Unit 1 Responses to Reading Tannen and Tan

Unit 1 Responses to Reading Tannen and Tan

Directions: The answers to the questions for each essay should equal one page or more, double-spaced, in 12-point Times New Roman in a doc or docx. Edit and proofread your work carefully before submitting it.

Deborah Tannen, Sex, Lies, and Conversation

1. Deborah Tannen makes the case that talk between men and women is cross-cultural. What does she mean by this?
2. Make a list of some features of male-female conversation that Tannen has observed in her research.
3. Write a paragraph: Does your experience match her research? Write at least a paragraph and give examples of patterns of male-female conversation you have observed or experienced.

Amy Tan, Mother Tongue

1. In her essay about her Chinese mother, Amy Tan refers to Englishes in the plural. What does she mean by this?
2. How does Amy Tans mothers speech affect her daily experiences?
3. Write a paragraph: Can you think of a time that you or someone else did not receive respect or services because of the way you spoke? Give examples.