheet with two questions regarding pronoun placement
(see Appendix 2). This half of the study was written. The participants were told that
the worksheet was an idea to help students with pronoun placement. They were
asked to ascribe the pronouns, ‘he or she,’ to specific professions.
Procedure
During the first month of data collection, participants from both groups were
randomly asked to solve a riddle. All participants were given no more than five
minutes to solve the riddle. As the participants tried to come up with an answer, the
answers that they verbally submitted were noted. The answers were calculated as
mean averages for those who were either: able to solve the riddle, or unable to solve
the riddle. When the participants were not able to solve the riddle, it was told in
reverse (see Appendix 1). Specifically, the gender roles from the original riddle
were reversed. This was done to observe the response time in solving the riddle when
the gender roles were reassigned.
A month later, the same participants were given a pronoun worksheet with
four sentences. They were asked to ascribe pronouns to the professions mentioned
on the papers. The participants were given no more than five minutes to fill in the
missing pronouns. The papers were collected, and the results were calculated as
mean averages according to the number of, ‘he’ pronouns ascribed and the number of,
‘she’ pronouns ascribed to the specific professions.

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RESULTS

This chapter presents the results obtained from the gender related riddle and
the pronoun worksheet. First, the results from the riddle are displayed. Thereafter,
the main differences between native English speakers’ responses and Taiwanese
English speakers’ responses are discussed. Second, the results from the pronoun
worksheet are displayed. The main differences between the native English speakers’
and the Taiwanese English speakers’ responses are then discussed. Finally, the
studies are summarized.

Results from the Gender Related Riddle

Table 3.1 Mean Percentages of Native English Speakers Answers to the Riddle
Gender Able to solve the riddle Unable to solve the riddle
Female 32% (8 out of 25) 4% (1 out of 25)
Male 28% (7 out of 25) 36% (9 out of 25)
Total 60% (15 out of 25) 40% (10 out of 25)

Table 3.2 Mean Percentages of Taiwanese English Speaker’s Answers to the

Riddle
Gender Able to solve the riddle Unable to solve the riddle
Female 8% (2 out of 25) 44% (11 out of 25)
Male 0% (0 out of 25) 48% (12 out of 25)
Total 8% (2 out of 25) 92% (23 out of 25)

From the data presented above, it can be seen sixty percent of the native English
speakers were able to solve the riddle. However, only eight percent of the Taiwanese
English speakers were able to solve the riddle. Therefore, more native English
speakers were able to solve the gender related riddle than Taiwanese English speakers.
It can also be noted that more female native English speakers were able to determine
the correct answer than the male native English speakers. Similarly, more female
Taiwanese English speakers were able to solve the riddle than male Taiwanese
English speakers. None of the male Taiwanese speakers were able to solve the riddle
at all. When the riddle was told in reverse, participants from both groups were able
to solve the riddle in less than ten seconds.
As the participants were deducing the answer to the riddle, the incorrect answers
were also noted (see Appendix 3). The native English speakers’ responses were all
62 
 
masculine; however, the Taiwanese English speakers did add a feminine response.
This response stated that the mother had an affair. It is interesting to note that when
the Taiwanese participants did respond with a feminine term, they associated it with a
negative connotation. They determined that the mother had an affair and conceived
the child out of wedlock. Therefore, the male was situated in a powerful position as
the doctor, but the female was mentioned as a negative factor.
In addition to these results, the researcher had the opportunity to collect some
spontaneous speech data (see Appendix 4). On one occasion, a native English speaker
voiced his view of what he believed to be the proper roles for men and women. The
native speaker in this conversation was unable to solve the riddle. When the riddle
was discussed at length, the native speaker voiced his opinion further. In this
instance, he clearly stated his view on gender roles. He indicated that women should
stay home to care for the children and that taking care of children was a meaningless
task. Although this participant was the only one to concisely detail his view of
gender roles, it is interesting to observe the conviction that some people feel about
abiding by these roles.

Table 3.3 Mean Percentage of Native English Speakers who ascribed the pronoun,
‘he’ or ‘she’ to the profession, doctor.

Gender ‘He’ pronoun ‘She’ pronoun Indicated ‘he’ or ‘she’

Female 4% (1 out of 25) 4% (1 out of 25) 40% (10 out of 25)
Male 4% (1 out of 25) 8% (2 out of 25) 40% (10 out of 25)
Total 8% (2 out of 25) 12% (3 out of 25) 80% (20 out of 25)
*the ‘he’ or ‘she’ was written in by the participants

Table 3.4 Mean Percentage of Taiwanese English Speakers who ascribed the
pronoun, ‘he’ or ‘she’ to the profession, doctor.

Gender ‘He’ pronoun ‘She’ pronoun Indicated ‘he’ or ‘she’

Female 32% (8 out of 25) 12% (3 out of 25) 0% (0 out of 25)

Male 44% (11 out of 25) 12% (3 out of 25) 0% (0 out of 25)

Total 76% (19 out of 25) 24% (6 out of 25) 0% (0 out of 25)

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 From the data presented above, we can see that a greater number of Taiwanese
English speakers ascribed the pronoun, ‘he’ to the profession of doctor. Seventy-six
percent of the Taiwanese English speakers identified a male as a doctor. Alternatively,
only eight percent of the native English speakers ascribed the pronoun, ‘he’ to the
profession, doctor. It is also interesting to note that more male native English
speakers ascribed the pronoun, ‘she’ to the profession, doctor, than the females that
participated. Additionally, eighty percent of the native English speakers wrote in the
answer, ‘he’ or ‘she’ as an alternative. They specified that the pronoun could be
either a woman or man. None of the Taiwanese English speakers added this option.

Table 3.5 Mean Percentage of Native English Speakers who ascribed the pronoun,
‘he’ or ‘she’ to the profession, secretary.

Gender ‘He’ pronoun ‘She’ pronoun Indicated ‘he’ or ‘she’

Female 4% (1 out of 25) 4% (1 out of 25) 40% (10 out of 25)
Male 4% (1 out of 25) 8% (2 out of 25) 40% (10 out of 25)
Total 8% (2 out of 25) 12% (3 out of 25) 80% (20 out of 25)
*the ‘he’ or ‘she’ was written in by the participants

Table 3.6 Mean Percentage of Taiwanese English Speakers who ascribed the
pronoun, ‘he’ or ‘she’ to the profession, secretary.

Gender ‘He’ pronoun ‘She’ pronoun Indicated ‘he’ or ‘she’

Female 0% (0 out of 25) 44% (11 out of 25) 0% (0 out of 25)
Male 4% (1 out of 25) 52% (13out of 25) 0% (10 out of 25)
Total 4% (1 out of 25) 96% (24 out of 25) 0% (0 out of 25)

From the data presented above, we can see that a greater number of Taiwanese
English speakers ascribed the pronoun, ‘she’ to the profession, secretary, than native
English speakers. Ninety-six percent of the Taiwanese English speakers identified
that a secretary was a female. As in the previous table, the native English speakers
again added in the option, ‘he’ or ‘she’ as an alternative. It is also interesting to note
that none of the female Taiwanese English speakers associated the ‘he’ pronoun with
secretary, but four percent of the Taiwanese males did.

Summary of the Results

The results presented above are significant in a variety of ways. First, they
64 
 
tend to show that native English speakers are more flexible in their views of gender
roles. Although not all of them could solve the gender related riddle, sixty percent
of them were able to deduce that the doctor was a woman. In contrast, only eight
percent of the Taiwanese English speakers were able to make that same deduction.
Therefore, they were unable to correlate a woman as being a doctor. Additionally,
none of the male Taiwanese English speakers were able to solve the riddle.
As in the first observation, more Taiwanese English speakers designated males
as doctors and females as secretaries than native English speakers. Although they
also had time to read and think about the answers, they continued to specify gender
roles according to power, males as more powerful and females as less powerful. The
implications of these results will be discussed in the following chapter.

DISCUSSION

Summary of the Study

As mentioned previously, this study was twofold. It utilized verbal and
written investigations to observe the language of native English speakers and
Taiwanese English speakers. The verbal study was an attempt to observe unconscious
language habits. The written study was an investigation of how speakers organize
thoughts in their minds. Overall, the studies were conducted to determine whether
one group empowers men and debases women.
The gender related riddle was a study that aimed to observe the verbal speech
habits of the participants. Although the ability to solve the riddle was the main point
of interest, the incorrect answers were also significant. The results showed that sixty
percent of the native English speakers were able to solve the riddle, while only eight
percent of the Taiwanese English speakers were able to do the same. When the
answers were submitted verbally, it shows that a greater portion of the native English
speakers were able to correlate women as doctors while a greater portion of the
Taiwanese English speakers were not able to make that connection.
In addition to the riddle, spontaneous speech data was also collected. First,
the incorrect answers submitted by all the participants were also recorded. If
spontaneous speech data illustrates a more natural behavior of the speakers, then a
greater knowledge of the inner cultural feelings may be understood from these
answers. As stated previously, the incorrect answers were all masculine, except for
one submitted by the Taiwanese English speaking participants. When the Taiwanese
participants included the female answer choice, they added her as a negative factor.
They continued to make the doctor a male, but stated that the female had previously
been involved in an affair, thereby conceiving a son outside of wedlock. This

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hierarchical order presents a male in a powerful position, while a woman is perceived
as unfaithful.
Second, the conversation recorded with the native English speaker (Appendix
4) and the investigator has some strong implications. Although the native English
speakers empowered men less than the Taiwanese English speakers, male dominance
remains in the psyche of some native English speakers. The conversation that was
recorded after the native English speaker was unable to solve the riddle illustrates a
strong conviction. He was unable to explain his rationale even when he was asked to
state why he felt that women should stay home with the children. He was also
unable to state why staying home was equated to laziness. The statements made by
the native speaker carried no weight, and he was unable to provide evidence for his
opinions. The inspiration for the comments that he made could be connected to
unconscious language habits.
The second study observed how native English speakers and Taiwanese
English speakers assigned gender roles to the professions of, doctor and secretary.
The most significant aspect of the pronoun worksheet was the, ‘he or she’ answer that
was added by the native English speakers. In a written investigation, the participants
are given more time to think about their answers. As Wolfson states, “the method of
eliciting written responses has inherent underlying limitations which make it
impossible to collect the kind of elaborated behavior which we typically find in
naturally occurring interactions” (Wolfson 1989 p. 70). In this instance, the native
English speakers had more time to read the sentences and realize that gender was not
stated in the first sentence. Therefore, a gender related pronoun could not be exactly
specified.
Eighty percent of the native English speakers consciously wrote in the answer,
‘he or she’, indicating that they were conscious of designating gender to the role of
doctor. Seventy-six percent of the Taiwanese English speakers ascribed the male
gender to doctor, while only twenty-four percent ascribed the female role. It may be
said that the native English speakers were hesitant to ascribe the role while a greater
portion of the Taiwanese participants connected men to a powerful role. The same
may be said for the question concerning the secretary. Eighty percent of the native
English speakers indicated that the gender could not be specified but ninety-six
percent of the Taiwanese participants determined that the secretary was a female.
Again, the Taiwanese English speakers connected a female to a less powerful role.
When comparing the two studies, the significance lies in the different methods
used to collect results. When the riddle was told verbally, forty percent of the native
speakers were unable to connect a woman to a powerful role. However, when the
native speakers had time to think about the gender roles, eighty percent of them

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determined that a gender role could not be specified. If it is true that spontaneous
data provides an insight into the natural behaviors of the participants, then what is the
significance of the written responses? This might indicate that a greater percentage
of the native speakers might assign the powerful roles to males if they were asked to
assign the pronouns in a verbal setting instead of a written setting.
Alternatively, the Taiwanese English speakers remained fairly consistent in
their gender assignments. Ninety-two percent were unable to solve the riddle, and
ninety-six percent determined that a secretary was female. However, only seventy-six
percent determined that a doctor would be a male in the pronoun placement worksheet.
Twenty-four percent indicated that the doctor could be a female. This could be due
to the fact that this study allowed the participants to think about their answers;
therefore, they had time to consider whether or not the doctor could be a female.
When the participants were asked if they had ever been to a female doctor, most of
them affirmed that they had seen female doctors in the past. Therefore, they may
have had the time to reflect on this experience and answer accordingly. Generally, a
greater percentage of the Taiwanese English speakers ascribed the male gender to
powerful roles and the female gender to less powerful roles.

Implications and Pedagogical Applications

The results of these studies consist of implications that may be related to the
theories of Sapir, and Whorf. First, the riddle produced verbal results that may have
produced more of the unconscious language that a group utters due to language habits.
Second, the pronoun worksheet indicated that when the participants were given time
to think about their answers, the gender ascriptions had more variation. These issues
will be applied to Sapir and Whorf’s theories in order to show their significance.
According to Sapir, “Language is the medium of expression for a society”
(Sapir 1929, p. 207). If we apply this idea to the results of the verbal study, we may
conclude that the Taiwanese participants expressed an aspect of male dominance in
their language usage. This would be backed by another thought by Sapir. “The fact of
the matter is that the ‘real world’ is to a large extent unconsciously built up on the
language habits of the group. We see and hear and otherwise experience very largely
as we do because the language habits of our community predispose certain choices of
interpretation” (Sapir 1929, p. 207). If language habits predispose interpretation,
then again, the habit of ascribing the male gender to a powerful role would indicate
that the Taiwanese participants tend to believe that men are generally more powerful
than women. Habitually, Taiwanese speakers connected men with doctors even
when they confirmed seeing a female doctor in the past. Therefore, it seems that
there is an unconscious linguistic habit that equates doctor with the male gender.

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 In addition, Wolfson states that natural speech behavior emerges when the
spontaneous speech is observed (Wolfson 1989, 70). This was significant in both of
the study groups. The native English speakers submitted answers that were all male.
For those who could not determine the answer, they continued to produce incorrect
male answers. None of their incorrect answers were ever female. The Taiwanese
English speakers also submitted male incorrect answers except for one. When a
female was considered, she was added negatively. In this case, again, the Taiwanese
English speakers illustrated that their belief system tends to empower men and to a
certain extent, degrade women.
As for the second study, Whorf states, “The world is presented in a
kaleidoscopic flux of impressions which has to be organized by our minds. This
means largely by the linguistic systems in our minds (Carroll, 1956, pp. 212-214).
The pronoun worksheet allowed the participants some time to organize thoughts.
The native English speakers utilized the time to deduce that the doctor and the
secretary could be either male or female. However, a greater percentage of the
Taiwanese English speakers continued to ascribe the powerful role with a male and
the less powerful role with a female. In this case, even though the Taiwanese
participants were allowed time to organize their thoughts in a written form; they
continued to answer according to a habitual linguistic pattern.
In conclusion, Wolfson states, “Sexism in language is not truly systemic in
English, but is rather a reflection of the social attitudes of speakers, both male and
female” (Wolfson 1989 p. 165). These words may summarize both studies. If
gender is not inherent in the English language, than the way it is used would indicate
the social attitudes of those who speak it. Overall we could conclude that Taiwanese
English speakers tend to empower men through language more than Native English
speakers.

Limitations
In retrospect, there are a few limitations to this study. First, the studies
themselves were verbal and written. The verbal study produced results that were
more habitual while the written study allowed the participants more time to
contemplate their answers. While completing the pronoun worksheet, some of the
native English speakers questioned whether or not they were taking a gender quiz.
Although the written portion illustrated that some people are conscious of their gender
assignments, this may have produced results that were not as natural as the verbal
results. As stated by Wolfson earlier, the written investigation allowed the
participants more time to think about their answers. The extra time may have created
an ‘observer’s paradox.’

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 Second, the native English speakers were all grouped together. In order to
obtain more culture specific results, the native English speakers should be grouped
according to country of origin. This would provide the study with more insight into
each culture of native English speakers. Finally, the study needs more gender related
questions to evaluate. A future study should include more than two investigations.
Suggestions for further study
According to Ronald Wardhaugh in “An Introduction to Sociolinguistics,” “A
language like English makes use of ‘natural gender’; German and French employ
‘grammatical gender’; and Chinese does without either” (Wardhaugh 1998 p. 223).
According to the results in this paper, the Taiwanese English language speakers
tended to associate powerful roles with men more than the native English speakers.
Although gender may not be specified in their spoken native language, Chinese, a
greater percentage of Taiwanese English speakers assumed that the doctor had to be a
male. Accordingly, their worldview was illustrated through their use of a second
language, English. Why did the Taiwanese English speakers ascribe gender in
English when, as Wardhaugh states, they normally do not make use of gender in
spoken Chinese?
In addition to the study just mentioned, one might also examine the “he/man”
problem in English. It is extremely important to teach language learners about the
use of the generic singular pronoun, ‘he.’ Dr. S.I. Hayakawa was born in Japan but
later immigrated to the United States. He was a senator in California, and is known
for his efforts to establish English as the official language in the United States.
Hayakawa spoke English as a second language, and pushed for legislation that would
mandate English the official language in all fifty states. When Hayakawa was asked
about his stance on abortion, he replied, “I believe it’s strictly a matter between the
patient and his doctor” (Wolfson 1989, p. 166). Although the statement is
grammatically correct, biologically it has some problems. It would seem that a
proponent of “English only” for all fifty states might choose words more carefully.
In any case, a study could focus on whether the uses of the generic ‘he’ interferes with
gender association. This could specifically focus on those who speak English as a
foreign language.
According to Wardhaugh, “Japanese, Persian, and Turkish do not make the
kinds of sex distinctions English makes through its system of pronouns, but it would
be difficult to maintain that males who speak these languages are less sexist than
males who speak English” (Wardhaugh 1998, p. 313). The results of this study show
that the Taiwanese males tended to be more sexist than the native English-speaking
males. More Taiwanese males connected women to the less powerful role, secretary.
In addition, none of the Taiwanese males were able to solve the gender related riddle.

69 
 
A further study could be conducted where only male speakers are observed to see
whether male speakers from different cultures empower men but debase women.

REFERENCES
Boas, Franz. (1966). Introduction to handbook of American Indian Languages.
Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
Brown, Roger Langharn. (1967). Wilhelm von Humboldt’s conception of linguist
relativity. The Hague: Mouton, 1967.
Carroll, J.B.(Ed.), (1956). Language, thought, and reality; selected writings of
Benjamin Lee Whorf. Cambridge: MIT Press.
Eckert, P. & McConnell-Ginet (2003). Language and gender. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Gumperz, John & Levinson, Stephen (Eds.), (1999). Rethinking linguistic relativity.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Humboldt, Wilhelm von. (1928). Uber den dualis. In Putz, Martin & Verspoor,
Marjolign (Eds.), (2000). Explorations in linguistic relativity. London:
Academic Press.
Humboldt, Wilhelm von. (1988). On language. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.
Lakoff, R. (1973). Language and a Woman’s Place. Language in society, 2, 45-80.
Lucy, John A. (1985). Whorf’s view of the linguistic mediation of thought. Mertz, E.,
& Parmentier, R.J. (Eds.). London: Academic Press.
Orwell, George. (2003). Animal farm and 1984. Florida: Hartcourt, Inc.
Romaine, S. (1999). Communicating gender. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Sapir, E. (1929). The status of linguistics as a science, language. In Sapir, E. (1958),
Culture, language, and personality. Mandelbaum, D.G. (Ed.). Berkeley:
University of California Press.
Saeed, John, I. (2000). Semantics. (p. 41). Cambridge: Blackwell Publishers Ltd.
Wardhaugh, R. (1998). An introduction to sociolinguistics. West Sussex: Blackwell
Publishers Ltd.
Wardhaugh, R. (2010). An introduction to sociolinguistics. West Sussex: Blackwell
Publishers Ltd.
Whorf, B.L. (1956). Language, thought and reality. Carroll, J.B. (Ed.). Cambridge:
MIT Press.
Wodak, R. (1997). Gender and discourse. London: Sage.
Wolfson, N. (1989). Perspectives: sociolinguistics and tesol. Boston: Heinle &
Heinle Publishers.

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APPENDIX 1
Gender Related Riddle-Verbal

A father and his son were driving down the road. The car veers off the road
and crashes. The father is killed instantly. An ambulance arrives and takes the son to
the hospital. The doctor walks into the emergency room and says, “My son!” How can
this be true?

Riddle Told in Reverse

A mother and her daughter were driving down the road. The car veers off the
road and crashes. The mother is killed instantly. An ambulance arrives and takes the
daughter to the hospital. The doctor walks into the emergency room and say, “My
son!” How can this be true?

APPENDIX 2
Pronoun Worksheet-Written

Dr. Smith works at University Hospital. ________________ is very knowledgeable.

The secretary is answering the phone. ____________ is busy.

APPENDIX 3
Top Ten Incorrect Answers

Incorrect Answers by native English Speakers

Incorrect Answer Number of Times Reported
Priest 10
Father-in-law 7
Grandfather 7
The boy had two fathers 6
Step-father 6
Father-in-law 5
God Father 4
Uncle 4
The man driving was not the real father 3
Impossible 1

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Incorrect Answers by Taiwanese English Speakers
Incorrect Answer Number of Times Reported
Father-in-law 23
Step-father 20
Priest 18
The mother had an affair 14
Grandfather 10
Uncle 8
The boy had two fathers 4
The doctor adopted the boy 4
Ghost 3
Impossible 1

APPENDIX 4
Conversation with Native English Speaker

Native Speaker: “Women are supposed to procreate and stay home with the children.”
“Men are supposed to go out and work.”

Interviewer: “So, you believe that men don’t stay home to raise the children?”

Native Speaker: “No, I’m saying that men don’t want to stay home.”

At this point, the native speaker asks another male native speaker a question.

Native Speaker: “Andy, would you want to stay home all day and do nothing?”

Andy: No response.

Interviewer: “Are you saying that when women stay home to raise the children, they
do nothing all day long?”

Native Speaker: Okay, I’ll rephrase my question. Andy, would you want to stay
home and be lazy all day?’

Andy: No response.

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Andy to interviewer: “I would usually help him out but he’s dug himself into a pretty
big hole. I’m going to sit back and watch.”

Interviewed: “What exactly do you mean? Is staying home being lazy?”

Native Speaker: “I’m saying that men go out and work. Staying home isn’t work.”

Interviewer: “So, you don’t think that raising children is work?”

Native Speaker: “It’s different from what men do.”

73