Conversation Between Men and Women
Topic: Explain Tannen’s thesis that conversations between men and women are a form of cross-cultural communication. Then, using examples from your own experience, explain whether you agree or disagree with this thesis. My thesis: Though women and men communicate differently, they can understand and communicate with each other deeply. In her essay “Sex, Lies and Conversation,” Tannen says that women and men communicate differently so it is very hard to understand each other. However, I believe that women and men can understand deeply. One of the her points is that men talk more outside of home, but women are more talkative at home. I don’t agree with this point, because it does not apply to people that I know. The second point is that women tend to talk focused on one topic, while men tend to talk about various topics. I don’t agree with this because it depends on each person’s personality and character, not on their genders. I don’t agree with Tannen’s argument that outside of home, men tend to talk a lot and women talk less. For example, in the beginning of her essay, Tannen writes about one couple, “She’s the talker in our family,” which shows that the husband tries to tell how talkative his wife is at home. Furthermore there is the stereotype that men are usually quiet at home and they do not like to listen to their wives rather than the sound of the television. People usually get closer as they start to know each other. However, not all of the couples are the same in this way. In my experience, my parents are one of the opposite examples against Tannen’s point. That is, my mother, who is very talkative. She speaks a lot whenever she is at home or outside, the place does not matter. In contrast to my mother, my father does not like talking. He is very calm and serious. I have often seen that my father does not talk as much as he listens when he meets friends, relatives or customers. He tends to listen whenever he is at home, work or a party. In addition, when I