The use of taboo language in quarrels: The difference between men and women: A cross-cultural perspective

Abstract

The present study falls within the realms of sociocultural linguistics and pragmatics. It focuses on the exploration of the intersection of taboo language, culture and the social index of gender in contemporary British and Russian drama. Thirty conflict episodes comprise the materials for the present study. The investigation aims at (1) establishing the taboo repertoire (both semantic and functional) employed by men and women having a row in the context of the aforementioned cultures; (2) establishing the correlation between the employment of taboo language and the observation of the politeness constraint. On the basis of the analysis carried out in the study the following conclusions can be drawn: (1) despite different cultural contexts, the personages demonstrate similar semantic and functional patterns; i.e. the personages (both men and women) involved in conflicts, or quarrels, employ a similar repertoire of taboo items; (2) a wide spectrum of negative emotions experienced by the personages in the quarrels is rendered through the extensive use of taboo language, whose function is non-interactive, i.e. intended to mirror the speaker’s emotional involvement; (3) it can be claimed that face as the most valuable personal possession is devalorized in both cultures under analysis, politeness as a constraint ensuring communicative concord and comity is not observed.