The interplay of genres, gender, and language ideology among the Muskogee

Abstract

Contrary to statements made by previous researchers, Muskogee women are linguistically active in ceremonial public spheres, though through the use of genres that differ significantly from men's. One of the genres performed in these contexts is gossip, which is described by some Muskogee men as a dangerous genre. This article explores why Muskogee women's and men's linguistic practices differ so strikingly in the ceremonial sphere, and what women achieve through their use of gossip. It is suggested that consideration of Muskogee language and gender ideologies in regard to these issues shows that gendered language use differences are rational and maintain balance between the genders. Insights from both ideologies also indicate that women's gossip is a powerful genre, the use of which is generally positive for Muskogee society. (Muskogee Indians, gender ideology, language ideology, gossip)* I N T R o D U C T I o N Attending gatherings and ceremonies during my dissertation research with the Muskogee Indians, a Southeastern Native American tribe, made me aware of differences between the linguistic behaviors of Muskogee and Anglo men and women in public space. I began by carefully documenting the behaviors and the settings in which the behaviors occurred, hoping that a relatively clear correlation among event, genre, and gender would emerge. However, it soon became obvious that, in order to come to grips with and explain the variation in linguistic behaviors among Muskogee men and women, I needed to explore and include aspects of Muskogee language and gender ideology. This article exposes how rich a description and explanation of linguistic behaviors can be when ideologies about distinct aspects of social life are included in the analysis. Muskogee gender ideology provides for gender roles that are complementary, with women in charge of the familial and domestic and men in charge of the extra-familial and commercial. In line with the observations of Rosaldo (1974:19), Ortner 1974, and others, the community's valuation of women's roles within society is lower than that of men's. Concomitant with this, men's speech is fre? 2006 Cambridge University Press 0047-4045/06 $12.0() 23 1 This content downloaded from 157.55.39.78 on Tue, 21 Jun 2016 05:30:46 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms