Put your “big girl” voice on

Abstract

Heckles are an illegitimate, yet common way of commenting directly and immediately on what is being said at the lectern. However, (non-)verbal interjections can also be used to disconcert the speaker, thus scoring points within the parliamentary arena. In these cases, female delegates are often confronted with discriminatory remarks and comments that border on sexism and even misogyny. Based on the extensive literature on gender and discourse, the following paper will focus on gender-related heckles and analyse argumentative structures and topoi that are grounded in sexist stereotypes and conservative role-models. Presuming that these incidents are not isolated instances, the paper will compare and contrast several examples from around the world that have caught public attention.

Manterrupting in the German Bundestag: Gendered Opposition to Female Members of Parliament?

“…For example, Georgalidou (2017) found that women are subject to sexist aggression and derogative forms of addresses in the Greek parliament. Likewise, Stopfner (2018) shows that in the Canadian, German, and British House of Commons, women are frequently subject to interruptions targeting their appearance, competence, gender roles, or personal traits. Collier and Raney (2018) analyze the lower Houses in Australia, the United Kingdom, and Canada and find that women are subject to sexist heckles, taunts, and shouting while Erikson and Josefsson (2018) find that women report being frequently interrupted in the Swedish parliament.…”