A Pragmatic Study Of Gender Differences In Daily Conversations

Based on the theories of sociolinguistics and pragmatics, this thesis makes a pragmatic study of gender differences in daily conversations. It intends to demonstrate how females and males differ in observing or flouting such pragmatic principles: the Cooperative Principle, the Politeness Principle and the Face Theory in daily conversations and explores the reasons and consequences of gender differences in order to get a better understanding about gender differences from the pragmatic perspective, to improve cross-gender conversations and to provide some implications for the foreign language teaching.Through collecting and analyzing daily conversational data, this thesis reveals gender differences in observing or flouting the pragmatic principles in daily conversations. In daily conversations, females can make adequate and relevant responses to the other party's speech and tend to observe the Cooperative Principle. While males tend to flout this principle without making adequate or relevant responses to the other party's speech. In daily conversations, females like using questions, requests and indirect expressions and seldom use swears or taboo language. So females tend to observe the Politeness Principle. While males use more imperatives, directives, swears or taboo language. So males tend to flout the Politeness Principle. Besides, from the perspective of the Face Theory females and males also differ in employing face strategies. Females tend to employ negative face strategies. They are shy and like using hedges. While males tend to employ positive face strategies. They are optimistic, voluble and like interrupting others.This thesis analyzes the reasons that cause gender differences in daily conversations. Gender differences are mainly caused by different sub-cultures, social power, and psychological factors between females and males. Gender differences have also some negative effects. Firstly, gender differences cause females' disadvantage in work. This is closely related to females' speech styles besides growing and educational factors. For example, females like using hedges which show they are indecisive, have no their own judgments, and are not suitable for being the leader. Secondly, gender differences cause...