Gendered Lives: Communication, Gender, and Culture

by Julia T. Wood

Written by the leading gender communication scholar, Julia Wood's text introduces students to theories, research, and pragmatic information that demonstrate the multiple and often interactive ways in which our views of masculinity and femininity are shaped within contemporary culture. With the most up-to-date research, balanced perspectives of masculinity and femininity, a personal introduction to the field, and a conversational first-person writing style, GENDERED LIVES provides students with an engaging text that encourages them to think critically about gender and our society.

Genres: Nonfiction, Gender, Feminism, Gender Studies, Textbooks, School, Communication

376 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1994

About the author

Julia T. Wood is a Professor of Communication Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Wood's teaching and research focus on gender, communication, and culture; personal relationships; and feminist theories.

Reviews

[Rickie Poole]

i don’t know how to rate a textbook but gender n com hands down one of my favorite classes !!!

[Paige]

I was assigned this book for a gender & communication course.

The only thing I didn't like about this book was how SHORT it was!! Seriously, each chapter (if not each section and each paragraph...) deserves to be fleshed out into its own book. Although I was really familiar with all this stuff already, being into sociology and gender studies and feminism and privilege and human development as I am, she does a great job of getting the information to the reader in a concise, clear, and engaging way. I wish the author had been my teacher instead of my actual teacher...although I am glad my teacher assigned this book, of course. ;)

[Ebony]

i liked this textbook when i read edition 3 eons ago when i was in school; it's good as far as textbooks can be good but i was so annoyed at her constant references to the black family as being strong and progressive because we don't internalize the man as breadwinner and woman as housewife gender roles. like hell we don't; trying to imitate white gendered standards is what has our families in the mess that we're in and is what has bill cosby and barack obama publicly lamenting that we should be more like white folks.

[Terry]

I have used this book to teach undergraduate interpersonal communication. Julia Wood's writing is approachable and enlightening. Most students love it. It's a short little book, with great examples of how easy it is to forget that all meaning is not shared the same way. How are are all enculturated into our gender roles is open for criticism, but that we are seems to me a given. If you are interested in how and why men and women communicate as they do, across gender and same-gender, you will find this book interesting. You need not have an academic focus to enjoy it and learn from it.

[Miss Ary]

I read this book for a class I took in college about gender and communication. It is really the only "textbook" that I liked reading for a college class. It wasn't really like a textbook at all. I loved how the author had short stories and related the information to real life situations. I would recommend this book for anyone who wants to know more about why people commuicate the way they do.

[Christina]

great read, but I really hoped Julia would have included more information about bisexuality, it was mentioned a total of 3 times (on the same page) :( overall an amazing book that everyone should read.

[Chris]

“Gendered Lives 12th edition” by Julia T. Wood & Natalie Fixmer-Oraiz
In this textbook focused on communication and gender, Wood and Fixmer-Oraiz cover a wide range of topics related to this intersection. Divided into two sections focused on conceptual foundations and gendered communication in practice, students can get an introductory understanding of how gender is a product of communicative behaviors, and how our gendered self affects our communication patterns. For me, unfortunately, this textbook doesn’t have the depth of conversation I would look for in a textbook for this topic. I also found personally that, although Wood and Fixmer-Oraiz were well-intentioned in their writing, a lot of the book relies a lot on binary gendered language and assumptions. There is little attention to critical perspectives on gender or how communication intersects with those who fall outside the binary. It’s an acceptable textbook, but one that critical gender folks will want to intervene on with additional outside readings and perspectives.

[Patrick Riley]

A well written and concise textbook on gendered speech and culture, and how this manifests in human communication. The layered explanation of why communication can revolve around gender beginning at birth and spanning a lifetime through media and institutions was both enlightening and (at times) disturbing.

[Timi]

I found this book a perfect 'introductory reading' that is informative enough but still has many personal comments/remarks that everyone (even the ones that are not particularly interested in gender related issues) can easily connect to.

[Kali]

This may have been required reading for a college course, but this book is a must-read. I'm glad I purchased, not rented, because there's several passages I want to share with several people. Go buy this!

[hazbin_nuggets]

I read this whole textbook for a gender communications class, and I thought it was well written and contained a lot of interesting information. I already knew about a lot of gender communication before going into this class, but I learned about some movements I've never heard of before.

[Dawn]

This is an amazing book. I would suggest this book to everyone. A lot of eye-opening content, while reinforcing the need for gender education.

[Heather Sabel]

I edited an edition of this text, and it was so enthralling that I kept forgetting it was a work project. Not that it needed much alteration anyway.

[Steve]

Woke af!

[Isabel Kabara]

A lot of dissertation book spam from spring, but really good to question current thinking

[Angie]

I really feel like there was a lot of great information here about how gendered socialization affects communication, and because of it, men and women typically have styles of verbal and non-verbal communication that seems designed to put them at odds. To me, it reads like communication practices are informed by our patriarchal society, and by resigning ourselves to the tiny communication-practices boxes that we have been placed in since birth, we are only serving to reinforce the patriarchy. Which, duh.
Aside from that, which was my personal main takeaway, there's also good info on gender pronouns, differences between communication in hetero, gay, and lesbian relationships, and even a bit on how gendered communication is constantly queered by people of all orientations and presentations, because just like in any other circumstance, the binary is silly - in reality few things are so cut and dried as being one thing or the other.
4 out of 5.
You can find the complete review, as well as all my other past reviews at https://sheseatingameatballsub.blogsp...

[Scott]

I read this in order to review it for my Master's degree in TESOL (Teaching of English to Speakers of Other Languages).

As an introductory text, it does an excellent job raising the most important issues in common conceptions of gender and how they affect our lives. There is a bit of dry (but interesting) history as background, but there is also a wealth of information on all of the factors that go into gender - biology, cultural beliefs, popular culture, and more.

Not one person can read some of the chapters in this book without doing a little analysis of how gender is conceived and affected, in both their personal lives or on the grander scale of society. In addition to the wealth of resources from various professional fields, there are much more personal and accessible opinion quotes taken from the author's students. These would serve wonderfully as either thinking points for an individual or an entire group.

Though there were not massive amount of new information for me, someone who studied culture and gender as an anthropology undergrad and deals with culture daily in my job as an ESL teacher for students from dozens of countries, this is an outstanding text for any person, not just younger college students, who has never given serious thought to this absolutely vital aspect of humanity.

[Erliana Rachmawanti]

Reading this book again for the 13th edition.
I'm impressed by how thorough the explanations have been compared to previous editions. Even though it only provides the basics of gender-related aspects of our lives, it can at least build some way of thinking about how we might be able to act outside these socially constructed roles.

[Roxy]

While I love a book that will discuss the many issues women face today, I particularly love this one for trying to focus evenly on the issues that face both men and women. I would highly recommend this one for anyone wanting to read get more involved in gender issues.

[Emma M.]

I think this is a fantastic look at gender, sex, etc. and how it affects each aspect of our lives. Wood covers both male and female issues and does it well. This book is full of fantastic examples and it is actually an interesting read.

[Ann-Michael]

This textbook literally changed my life. I read it the summer before I turned 27, and it led me to make some pretty serious changes in my life (regarding relationships). I appreciated this textbook so much, that I still have it.

[Babs]

Loved learning from this book. Do wish there was more discussion on men's problems and different cultures views included in the last chapter, but appreciated the knowledge and depth of research. Has a couple typos but otherwise great.

[Mary Anne]

I used this book in my Communication & Gender class. Not sure how my students liked it; I should ask. It's not the least expensive book on the market, but Julia T. Wood is quite good, and she references a lot of crucial people.

[Casey]

Overall a good introduction to Gender issues in a western context. I would have liked to have seen more conversation about non-binary gender discussion and an international discussion. If you need a primer about issues facing Western Culture with gender this is a good place to start.

[Michelle Beese]

Very informative!

[Kristina]

Simply one of the best textbooks I've ever used.

[Afnan]

an eye-opener book about culture, communication, and gender...very insightful

[Jesse Booth]

One of the better textbooks I've had to read for school. Helped me learn more about myself and how culture has influenced who I am.

[Elizabeth]

grubby, bent covers, some water damage. $2.99.

[Vampire-lk]

Was a good school book! Interesting points/organisation highlights & theories presented!!