i
KURT HUMMEL’S LANGUAGE FEATURES IN
GLEE
TELEVISION SERIES SEASON 1: A SOCIOLINGUISTIC
ANALYSIS
ASARJANA PENDIDIKANTHESIS
Presented as Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements to Obtain theSarjana PendidikanDegree
in English Language Education
By
Yustina Rostyaningtyas Student Number: 131214113
ENGLISH LANGUAGE EDUCATION STUDY PROGRAM DEPARTMENT OF LANGUAGE AND ARTS EDUCATION FACULTY OF TEACHERS TRAINING AND EDUCATION
SANATA DHARMA UNIVERSITY YOGYAKARTA
iv
“There is no substitute for
hard work.”
Thomas A. Edison
This thesis is dedicated to:
Antonius Wiryono, Yuliana Saryati,
vii ABSTRACT
Rostyaningtyas, Yustina. 2017. Kurt Hummel’s Language Features in Glee Television Series Season 1: A Sociolinguistic Analysis. Yogyakarta: English Language Education Study Program, Sanata Dharma University.
The use of language by individuals is influenced by many factors. Gender is one factor that influences the use of language. In this research, gender is seen to be different from sex. It is seen as a social construction rather than as a fixed category. As a result, women and men do not stick to one language style but change it based on their social context. Therefore, the researcher was interested in analyzing the women’s language used by a feminine man named Kurt Hummel in Glee Television Series Season 1.
In conducting the research, a research question was formulated: What women’s language features does Kurt Hummel use in his speech inGlee Television Series Season 1?
The research was qualitative research in which discourse analysis was employed to analyze the data. Kurt Hummel’s language features inGlee Television Series Season 1 was used as the primary data. The researcher was the human instrument who was involved significantly collecting the data. Observation checklist was also used as the research instrument to help the researcher analyzing the data to answer the research question.
The researcher identified that women’s language features used by Kurt Hummel in Glee Television Series Season 1 were lexical hedges or fillers, tag questions, raising intonation on declaratives, empty adjectives, intensifiers, hypercorrect grammar, superpolite forms, avoidance of strong swear words and emphatic stress. Meanwhile, the researcher did not find one feature of women’s language which is precise of color terms in KurtHummel’s utterances since it was influenced by the topic discussion. Besides the topic discussion, other factor that influenced Kurt’s language was his identity as a man associated with femininity. Although he was a man, he usedwomen’s language features because he tended not to be certain with his utterances. It confirms Holmes who states the use of hedging and boosting devices are not only influenced by gender but also by power. People who are powerless in the society usually use a relatively high number of these devices.
viii ABSTRAK
Rostyaningtyas, Yustina. 2017. Kurt Hummel’s Language Features in Glee Television Series Season 1: A Sociolinguistic Analysis. Yogyakarta: Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris, Universitas Sanata Dharma.
Penggunaan bahasa oleh individu dipengaruhi oleh berbagai macam faktor. Gender merupakan salah satu faktor yang mempengaruhi penggunaan bahasa. Dalam penelitian ini, gender dipandang berbeda dengan jenis kelamin. Gender dilihat sebagai sebuah konstruksi sosial dan bukan sebagai sebuah kategori tetap. Akibatnya, wanita dan pria tidak hanya menggunakan satu gaya bahasa tetapi mengubahnya berdasarkan konteks sosial mereka. Oleh karena itu, peneliti tertarik untuk menganalisis bahasa perempuan yang digunakan oleh pria feminin bernama Kurt Hummel dalamGlee Television Series Season 1.
Dalam melakukan penelitian ini, terdapat sebuah rumusan masalah: Karakteristik bahasa perempuan apa saja yang Kurt Hummel gunakan dalam Glee Television Series Season 1?
Penelitian ini merupakan penelitian kualitatif dimana analisis wacana digunakan untuk menganalisis data. Karakteristik bahasa yang digunakan Kurt Hummel dalam Glee Television Series Season 1 digunakan sebagai data utama. Peneliti berperan sebagai “human instrument” yang secara signifikan mengumpulkan data. Observation checklist juga digunakan sebagai instrumen penelitian untuk membantu peneliti dalam menganalisa data untuk menjawab rumusan masalah.
Peneliti mengidentifikasi bahwa karakteristik bahasa perempuan yang digunakan oleh Kurt Hummel dalamGlee Television Series Season 1adalahlexical hedges or fillers, tag questions, raising intonation on declaratives, empty adjectives, intensifiers, hypercorrect grammar, superpolite forms, avoidance of strong swear word,danemphatic stress. Sementara itu, peneliti tidak menemukan satu karakteristik bahasa perempuan yang disebutprecise color termsdalam ujaran Kurt Hummel karena hal ini dipengaruhi oleh topik diskusi. Selain topik diskusi, faktor lain yang mempengaruhi penggunaan bahasa Kurt adalah identitas Kurt sebagai seorang pria yang dikaitkan dengan feminitas. Walaupun Kurt adalah seorang pria, ia menggunakan karakteristik bahasa perempuan karena cenderung tidak yakin dengan ucapannya. Hal ini menegaskan pernyataan Holmes yang menyebutkan bahwa penggunaan hedging dan boosting devices tidak hanya dipengaruhi oleh gender, tapi juga oleh kekuasaan di masyarakat. Orang yang tidak berkuasa biasanya akan sering menggunakan karakteristik tersebut.
ix
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to express my gratitude to those who helped me to finish my
thesis. First of all, I praise Jesus Christ, the One that makes everything possible, for His endless blessing and guidance for me in finishing my thesis.
My special gratitude goes to my thesis advisor, Truly Almendo Pasaribu, S.S., M.A., for her guidance, constructive feedback, helpful suggestions, encouragement, and contributions to help me finish my thesis. I would also like to
express my sincere gratitude toall lecturersin ELESP for the valuable knowledge that I have learned throughout my four-year study in Sanata Dharma University. I
would like to express my deepest gratitude tomy beloved familyfor their limitless love, patience, and support. I also owe gratitude to my friends, especially my classmatesfor the sharing and friendship.
Finally, I would thank all people whose names cannot be mentioned one by
one, who gave contributions to the completion of this thesis.
x
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ... i
APPROVAL PAGES ... ii
DEDICATION PAGE ... iv
STATEMENT OF WORK’S ORIGINALITY... v
PERNYATAAN PERSETUJUAN PUBLIKASI ... vi
ABSTRACT... vii
ASTRAK... viii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ... ix
TABLE OF CONTENTS... x
LIST OF TABLES ... xii
LIST OF FIGURE ... xiii
CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION... 1
A. Research Background... 1
B. Research Question... 5
C. Research Significance ... 5
D. Definition of Terms... 6
CHAPTER II: REVIEW OF REKATED LITERATURE... 9
A. Theoretical Description... 9
1. Language and Gender ... 9
2. Femininity and Masculinity ... 10
3. Women’s Language ... 11
4. Women’s Language Features... 12
5. Discourse Analysis ... 16
B. Theoretical Framework ... 16
CHAPTER III: METHODOLOGY ... 18
xi
B. Research Instrument and Data Gathering Technique... 19
C. Data Analysis Technique ... 21
CHAPTER IV: RESEARCH RESULT AND DISCUSSION ... 23
A. Kurt Hummel’s Language Features... 23
1. Lexical Hedges or Fillers ... 25
2. Intensifiers... 27
3. Superpolite Forms ... 30
4. Emphatic Stress... 32
5. Hypercorrect Grammar ... 34
6. Raising Intonation on Declaratives ... 35
7. Tag Questions ... 37
8. Empty Adjectives ... 39
9. Avoidance of Strong Swear Words... 41
10. Precise Color Terms ... 42
CHAPER V: CONCLUSIONS, IMPLICATIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS ... 45
A. Conclusions ... 45
B. Implications ... 46
C. Recommendations ... 46
REFERENCES... 48
xii
LIST OF TABLES
Table 3.1 The Observation Checklist of Women’s Language Features Used by Kurt Hummel inGlee Television Series Season 1... 20
Table 3.2 Th Observation Checklist ... 21
Table 3.3 Women’s Language Features used by Kurt Hummel ... 22
xiii
LIST OF FIGURES
1 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
This chapter consists of four sections that discuss the introduction to the
research. The first section is research background that covers the general
information related to the topic and the reasons why the researcher chose the topic.
The second section is research question, that is used as a guideline to this study.
The next section is research significance that identifies the contribution of the study
for some parties. The last is definition of terms that defines the keywords or phrases
used in the study.
A. Research Background
Language is defined as system of human communication, either spoken or
written, consisting of the use of words in a structured and conventional way. Thus,
language is used by individuals to communicate with each other in society. The use
of language by individuals is influenced by many factors, such as geographical and
social mobility, gender and power, age, audience, identity, and social network
relations (Milroy & Milroy, 2012).
Gender is one factor which influences the use of language. Many
researchers such as Lakoff (1975), Sunderland (2006), and Coates (2013) focus on
the relationship between language and gender. Women and men tend to talk
differently from each other. Several studies also identify the linguistic features that
include women’s and men’s speech has been of particular interest to sociolinguists
until now. Therefore, it is interesting to discuss the relationship of language and
gender.
In this research, gender is seen to be different from sex. Butler (1990) says
that gender is culturally constructed; gender is neither the casual result of biology
nor as seemingly fixed as sex. Since gender is culturally constructed, it cannot be
said to follow a specific sex in any one way. The construction of “men” will not
always interpret the male bodies or likewise, the word “women” will not always
interpret the female bodies. The word “man” and “masculine” might signify a
female body where“woman”and“feminine”may signify a male body. Similar to
Butler (1990), Holmes (2013) also states:
Approaching gender identity as a construction, rather than as a fixed category, is useful in accounting for examples where women adapt masculine contexts, and men adapt to feminine context by using features which indirectly index or are associated with masculinity and femininity (p. 320).
This study focuses on the way a feminine male usedthe women’s language
features. Women’s language features are commonly used by females. However, it
is not impossible if the women’s language features are used by the other gender.
Bell, McCarthy, and McNamara (2006) claim that males and females do not stick
to just one language style but exchange their styles based on their social context of
their interactions. According to Holmes (2013), men who work in clothing shops or
a sports club. They use features which index femininity such as avoiding strong
swear words and encouraging their addressee to talk.
According to Lakoff (1975), there are 10 linguistic features of women’s
language, including: lexical hedges or fillers, tag questions, rising intonation on
declaratives, ‘empty’ adjectives, precise color terms, intensifiers, ‘hypercorrect’
grammar, ‘superpolite’ forms, avoidance of strong swear words, and emphatic
stress.
The use of women’s language features can be found not only in the real life
but also in the movies. For this study, the researcher analyzes women’s language
features from a television series titledGlee. In this study, the researcher is interested
in analyzing Kurt Hummel’s language as seen intheGlee Television Series Season
1. Kurt Hummel becomes the focus of this study because he is seen to be a feminine
male in the television series. Figure 1.1 shows how Kurt Hummel adapts feminine
traits. It can be seen that Kurt uses sponge and wears bandana when he cleans his
face. It is similar to what usually women do. Thus, Kurt is seen as a man who adapts
feminine traits.
Kurt is also having a tendency of using women’s language features. Kurt,
in the one of the episodes uses question tags and emphatic stress forms, that can be
seen in the following excerpts:
(1) Since you are separated from your wife you spend most of your evenings in front of reruns of New York police,doesn’t it?
(2) One, I’m a sucker for makeovers, and two, you need something to distract from your horrible personality----You are extremely talented, Rachel.
Kurt uses a question tag in excerpt [1] and emphatic stress in excerpt [2].
According to Lakoff (1975), these two features usually belong to women’s
language features because women are claimed to have less confidence to talk.
Lakoff (1975) argues that women are generally lacking status in society because
they are more subordinate than men. Therefore, women are more aware of the way
they talk by hedging and boosting their utterances to attract the addressee’s
attention. A question tag is usually used by women to ask confirmation from the
addressee, and emphatic stress is usually used to emphasize or strengthen the
speaker’s statements.
There are three reasons why the researcher chose to analyze the women’s
language features used by Kurt Hummel inGlee Television Series Season 1. First,
in the previous studies, Pebrianti (2013), Mazidah (2013), and Wahyuningtyas
(2016) conducted the research about women’s language features used by females
such as Indonesian female bloggers, Margaret Thatcher, and Hillary Clinton.
However, it turns out that women’s language features can be seen in the language
of feminine males.Therefore, this study aims to discuss women’s language features
language features used by feminine male is one of the language and gender issues
in Sociolinguistics that is important to be learned by English Language Education
students and other parties. Third, the phenomenon can be found in the daily life.
However, it can also be found in a television series. The television series can be
used as media for English Language Education students to learn Sociolinguistics
about women’s language features.
B. Research Question
To guide the researcher in conducting this study, a research question is
formulated. The following is the research question:
1. What women’s language features does Kurt Hummel use in Glee Television
Series Season 1?
C. Research Significance
The researcher believes that this study will be useful and beneficial for some
parties who want to know more about the useof women’s language features.
1. English Learners
The study of women’s language features is related to English linguistics,
especially Sociolinguistics. English learners who are interested in learning about
2. English Teachers
This study is useful and beneficial for English teachers. This study also
contributes to the language study development as an additional source in teaching
and learning. The English teachers, especially those who teach Sociolinguistics can
usethis study in preparing the material about women’s language features.
3. Future Researchers
The researcher hopes that this study can be an appropriate reference for the
future researchers who are interested in conducting research on language and
gender andwomen’s language features. The researcher believes that this study will
provide information needed by futurewomen’s language featuresresearchers.
D. Definition of Terms
In order to give more understanding for the readers, this section defines
some main terms which are frequently used in this research. There are three terms
namely women’s language features,feminine men, andGleetelevision series.
1. Gender
Generally, people treat gender as ‘given’ and unalterable, automatically
classifying every person they encounter as female or male (Holmes, 2013, p. 320).
Gender is seen to be a construction rather than a fixed category. It is because there
are possibilities where a man fails to fit masculine norm and is more associated with
2. Feminine
The word “feminine” cannot be separated from the word “masculine”.
Those words describe gender identity. Since “feminine” is described as gender
identity, it is shaped by the socio-cultural, not biology process. The socio-cultural
process allows both male and female to exhibit feminine traits. It is possible for one
to be male and see himself as feminine. The word feminine means having or
showing qualities or characteristics more often associated with women.
3. Women’s Language Features
Culturally, gender is one of the factors that influences someone in using
language. Therefore, women and men are different when they use language.
Women are considered as weak creatures, so many people assume that women’s
language is also weak. According to Lakoff (1975), women are disempowered by
being constrained to use “powerless” language, ways of speaking that simply are
not very effective of getting others to think or see what the speaker wants them to.
Based on Lakoff’s theory, there are 10 linguistics features of women’s
language, they include: lexical hedges or fillers, tag questions, rising intonation on
declaratives, ‘empty’ adjectives, precise color terms, intensifiers, ‘hypercorrect’
grammar, ‘superpolite’ forms, avoidance of strong swear words, and emphatic
stress.
4. GleeTelevision Series
Gleeis an American musical comedy-drama television series. It aired on the
on the fictitious William McKinley High School Glee club, which later is called
New Directions, which competes on the choir show competition circuit while its
disparate members deal with social issues, especially regarding sexuality and race,
disabilities, and adolescent relationships. They also learn to become an effective
9 CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
This chapter consists of two sections: theoretical description and theoretical
framework. The first section is theoretical description that provides the theoretical
review related to the topic of this research. The second section is theoretical
framework which provides information about the relation between the theories and
the research question of this research.
A. Theoretical Description
In this theoretical description section, the researcher discusses the
theoretical review related to the topic of this research. There are four main parts in
this section: language and gender, femininity and masculinity, women’s language,
and women’s language features.
1. Language and Gender
Language is used by individuals to communicate. Chomsky (1957, p. 13)
explains that “language is a set (finite or infinite) of sentences, each finite in length
and constructed out of a finite set of elements” (as citedby Lyons, 1981, p. 7). Each
set of sentences or language has meaning either in their spoken or written form. By
using a language, people can deliver their ideas, information, and knowledge to
each other. Eckert and Ginet (2003) state that, “a language is a highly-structured
system of signs, or combinations of form and meaning (p. 60).” Gender has a
explain that, “gender can be the actual content of a linguistic sign (p. 60)”.It can be
considered that gender contributes to communicative practice in different ways.
Gender influences an individual in using language. Men and women are
different when they use language to communicate. Based on Kramer (1977) as cited
by Spender (1980, p. 33):
English speakers believe that men’s speech is forceful, efficient, blunt, authoritative, serious, effective, sparing and masterful. Women usually are seen by one side because women are regarded as weak creatures. It is different from what they believe about women’s speech which is weak, trivial, ineffectual, tentative, hesitant, hyper polite, euphemistic and is often marked by gossip and gibberish.
Men are seen to be effective when they use language. It is different from
women who are lack of power in society. Women’s speech is powerless sothat they
need to be careful in using language. Therefore, both men and women have
different ways in expressing their utterances through the language they use.
2. Femininity and Masculinity
Femininity and masculinity describe someone’s gender identity. According
to Burke, Stets and Pirog-Good (1988), and Spence (1985), femininity and
masculinity refer to the degree to which persons see themselves as masculine or
feminine given what it means to be a man or woman in society. Femininity and
masculinity are socially constructed. They are more social (one’s gender) rather
than biological (one’s sex). People insociety construct what being male or female
means. Generally, males will define themselves as masculine and females will
socially constructed, it is possible for a female to see herself as masculine or a male
to see himself as feminine.
People have views of themselves about being feminine and masculine.
Some people are more feminine, some more masculine, and some perhaps a mixture
of masculine and feminine. Those views reflect their gender identity and guide them
to behave in society. In Glee Television Series Season 1,Kurt Hummel is the first
openly gay character. He is physically seen as a man. However, he adapts more
feminine context rather than masculine context. It reflects from the way he sees
himself, and the way he behaves and talks in his society.
3. Women’s Language
The language used can show the nature and the role of an individual in
society. Women and men use language differently, especially when they are
speaking. Women are claimed to have less confidence to talk than men since women
are considered powerless. Edward states that “the eternal stereotypes of women are
weak, changeable and unreliable, endlessly, talkative” (2009, p. 127).
Those stereotypes are related to what Lakoff (1975) says about women
experiencing linguistic discrimination in society. The discrimination happens in
two ways: in the way they are taught to use language, and in the way general
language use treats them. Women are expected to be polite and should speak with
standard forms because they are guardians of society (Holmes, 2001). Lakoff
(1975) also says that women are not allowed to show their temper or complain in
4. Women’s Language Features
Lakoff (1975) creates a list that shows women’s tendency in using language.
Lakoff (1975) describes that women’s speech is characterized by linguistic features
such as the following:
a. Lexical Hedges or Fillers
Lakoff (1975) describes lexical hedges or fillers as one of the characteristics
of women’s language features.Lakoff (1975) defines hedges as words that convey
the sense that the speaker is uncertain about what he or she is saying or cannot
vouch for the accuracy statement (p. 53). The use of hedges by women occurs as a
fully legitimation when they are unsure of the fact or statement, and justifiable when
they try to mitigate the possible unfriendliness or unkindness of statement. You
know, short of, well, you seeare examples of lexical hedges or fillers.
b. Tag Questions
Tag question is one of the women’s language features. This feature usually
shows women’s insecurity and hesitancy in their speech. Lakoff (1975) observes
that women use question tags more frequently than men. She defines tag-question
as:
a declarative statement without the assumption that the statement is to be believed by the addressee: one has an out, as with questions. Tag gives the addressee leeway, not forcing him to go along with the views of the speaker (Lakoff 1975, p. 16).
Holmes (1986) states that there are two functions of tag. They are modal
meaning and affective meaning. The modal meaning shows degree of uncertainty
into two functions. The first is facilitative that shows speaker’s solidarity or positive
attitude to the addressee. The second is softening that shows politeness or speaker’s
concern for addressee’s feeling (Holmes, 1986, p. 3). Tag questions are used by
women in many ways. For examples, She is really nice, isn’t she?, really?, See?,
…, you know?, and many others.
c. Rising Intonation on Declaratives
Rising intonation on declaratives is one of women’s features according to
Lakoff (1975). She defines raising intonation in declaratives as:
a peculiar sentence intonation pattern, found in English as far as I know only among women, which has the form of a declarative answer to a question, and is used as such, but has the raising inflection typical of a yes-no question, as well as being especially hesitant (Lakoff 1975, p. 17).
Women use this feature by raising the pitch of their voice in the end of
statements when they express their uncertainty. For the example,It’s really good?,
Dinner’s in half an hour?.
d. Empty Adjectives
Lakoff (1975) defines empty adjectives as a group of vocabulary terms
indicating speaker’s approbation or admiration for something. Some of these
adjectives are neutral as to sex of speaker; men or women may use them (p.12).
However, adjectives such ascharming, cute, lovely, fabulous are largely confined
to women’s language. Women have a tendency in conveying their emotional
reaction rather than giving specific information. Therefore, they use empty
e. Precise Color Terms
Men and women are different in using their verbal skills and controlling
different aspects of English speech and vocabulary. Lakoff (1975) state:
Women make far more precise discriminations in naming colors than do men; words like beige, ecru, aquamarine, lavender, and so on are remarkable in a woman’s active vocabulary, but absent from that of most men (p. 8).
According to Lakoff (1975), the color discrimination happens since women are not
expected to make decisions on important matters like men in society, they are
relegated the noncrucial decision as a sop. Deciding whether to name a color
“lavender” or “mauve” is one such sop. Therefore, women have richer vocabulary
than men in areas that are their specialty.
f. Intensifiers
According to Lakoff (1975), women’s language is powerless; women’s
position that is inferior to men’s is reflected in heavy use of intensifying adverbs.
Olson (2000) states that intensifiers act as a boosting device in language. The term
intensifier describes the linguistic expression of amplifying the meaning of a
descriptive word, often an adjective or adverb, within an utterance. Intensifier is
used to emphasize another word that comes after it. The examples of intensifiers
include:so, very,andtotally.
g. Hypercorrect Grammar
Lakoff (1975) states that hypercorrect grammar is the consistent use of
forms when they are speaking to reflect politeness. Women may use more standard
forms as a way of retainingtheir societal value, as “society tends to expect ‘better’
behavior from women” (Holmes, 1998, p. 172).
h. Superpolite Forms
Superpolite also reflects social politeness. It is described by Lakoff (1975)
as “leaving decisions open, not imposing your mind, or views, or claims, on anyone
else” (p. 56). While it may be a polite command, it does not need obedience overtly,
but it suggests something to be done as a favor to the speaker. For the example,If
you don’t mind, Please may you…, That really means a lot.
i. Avoidance of Strong Swear Words
Eckert (2003) says that “swearing is kind of interjection that can express
extreme statements.” Swearing is considered as an expression of very strong
emotion. In society, women are expected to be good. They are not allowed to speak
roughly. Therefore, women tend to avoid using strong wear words. The words such
asmy dear,goodness, andmy fudgeareoften found in women’s language as stated
by Lakoff (1975).
j. Emphatic Stress
Stress can refer to emphatic stress when it is placed on a particular word in
phrase to clarify or emphasis something. Emphatic stress is a feature that is usually
used by women. When women apply this feature, they show a bit emotion through
assertion (Lakoff, 1975). For example,It was a BRILLIANT performance, I had a
BEST DAY ever!, among other.
5. Discourse Analysis
Human life and communication are the focus of discourse analysis.
Different social context leads to different discourse. Gee (2001) mentions that
discourse analysis is an analysis of spoken and written language as it is used to
enact social and cultural perspectives and identities (p. 1). According to Brown and
Yule (1983), discourse analysis applied two different functions of language. The
first function is transactional function that refers to the function which language
serves in expression of content. The second function is interactional function that
refers to the function that involves expressing social relations and personal attitudes
(p.1).
B. Theoretical Framework
In this section, the researcher presents the elaboration of how the theories
are used to answer the research question. In this research, Lakoff’s theory on
women’s language features is used by the researcher to answer the research
question. Lakoff’s theory is used to analyze Kurt Hummel’s utterances in Glee TV
Series Season 1. The ten features are used in examining the data. The data are
classified into lexical hedges or fillers, tag questions, rising intonation on
declaratives, ‘empty’ adjectives, precise color terms, intensifiers, ‘hypercorrect’
grammar, ‘superpolite’ forms, avoidance of strong swear words, and emphatic
After classifying Kurt’s utterances, the researcher analyzes why he uses
those features in his speech. In analyzing the reasons, the researcher also uses the
Lakoff’s theory on women’s language features. In the process of selecting,
classifying, and analyzing Kurt’s utterances, the example of each feature is
provided by the researcher. Other theories of women’s language by other experts
such as Holmes, femininity and masculinity, and language and gender outlined in
18 CHAPTER III METHODOLOGY
In this chapter, the researcher explains the methodology that is used to
answer the research question of this study. There are three sections in this chapter.
The first section is research method that explains the methodology used by the
researcher in conducting this research. Then, the second section is research
instrument and data gathering technique that explain the kinds of instruments the
researcher used and how the researcher gathered the data for this research. The last
is data analysis technique section that discusses how the researcher analyzed the
data to answer the research questions.
A. Research Method
The goal of this research is to identify the women’s language features that
are used by Kurt Hummel’s character inGlee Television Series Season 1. Women’s
language features are a part of gender and language issues studied in
sociolinguistics. In this research, the researcher analyzes the data from
sociolinguistic perspective. Sociolinguistics studies the relation between language
and society (Holmes, 2013). Trudgill (1974) also says that sociolinguistics is the
field that studies the uses of language and the social structures in which the users
of language live.
The research was conducted by applying qualitative research. Strauss and
findings not arrived at by statistical procedures or other means of quantification.
Tables and numbers in this research were used as tools to describe the phenomenon
under study hereinafter it is called as descriptive qualitative research (Latief, 1999).
The researcher applied discourse analysis in analyzing the data. In this
research, the researcher concerned with the use of women’s language features bya
feminine male named Kurt Hummel. Thedata, that is Kurt Hummel’s speech, were
taken fromGlee Television Series Season 1. The written transcripts were also used
to help the researcher analyzed the data.
B. Research Instrument and Data Gathering Technique
In this research, the researcher is the primary instrument because the
researcher decides the topic to be analyzed, chooses the instrument to collect data,
reads the documents, and selects the data. The researcher also interprets the data
through analysis and writes the conclusion. This approach is in accordance with
Ary, Jacob, Sorensen, and Razavieh (2010), who state in qualitative studies, the
investigator is the data gathering instrument whereas he or she reads the documents
and records the information in the field notes.
To answer the research question of this research, the researcher searched the
related data from the books, journals, and trusted websites in the Internet. The data
analyzed by the researcher were collected fromGlee Television Series Season 1and
its transcripts.
Another instrument used by the researcher is the observation checklist
an observer is going to look for when observing the data. The observation checklist
helped the researcher to classify and note the features used by Kurt Hummel inGlee
Television Series Season 1.
Table 3.1The Observation Checklist of Women’s Language Features Used
by Kurt Hummel in Glee Television Series Season 1
No Utterance Women’s Language Features
LH/F TQ R EA C I HG SP SS ES
Table 3.1 was the observation checklist used by the researcher in classifying the
data. It contains Kurt’s utterances in Glee Television Series Season 1 and ten
women’s language features proposed by Lakoff (1975). It was used by the
researcher by giving a tick to a suitable feature column for each utterance.
LH/F= lexical hedges/fillers TQ= tag question
R= raising intonation on declaratives EA= ‘empty’ adjectives
C= precise color terms I= intensifier
HG= ‘hypercorrect’ grammar SP= ‘superpolite’ forms
SS= avoidance of strong swear words ES= emphatic stress
The researcher analyzed Kurt Hummel’s speeches inGlee Television Series
1, which included twenty-two episodes. First, the researcher looked for all episodes
in season 1 and its transcripts. Next, the researcher watched the television series
and read the transcripts at the same time to select and collect Kurt Hummel’s
utterances. Then, the utterances were classified based on Lakoff’s theory, and the
C. Data Analysis Technique
In this research, the data analysis technique was done in some steps. First,
the researcher observed Kurt Hummel in some episodes ofGlee Television Series
Season 1. The episodes that have been chosen were representing how Kurt Hummel
use women’s language features. Second, the researcher analyzed Kurt’s speech in
the selected episodes from the Glee Television Series Season 1’s transcripts. The
analysis would answer the research question that has been formulated in the first
chapter.
In this step, the researcher used an observation checklist (see Table 3.2) to
analyze Kurt Hummel’s utterances in Glee Television Series Season 1. In
completing the table 3.2, the researcher identified the women’s language features
that was used by Kurt by pacing a thick sign (√). After completing the observation
checklist, the researcher counted the frequency and the percentage of each feature
and put it into a table (see Table 3.3). It is done to help the researcher explained of
the findings.
2. I’mmadlyin love with
Finn. √
The palate in here istotally
unflattering to your skin tone.
The table above shows the observation checklist that used by the
researcher to analyze the women’s language features of Kurt Hummel in Glee
Television Series Season 1. Women’s language features that is possible to be used
by Kurt consist of lexical hedges/fillers, tag questions, raising intonation on
declaratives, empty adjectives, precise color terms, intensifiers, hypercorrect
grammar, superpolite forms, avoidance of strong swearwords, and emphatic stress.
Table 3.3 Women’s Language Features used by Kurt Hummel
No Features of Women's
Table 3.3 shows the frequency and percentage of each feature that Kurt used in his
speech in Glee Television Series Season 1. After the table was complete, the
researcher validatedthe data to researcher’s advisor, Truly Almendo Pasaribu, and
a native speaker, Erik Hookom. The researcher validated the data to researcher’s
advisor because she is an expert in linguistics. And, the researcher validated the
data to a native speaker to make sure that the utterances classifications belong to
the right features. After validating the data, the researcher used it to answer the
23 CHAPTER IV
RESEARCH FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter presents the data findings gained from the study undertaken
and discusses them to answer the research question formulated in Chapter I. This
chapter discusses the language features of Kurt Hummel used in Glee Television
Series Season 1.
A. Kurt Hummel’s Language Features
This study focuses on the women’s language features in Kurt Hummel’s
utterances, a male character who is feminine inGlee Television Series Season 1. In
this research, gender is seen to be different from sex that is more biological.
Therefore, gender is not a fixed category but a social construction. In this section,
the researcher organizes Kurt’s utterances into a table, classifies them into some
features, and uses a checklist for the suitable features.
In order to answer the research question, the researcher uses the theory from
Lakoff (1975) as the basic reference of analysis. She proposes that there are ten
features that are usually used by women including: lexical hedges or fillers, tag
questions, raising intonation, ‘empty’ adjectives, precise color terms, intensifiers,
‘hypercorrect’ grammar, ‘superpolite’ form, avoidance of strong swear words, and
emphatic stress. To present the findings, the researcher analyzes the women’s
language features used by Kurt Hummel in Glee Television Series Season 1 as
Table 4.1 Women’s Language Features in Kurt Hummel’sUtterances inGlee Television Series Season 1
No Features of Women's Language The Frequency of Each Feature
The Percentage of Each Feature
1 Lexical Hedges/Fillers 62 29.808%
2 Tag Questions 5 2.404%
3 Raising Intonation on Declaratives 12 5.769%
4 Empty Adjectives 4 1.923%
5 Precise Color Terms 0 0.000%
6 Intensifiers 35 16.827%
7 Hypercorrect Grammar 26 12.500%
8 Superpolite Forms 30 14.423%
9 Avoidance of Strong Swear Words 3 1.442%
10 Emphatic Stress 31 14.904%
Total Features 208 100%
Table 4.1 presents the women’s language features used by Kurt Hummel
within nineteen episodes ofGlee Television Series Season 1. In the remaining three
episodes, episode 14, 19, and 22, the researcher did not find any women’s language
features since Kurt does not speak much or does not appear in those episodes. This
research finds that nine out of ten features are used, including: lexical hedges or
fillers, tag questions, raising intonation on declaratives, ‘empty’ adjective,
intensifiers, ‘hypercorrect’ grammar, ‘superpolite’ forms, avoidance of strong
swear words, and emphatic stress. From the obtained data, the researcher finds 208
features uttered by Kurt. Table 4.1 shows the frequency and percentage of each
feature used by Kurt, they are 62 lexical hedges or fillers (29.808%), 35 intensifiers
(16.827%), 31 features of emphatic stress (14.904%), 30 ‘superpolite’ forms
in declaratives (5.769%), 5 tag questions (2.404%), 4 ‘empty’ adjectives (1.923%),
and 3 avoidances of strong swear words (1.442%). The last is precise color terms
feature (0%), which does not appear at all in the data classification of Kurt’s
utterances inGlee Television Series Season 1. To support the data presentation, the
researcher provides and discusses the evidences of women’s language features
uttered by Kurt inGlee Television Series Season 1.
1. Lexical Hedges or Fillers
Lakoff (1975) describes lexical hedges or fillers as one of the characteristics
of women’s language features.Lakoff (1975) defines hedges as words that convey
the sense that the speaker is uncertain about what he or she is saying or cannot
vouch for the accuracy statement (p. 53). Lexical hedges or fillers that Lakoff
(1975) means are the frequent use of words such aswell, you know, sort of, kind of,
I guess, I think, umm, and oh. The use of hedges by women occurs as a fully
legitimation when they are unsure of the fact or statement, and justifiable when they
try to mitigate the possible unfriendliness or unkindness of statement. Lakoff as
cited in Holmes (1992, p.316) claims that “hedging devices explicitly signal lack of
confidence and women’s insecurity”. In Kurt’s utterances, lexical hedges or fillers
are the most frequent features he used in all episodes, as many as 62 times. He uses
lexical hedges and fillers such as I guess, I think, well, kind of, you know, sort of,
ohandum.
In the fourth episode of Glee Television Series Season 1 titled Preggers,
there are 9 lexical hedges or fillers that are used by Kurt. In the beginning of the
unitard, a skintight one-piece garment with long legs and long sleeves; which is
usually worn by women. Suddenly, his father came home and asked him what kind
of clothes he was wearing. At that time, Kurt was confused to tell his father about
the clothes. In excerpt [1], it shows that Kurt uses filleruhin his utterance while he
is thinking what to say in order to not say something wrong to his father.
[1]KURT:Dad! You’re home early.
BURT:Deadliest Catch is on. What are you wearing?
KURT: It’s a unitard, guys wear them to,[uh], work out nowadays. Do sports. They wick sweat from the body.
The filleruhin Kurt’s utterance shows his insecurity. However, it helps to protect
him from the negative effect of his statements. The filler uhthat he uses provided
him some time to look for the best words he should use in answering his father’s
question. It also prevents him from making any mistakes in his speech.
Lexicalhedges also appear in some of Kurt’s utterances. In the first episode
titledPilot, he uses the wordskind ofto interact with his addressee. When Kurt and
his Glee Club friends practiced to sing a new song, one of his friends, Mercedes,
did not want to be a background singer. However, Kurt thought that it was the first
time his Glee Club sang well. When he uses the wordkind of, there is an indication
that Kurt is lacking confidence in his Glee Club, and he is trying to avoid it in his
speech without altering the meaning.
[2] MERCEDES: Oh, hell to the no. Look, I’m not down with this background singing nonsense. I’m Beyonce, I ain’t no Kelly Rowland. WILL:Okay, look Mercedes, it’s just one song.
KURT:And it’s the first time we’ve been[kind of]good.
From excerpt [2], the word kind ofis used by Kurt to hide his lack of confidence.
or not. However, instead of showing his uncertainty, he uses the word kind of to
hedge his speech in order to hide it.
From all episodes, the hedging Kurt usually uses isI guess.He usesI guess
as hedging when he has a conversation with his friends or coach. The excerpt [3] is
one of the evidences the researcher found from all of the episodes ofGlee Television
Series Season 1.
[3] MERCEDES: You shouldn’t be ashamed of who you are, Kurt. You should just tell people, especially the kids in Glee. The whole point of the club is about expressing what’s really inside you, remember? KURT:I can’t I’m just not that confident,[I guess].
When Kurt’s friend, Mercedes, told him not to be ashamed and to tell the truth to
all of his Glee Club members, but still Kurt was afraid. He thought that all of his
friends would not accept him after knowing the facts. From the lexical hedges and
the statement that he has said in the excerpt [3], it is clear that he is lacking
confidence. Even though he has clearly stated that he is not confident, he still uses
a hedgingI guessin order to strengthen his statement.
Briefly, Kurt says some utterances by using fillers and lexical hedges, which
do not alter the main idea of his statements. From all the episodes, the researcher
also finds that Kurt underestimated himself; he uses fillers or lexical hedges to
strengthen his utterance when he is lack of confidence and avoid making mistakes.
As a result, his addressee is not confused and able to understand what Kurt is saying.
2. Intensifiers
The term intensifier describes the linguistic expression of amplifying the
Intensifier is used to emphasize another word that comes after it. Women are more
likely to use intensifies such asso, much, quiet, andvastlythan men (Key, 1972).
According to Lakoff (1975), women’s language is powerless; women’s position
that is inferior to men is reflected in heavy use of intensifying adverbs. Olson (2000)
presumes intensifying acts as a boosting device in language. Women use
intensifiers to strengthen what they want to express. Kurt in his utterances also uses
intensifiers. From all the episodes, 35 intensifiers appear in Kurt’s utterances. The
intensifiers that he used arereally(11),so(6),too(4),very(3),obviously(2),totally
(2), clearly, dangerously, exactly, extremely, fantastically, wholly and madly. All
of the intensifiers he used are in the form of adverbs.
In Kurt’s utterances,reallyis the most frequent intensifiers he used. Here is
one evidence from episode 18 titledLaryngitiswhere Kurt used the wordreallyas
an intensifier.
[4]SUE:Hey, lady face I notice you weren’t at Cheerios practice yesterday, and I don’t look kindly on absenteeism.
KURT: ….something happened yesterday that [really]upset me. It’s my dad. He’s the most important thing in the world to me……
In the excerpt [4], the intensifierreallyis used by Kurt to emphasize the wordupset.
It is used to express his feeling to his addressee. He wants his addressee to know
that he is not onlyupsetbutreally upset.
From Kurt’s utterances in all episodes of Glee Television Series Season 1,
it is found that Kurt uses intensifiers to strengthen what he wants to express. He
tries to emphasize the word meaning that comes after the intensifier. Some
[5]KURT:Make what official?
MERCEDES:You know, that we’re dating.
KURT:I’m sorry, Mercedes, but I thought I made it[very]clear. I’m in love with someone else.
Excerpt [5] is taken from episode 3 titled Acafellas. It shows that Kurt uses the
intensifierveryto emphasize the wordclearin his statement.
[6]FINN:I can’t, okay! I can’t! I’m sick and tired of people pushing me to be somebody I’m not.
KURT: Your lashing out at me is [fantastically] compelling and inappropriate.
The excerpt [6] from episode 10 titledBalladis a little bit different from the other
intensifiers. If we take a look at the situation, it can be seen that Kurt is annoyed by
Finn’s statement. He uses the intensifierfantasticallyalso to emphasize his feeling.
However, it is interesting that Kurt chose a positive word as the intensifier when he
is annoyed. The researcher assumes that Kurt does it to control the dialogue and his
emotion. According to Brower and Darrington (2012), negative patterns of
communication can often lead to greater frustration and escalation of conflict.
Therefore, Kurt does not want to use a negative word to make a conflict with Finn
since he wants their duet to still run well.
[7]KURT: ...and if we want to take it to the next level, we have to start respecting each other as individual,[really]see each other…...
And finally, in the excerpt [7] from episode 15, the researcher finds that the
intensifierreallyis used to emphasize his statement. By emphasizing the statement,
Kurt is able to attracthis addressees’ attention. When Kurt discusses a serious topic,
he wants all of his friends to listen to what he was talking about so he uses the
In short, women’s language that is considered powerless can be seen from
the use of intensifiers. It is used to emphasize their utterance to draw their
addressees’ attention since women’s language is lacking in power. Kurt uses
intensifiers in his speech that are commonly used by women. He uses them to attract
his addressees’ attentionby emphasizing his feeling or statement of his utterances.
3. Superpolite Forms
Superpolite form is one of women’s language features described by Lakoff
(1975). She describes super polite as leaving decisions open, not imposing your
mind, or views, or claims, on anyone else, and reflecting social politeness. While it
may be a polite command, it does not need obedience overtly, but is suggesting
something to be done as a favor to the speaker (Lakoff, 1975, p. 56). From the data
classification, it is found that Kurt used superpolite forms in some episodes ofGlee
Television Series Season 1.
In Glee Television Series Season 1, Kurt uses 30 superpolite forms in his
utterances. The superpolite form appears the most in the episode 15 titled The
Power of Madonnaas much as 6 times. One superpolite form used by Kurt in this
episode is mentioned in the excerpt below.
[8] KURT: [I would like to honor her contributions by tackling a multi-media project with Mercedes.]
WILL:Great. Go for it, Kurt.
When the Glee Club were discussing about Madonna and her contribution in the
entertainment world, Kurt used a superpolite form as seen in the excerpt [8]. The
utterance is classified as superpolite since Kurt uses the wordhonor,which usually
decision in using the wordhonorreflects the social politeness. Besides, he also uses
it to show his admiration toward Madonna.
Kurt also applies superpolite forms when he asks permission to talk to the
addressees as seen in the excerpt [9] from episode 15, [10] from episode 16, and
[11] from episode 17.
[9]KURT:Ms. Sylvester,[we’d like a word.]
[10]KURT:Mr. Schue?[If I may?]
[11]KURT:Mr. Schuster,[may I be blunt?]
From those three excerpts, the researcher finds that when it comes for Kurt to talk
to people who are older than him, he uses superpolite forms. First, Kurt is not
imposing his addressee to listen to what he is trying to say. However, he tries to be
polite by asking permission for him to talk first and then deliver his idea. Second,
his expressions reflect social politeness. From excerpts [9], [10], and [11], Kurt uses
formal or polite modals to ask for his addressee’s permission. Instead of usingcan,
he usesmayandwouldas the modals in his utterances. Even in the excerpt [9] when
the modalwouldis shortened intowe’d, it does not reduce its politeness level.
Another superpolite form is found in the episode 10 when Kurt helped Finn,
his crush, to find an outfit that suited him. When Finn thanked Kurt for helping him,
Kurt answered him by using a superpolite form as seen in the excerpt [12].
[12]FINN:Thanks for coming over, Kurt. I know you’re into fashion and that kind of stuff. And I need to find something nice to wear to the Fabray’s for dinner, so…
From the excerpt [12], Kurt uses the word couldwhich is classified as a formal or
polite modal. He also uses the wordpleasedandhonoredwhich usually are used in
a formal situation. The utterance becomes superpolite because he uses those words
not in a formal situation and not to the older people but to his friend. The researcher
assumes that Kurt uses a superpolite form to show that he is glad to be able to help
Finn as his friend. Also, he wants to build and protect his good reputation in front
of his loved one.
Briefly, Kurt uses superpolite form in his utterances in some episodes of
Glee Television Series Season 1. His choices of words such as pleased, honored,
would,could, andmaymake his utterances become superpolite. It happens because
Kurt tries to keep his good reputation in his society. As a different kid, he does not
want to be underestimated by people around him. Rather than imposing his
addressees or being rude in front of them, he considers it would be better for him to
use the superpolite form.
4. Emphatic Stress
Stress can refer to emphatic stress when it is placed on a particular word in
a phrase to clarify or emphasis something. While applying emphatic stress, the
speaker shows a bit of emotion when saying the word through posture and tone of
voice. Emphatic stress is a women’s language feature that usually occurs when
women want to strengthen their assertions (Lakoff, 1975). From some episodes, the
researcher finds 31 examples of emphatic stress used by Kurt Hummel. In Kurt’s
utterances, emphatic stress appears the most in the episode 20 as many as 7 times.
[13]KURT:I used Marlene Dietrich and Garry Cooper in Morocco as my inspiration. It’s [a perfect blend] of the masculine and feminine; the muted and the theatrical.
FINN: Are you freaking insane? I can’t live here. I’m a dude. What the hell is that supposed to be?
When Kurt redecorated his room that would be shared with his brother-in-law to
be, Finn, he saida perfect blend of the masculine and feminine. The phrasea perfect
blendthat he uses is an emphatic stress with the aim to emphasize the meaning of
his utterance. He wants to show that the room is suitable for them. In this case, the
emphatic stress shows Kurt’s attitude toward the room. In Kurt’s opinion, the room
is just perfect for Finn and him. However, it seems like Finn does not like it.
Another emphatic stress is also found in the episode 10 titledBalladand 18
titled Laryngitis. The researcher provides the evidence for each episode in the
excerpts below.
[14] KURT:It’s my dad. He’s[the most important thing]in the world to me. I love him, and I’m afraid that I might be losing him because my…sexuality.
[15] KURT: He was my knight in shining armor. My feeling lingered [stronger]as we bonded over Glee. Then football. Then skin care.
Excerpt [14] and [15] show the emphatic stress that is used by Kurt. Both of the
emphatic stress are used to emphasize his utterances. Both also show his point of
view; it is only based on Kurt’s feeling. It can be different from others’ perspectives.
As an evidence in the excerpt [14], he wants to show that his father is the most
important person for him while perhaps for his friend, Kurt’s father is not that
important.
Overall, the examples of emphatic stress found in Kurt’sutterances are used
can be shown from the emphatic stress he used. It is because the emphatic stress
shows someone’s attitude toward something or someone where other people can
have other points of view.
5. Hypercorrect Grammar
Hypercorrect grammar is related to the superpolite form feature. Lakoff
(1975) stated that hypercorrect grammar is the consistent use of standard verb
forms. Agreeing with Lakoff, Holmes (2001) also stated that women are
subordinate to men, so that they must avoid offending them and should speak with
standard forms. According to Pan (2011), hypercorrect grammar involves an
avoidance of terms considered vulgar or coarse as ain’t and use of precise
pronunciation such as sounding the final g in words such as going instead of the
more casual goin’. Instead of saying the word ain’t orgoin, women prefer to use
the formal forms of those word like is not, are not, am notforain’t orgettingfor
getting’.
Based on the data classification, there are 25 hypercorrect grammar features
that appears in Kurt’sutterances from some episodes. The researcher provides some
evidences of hypercorrect grammar used by Kurt that can be found in the seventh,
twelfth, and twentieth episodes.
[16] KURT:[She told me if I even talked to one of Mr. Shue’s kids that she would shave my head.]
[17] KURT: [Based on my investigation, I am of the opinion that a yearbook photo would only fuel the flames of anti-glee-club terror.]
It can be seen from the three excerpts above that Kurt keeps using the standard verb
forms in his utterances. He uses it even when he speaks to his friends in a
non-formal situation. The researcher assumes that Kurt does not want to look rough.
From those three excerpts, the researcher also finds out that Kurt chooses not to
abbreviate some words likeshe would intoshe’d andI am into I’m. It occurs not
only in those three excerpts but almost in all Kurt’s utterances. In the excerpt [18],
when Kurt talks to Finn about their shared room as a step-brother to be, he also uses
standard verb forms. Instead of using a non-formal form of going, he preferred to
use the formal one.
According to Lakoff (1975), women tend to use the hypercorrect grammar
because in society, they are not allowed to talk harshly. Women tend to avoid using
terms that are considered vulgar or coarse (Pan, 2011). Kurt is trying to keep his
attitude in front of people and does not want to look rough which can damage his
reputation. Here, the researcher finds an indication that Kurt applies hypercorrect
grammar in his speech in order to keep his good reputation in society. Therefore,
he tries to use the right and polite form so his society will recognize him as a good
person.
6. Raising Intonation on Declaratives
Lakoff (1975, p. 17) claims that, “there is a peculiar sentence intonation
pattern, found in English as far as I know only among women, which has the form
of a declarative answer to a question, and is used as such, but has the raising
Television Series Season 1, Kurt Hummel applies this feature in his speech and it
appears 12 times or in 6.769% of his utterances reflecting women’s language
features. The researcher provides some evidence from the selected episode.
The first evidence can be found in the fourth episode titled Preggers. The
raising intonation on declarative feature occurs when Kurt was auditioning for the
role of kicker in the football team. The utterance can be seen in excerpt [19].
[19]KURT:That was good, right? FINN:Aha, yeah.
KURT:[That was good?]
Excerpt [19] shows how Kurt raises his intonation after he kicks the football.
The ball that goes all the way through the uprights at a high velocity makes him
asks his friend, Finn, whether it is good or not and Finn says yes. Hearing Finn’s
answer, Kurt raises his intonation when he saysthat was good?since he is still not
sure of what he has done. He applies it in order to ask for confirmation from his
addressee whether his kick is satisfactory or not.
[20]KURT: So,[they just kicked her out?]
FINN: Yeah. Gave her half an hour to pack. Father set the timer on microwave.
The second evidence can be seen from the excerpt [20]. It is taken from episode
tenth fromGlee Television Series Season 1. When Kurt and Finn are talking about
Quinn, Kurt raises his intonation when he says they just kicked her out? to get a
confirmation from Finn about Quinn’s condition.
Raising intonation on declaratives is also found in the eighteenth episode.
He applies it when Kurt’s father talked to Kurt that it was hard to do things together
[21]BURT:Maybe I got carried away doing stuff with Finn, but you know, I told you this thing with you was going to be hard.
KURT:Thing with me.[You mean being gay?]
BURT:Yeah. Being gay. Look, I will fight to the death for your right to love whoever you want.
In that situation, Kurt wants to ask his father confirmation about what he means by
sayingyou mean being gay?as seen in the excerpt [21].
In short, Kurt Hummel applies raising intonation on declaratives in his
speech which are usually used by women. Women use them when they are hesitant
and need confirmation from each other. Here, Kurt also use the feature since he is
hesitant or not sure with himself. He needs confirmation from his addressee to make
him convinced. Most of this feature’s utterance used by Kurt were in the form of
yes-no questions.
7. Tag Questions
Lakoff (1975) proposed that tag questions are used when a speaker is stating
a claim, but lacks full confidence in the truth of that claim. The examples of tag
question areisn’t it?, right?, anddon’t we?appear in the final statement. Holmes
(1986) states that there are two functions of tag questions; they are modal meaning
and affective meaning. The affective meaning is divided into two, they are
facilitative, and softening. InGlee Television Series Season 1, it is found that Kurt
applies this feature five times. The researcher provides the evidences taken from
episodes 4, 8, 17 and 20 below.
[22]KURT:That was cool,[right?]
[24]KURT:And loaded with empty calories. You know why they call them slushes,[don’t you?]
[25]KURT:Ever since you separated from your wife, you’ve spent a lot of late nights watching reruns of Law and Order,[haven’t you?]
[26]KURT:If you’re gonna say something, say it loud,[right?]
From the excerpts above, Kurt used the tag questions ‘right?’ twice, and
‘don’t you?’,‘haven’t you?’, and‘can we?’once. When Kurt has finished kicking
the ball in the football player audition, he asked Fin about his kick. As can be seen
in the excerpt [22], Kurt asks that was cool, right?. The researcher assumes that
Kurt actually knows that his kick is good. However, he facilitates other to agree
with what he has said, by usingrightas a tag question.
Excerpts [23] and [24] are taken from episode 8. From excerpt [23], the
researcher believes that Kurt knows that Glee Club cannot let Finn be kicked from
the football team. Therefore, he asks we can’t have that, can we? to ask for his
friends’ confirmation. Kurt also tries to ask confirmation from his teacher, Mr.
Schue by applying a tag question as can be seen in the excerpt [24]. He needs
confirmation whether Mr. Schue knows why people named the drink slushes.
In the excerpt [25] that is taken from episode 17, Kurt uses tag question as
softening function. It happened when Kurt was being interrogated by Mr. Schue
about the G-list. In the middle of the interrogation, Kurt asked Mr. Schue whether
he spent his time to watch the rerun of one television program. When Kurt asks
him, he applies tag question haven’t you?as can be seen in the excerpt [25]. The
tag question expresses that Kurt is softening his utterance because he is concern for
