Gender Identity Of Nvhanzi As Constructed Through Discourse

Nvhanzi, i.e.’wo-man’, has been a catchword in recent years in China and is generally used to refer to those females whose behavior and personality are closer to men’s, although there is no consensus on its definition. With reports on nvhanzi surging in mass media and creating a positive image, some females tend to prefer being viewed as nvhanzi. So nvhanzi has evolved from a neologism to a label of a newly emerging social phenomenon, which deserves scholarly attention. So far, studies mainly focus on the lexicological or sociological aspects of the phenomenon, with the aim of revealing social realities reflected in the word; while little attention has been paid to nvhanzi’s gender identity as constructed through discourse. The present study seeks to reveal discourse features of nvhanzi’s gender identity from the perspective of language use.Taking Jia Ling’s nvhanzi image as shown on television as an example, this thesis presents an analysis of Jia’s speech in the Super Talk Show and Yang Lan One on One which she participated in, within the framework of Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL). Jia’s choices from such interpersonal systems as Speech Function, Responsible Party, Modal Assessment and Attitude are analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively to find out her discourse features. It is found that she 1) chooses commands more often than questions, holding herself responsible and inclined to negation; 2) makes little use of modality but resorts to high-degree intensity exceeding expectancy; 3) expresses judgment more often than emotions and is more likely to be a praise giver, with constant positive appraisal of herself. Further analysis is offered by comparing discourse features identified in Jia’s speech with those descriptions from Variation Analysis about men’s and women’s use of language, leading to the conclusion that nvhanzi, being a unique gender identity, has a mixed speech style that is closer to men’s than women’s.The present study, in its attempt to reveal nvhanzi’s gender identity as constructed through discourse, enriches the existing literature on nvhanzi. Besides, by adopting the analytical framework of SFL, the present study provides insights into the process rather than just the product of language use, thus offering a comprehensive description of gendered use of language.