house for the weekend, without first checking with Linda. Linda was upset when she heard this news because she was away on business the week before and that Friday was to be her first night home. Linda was less upset by that fact, and more upset that Josh had made plans without checking with her first, she would never make plans with anyone without checking with Josh, and didn’t understand why he couldn’t show her the same courtesy. This conflict affected Linda and Josh perhaps more so than another couple because it hit their primary concerns. Linda was hurt because she felt Josh didn’t care as much about her as she did for him. And Josh was hurt because he felt that Linda was trying to control him, and limit his freedom. Many women feel that it is expected for them to consult with their partners at every turn, while men automatically make more decisions without asking their partners. Women may try to initiate a relaxed conversation by asking “What do you think?” while men may feel that they are being forced to decide. Tannen states that communication is a continual balancing act, juggling the conflicting needs for intimacy and independence. To survive we need to act with concern for others but also survive for ourselves.There has always been a common stereotype that women talk too much, or rather more than men do, and that they commonly interrupt men. There is a study on gender and language that directly contradicts this stereotype and says, rather, that men interrupt women, states Tannen. She also said she has never read a popular article on the subject, and does not cite this finding. Although the idea is very satisfying because it challenges what she says is a misleading stereotype that accuses women of talking too much. Both statements, men interrupt women and women interrupt men, support the assumption that interruption is a hostile act of conversational bullying, portraying the interrup...
