In the following chart I will present the oppositeness of two texts. The first text analysed (left hand side of the chart) is the article Rivers & Rapids and Bears, Oh My! (not signed), published on Explorations in Travel, Inc, a web site dedicated to women travelers. The second text analyised (right hand side of the chart) is the article Prison Sucks. We Have Proof by Denny Eichhorn, published on Too Much Coffee Men, a web site dedicated to men.
Rivers & Rapids and Bears, Oh My! | Prison Sucks. We have Proof. |
| – Use of “Oh my God” expressionse.g. in the title “Oh My” – a clear indication that it is a reference to “Oh my God” | – None |
“Oh my God” expressions are believed to be used mostly by women due to their supposed insecurity and their need for support and protection, in this case God. | |
| – Use of the 3rd person singular feminine exclusively (no masculine)e.g. “…she had noted that she would not…” | – The 3rd personal pronoun appears twice, both feminine and masculinee.g. “… he or she is provided with…” |
This shows us that the first text refers only to women, while the second one refers both to women and men, thus implying that criminals can be of both sexes. The second text is not sexist. It is not the usage of masculine pronouns that makes the second text for males, but the topic it deals with. | |
| – Use of possessive pronoun – feminine exclusively (no masculine)e.g. “On her medical form…” | – None |
The author of the first text establishes an exclusive reading target, i.e. women. The second text has no reference to such grammatical items. | |
| – The word ‘woman’ is used 6 times, and the word ‘lady’ is used 2 times | – None |
The first text is exclusively for women. | |
| – There is only one reference to the men’s worlde.g. “the boy’s department” | – There isn’t any special reference to the women’s world |
The only reference to men’s world is in fact a reference to the size a boy’s clothes are. Thus, no special attention is given on men as adults. | |
| – Use of diminutives in Frenche.g. “Even if she were not ‘petite’ Maxine…” | – None |
The use of words in a different language makes the text more appealing from a vocabulary point of view. The second text uses other methods, like ‘big words’ (see below). | |
| – Use of diminutives in Englishe.g. “… were heading out with ‘little old ladies’…” | – None |
The use of diminutives makes the text friendlier. The second text hasn’t got any because the topic is a serious one. | |
| – Feminist talke.g. “three women raft guides” | – None |
The writer of the first texts is a feminist, and makes her best to underline the fact that women can do everything by themselves without the help of men. | |
| – Women topic:e.g. leisure activities | – Men topice.g. jails, prison, crime, police |
The topics of the texts attract different readers. In our case it is more likely that women would want read about outdoor activities, while men would be more interested in life in prison. | |
| – Terms related to woman’s every day life:e.g. “menstruating woman”, “Estrogen is overrated.” | – None |
No man is likely to read a text about such things. | |
| – Use of emotive languagee.g. “Don’t worry about it honey,…” | – Use of emotive languagee.g. “What the hell is going on in this country?” |
Both texts use emotive language, but with a different connotation: the first one polite and caring, the second one rude and angry. | |
| – Use of ‘ empty’ adjectivese.g. “lovely shade of crimson” | – None |
Women are more likely to use such adjectives when describing things, both in written and spoken language. | |
| – None | – Use of swear wordse.g. sucks, fucked-up |
It is more likely that men will go on reading an article that has a four-letter word in the title, while women would abandon the reading. | |
| – None | – Words with negative connotatione.g. demonization, exploitation, gulag, enslaves, brutal |
Men are more interested in things that are violent, shocking, thus the use of words with negative connotation gives the men reader an impulse to go on reading. | |
| – None | – Use of ironye.g. “it’s so-called ‘criminal justice system’” |
Used in this text to mock the USA justice system. The whole text is in fact an attack on the US government prison policy. Used to underline opposition to US policy. | |
| – None | – Words that show controlled anger (not emotive)e.g. intolerable, spineless parasites |
These words are used to create the special atmosphere in a text about an aggressive topic. Not the case in the first text. | |
| – None | – Use of ‘big words’e.g. disenfranchises, citizenry, profiling |
Men’s writings tend to use sophisticated language when describing a controversial topic, while women’s writings tend to be simple when referring to describing leisure activities. | |
| – None | – Use of prefixes to form a negative worde.g. unwilling, mistreatment, unsubstantiated, unhealthy, dehumanizing |
There is nothing negative in the first text, but the second one abounds in problems and bad things. | |
Conclusion: The first text was written by a woman for women and the second one was written by a man for men. The language used and the topics chosen stand as proof.
