Body Performance in Gendered Language Deconstructing the Mandarin Term Sajiao in the Cultural Context of Taiwan

Authors

  • Hsin-I Sydney Yueh

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1970-2221/3777

Keywords:

gender and language, ethnography of communication, gender education, cultural terms, femininity, performativity

Abstract

Language not only constitutes but also restricts communicative actions. Words, phrases, and terms routinely used by native speakers to refer to communication practices reveal profound meanings about the culture under study. These terms are defined as cultural terms, which are meta-language used by native speakers to characterize communication practices that are significant to them. This paper explores the meaning and the social practice of a Mandarin cultural term, sajiao, a babyish form of persuasion. The framework derived from the tradition of ethnography of communication examines how sajiao is understood as a gender indicator and how femininity is talked and performed in the Mandarin-speaking community, Taiwan. The study discusses the importance of language in understanding gender, and the necessity to include the analyses of everyday language in gender education.

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Published

2013-06-13

How to Cite

Yueh, H.-I. S. (2013). Body Performance in Gendered Language Deconstructing the Mandarin Term Sajiao in the Cultural Context of Taiwan. Ricerche Di Pedagogia E Didattica. Journal of Theories and Research in Education, 8(1), 159–182. https://doi.org/10.6092/issn.1970-2221/3777

Issue

Section

Society and Cultures in Education