How gender shapes the world / Alexandra Y. Aikhenvald, Language and Culture Research Centre, James Cook University.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 218-250) and indexes.

The multifaceted gender -- Linguistic gender and its expression -- Round women and long men: physical properties in linguistic gender -- What are linguistic genders good for? -- Gender meanings in grammar and lexicon -- The rise and fall of linguistic gender -- Manly women and womanly men: the effects of gender reversal -- The images of gender -- When women and men speak differently -- The rituals of gender -- Gender in grammar and society -- The heart of the matter: envoi.

This is a book about the multi-faceted notion of gender. Gender differences form the basis for family life, patterns of socialization, distribution of tasks, and spheres of responsibilities. The way gender is articulated shapes the world of individuals, and of the societies they live in. Gender has three faces: Linguistic Gender-the original sense of 'gender'-is a feature of many languages and reflects the division of nouns into grammatical classes or genders (feminine, masculine, neuter, and so on); Natural Gender, or sex, refers to the division of animates into males and females; and Social Gender reflects the social implications and norms of being a man or a woman (or perhaps something else). Women and men may talk and behave differently, depending on conventions within the societies they live in, and their role in language maintenance can also vary. The book focuses on how gender in its many guises is reflected in human languages, how it features in myths and metaphors, and the role it plays in human cognition. Examples are drawn from all over the world, with a special focus on Aikhenvald's extensive fieldwork in Amazonia and New Guinea.-- Source other than Library of Congress.