They Can't be the Same

They Can't be the Same

In communication between men and women, the two genders always communicate differently. Traditionally men communicate facts directly and are less likely to discuss details that have little to do with the conversation. Women traditionally are more careful about what they say and seek to build relationships by the way they communicate. These two forms of communication, direct (traditional male) and indirect (traditional female), are consistent throughout most cultures. There are cases where the men communicate indirectly and the women directly but not where both the genders communicate in the same way. (Lakoff 627) If the two genders do communicate in the same way, there is bound to be serious conflict that usually involves violence.

The movie Thelma and Louise tells the story of two women who have run away from their traditional roles as women. They have been put under too much pressure from society and especially men.

Veronica538 at work as truckdriver

Thelma & Louise

A Heavy-Duty Boom Truck similar to that used in th...

Both Thelma and Louise feel a need to change their position in society and they do it by changing the way they communicate. This change in communication between men and women causes the women to take on a stronger and more direct language which also included robbery and murder. They change from the traditional female forms of communication to a more masculine form of communication. Once they change, the men who they come into contact with change the way they communicate as well, or they face serious consequences. This demonstrates the fact that men and women are bound to communicate differently. In the movie, Thelma and Louise react violently to men who communicate directly to them after they have changed their form of communication. These violent reactions are a result of the men breaking the cultural ideal that men and women are bound to communicate differently.