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capri0mniThe other day on the radio, I listened to an interview with a speech coach. She was actually billed as a "Speech Therapist," but as the interview focused on her work helping people find more comfortable ways to use their voices, to help project their intentional self-image to the world, rather than her work correcting actual speech impediments, I think "coach" is a better fit in this context.
And in "Part 2," the interviewer invited her to rant about the "Epidemic" of up speak (or, as it's listed in Wikipedia, High rising terminal). I bet you're familiar with this? It's the vocal habit of intoning declarative sentences as if they are questions?
Now, I remember back in the late '80s or early 90s -- 25 freakin' years ago! -- when hand-wringing over "up speak" began. It was seen back then -- and reiterated by this therapist/coach the other day -- as a "bad habit" of young women, used as a way to appear less threatening, or socially appeasing, maybe, and was (is) described as a way to infantilize yourself.
Okay. Fine.
And then this woman said that something remarkable and terrible is happening: Men are starting to use it, too (Oh, noez!).
Now, here's the thing: Back-in-the-day, the "cultural explosion" of this strange new phenomenon of "up speak" was explained as being the result of all these young women leaving college and entering traditionally male business careers. And by using high rising terminal speech, they were appeasing their male employers by playing into their expectations that women were all just really little girls (Better that than be a "B--ch," right?).
And I couldn't help thinking: If those who present as White, Cisgendered, Native Anglophone, Business Elite Educated, Males (the people at the very top of the American Privilege Pyramid) are using it now, than maybe it never just about socially kowtowing to those above you in the pyramid. If those who are least likely to need social cushioning have picked it up, then maybe (*gasp*) it might have more value than we first imagined.
And in "Part 2," the interviewer invited her to rant about the "Epidemic" of up speak (or, as it's listed in Wikipedia, High rising terminal). I bet you're familiar with this? It's the vocal habit of intoning declarative sentences as if they are questions?
Now, I remember back in the late '80s or early 90s -- 25 freakin' years ago! -- when hand-wringing over "up speak" began. It was seen back then -- and reiterated by this therapist/coach the other day -- as a "bad habit" of young women, used as a way to appear less threatening, or socially appeasing, maybe, and was (is) described as a way to infantilize yourself.
Okay. Fine.
And then this woman said that something remarkable and terrible is happening: Men are starting to use it, too (Oh, noez!).
Now, here's the thing: Back-in-the-day, the "cultural explosion" of this strange new phenomenon of "up speak" was explained as being the result of all these young women leaving college and entering traditionally male business careers. And by using high rising terminal speech, they were appeasing their male employers by playing into their expectations that women were all just really little girls (Better that than be a "B--ch," right?).
And I couldn't help thinking: If those who present as White, Cisgendered, Native Anglophone, Business Elite Educated, Males (the people at the very top of the American Privilege Pyramid) are using it now, than maybe it never just about socially kowtowing to those above you in the pyramid. If those who are least likely to need social cushioning have picked it up, then maybe (*gasp*) it might have more value than we first imagined.
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Date: 2015-07-09 09:22 pm (UTC)Txtspeak is unforgivable tho, lol!!1!! ;-)
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Date: 2015-07-09 10:48 pm (UTC)Though the context of the interview was her role as a coach, she was trained as a therapist. And in my experience with that clan (albeit with the physio- rather than speech sect), I've learned that they tend to view any deviance from the "Norm" as pathology to be fixed, rather than an individual adaptation that meets a need.
(even teh txtspeak, bb!) ;-) -_^