Lingua, genere e potere in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland

4 Introduction As I have always been interested both in the study of linguistics and in English literature, I have decided to develop my thesis on a topic which could include both disciplines. Furthermore, the main theories of Gender Studies will be presented and discussed in order to characterise this analysis, which consists in an examination of the novel Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (1865) under a pragmatic perspective, and in comparing the results of this analysis with what Gender Studies’ researchers state about the differences between the way men and women express themselves through language. My aim is to verify whether the most common ideologies and stereotypes about language and gender are valid in the context of the novel. Female and male characters will be examined from a linguistic viewpoint, focusing especially on the pragmatic features which characterise them as social actors and highlight the hierarchies in Wonderland. This dissertation starts with an introduction to Gender Studies, illustrating the trends of the discipline and the main concepts and theories developed by its most important scholars. Researchers belonging to different fields, such as linguists, sociologists, anthropologists and literary critics, have been interested in the subject concerning the connection between language and gender. I will summarise the work of some of the most influential scholars, presenting the variety of the subject and the different points of view involved. First of all, the roots of the discipline, as well as its links with Feminism and Marxism, will be illustrated to introduce the chapter which mentions, in its first section, the various aspects of the analysis as far as the discipline is concerned. Deborah Cameron’s theories on gender ideologies and the work of literary critic Anna Livia will be presented, focusing on her most interesting and innovative remarks on literary style and its relation with the author’s gender; it is therefore investigated whether gender can determine or influence style in literature. Anthropologist Susan U. Philips’ work on gender ideologies in different cultures is then mentioned, as well as the theories of sociolinguist Suzanne Romaine on linguistic phenomena which are believed to be common respectively in male and female speakers. Her work analyses the influence of social factors, including gender, on language variation. The last scholar whose work is being summarised is feminist linguist Robin Lakoff, whose assumptions will be carefully investigated. Lakoff has focused her research on the issue of power in relation to gender and, consequently, to language. According to this scholar, language reflects the hierarchies between the speakers and confirms women’s weakness as well as men’s power. A number of linguistic choices which are said to be typical of female speakers are listed, and I will