The Reduced Forms "gonna", "wanna", "gotta" in The Television Series "Friends": A Gender Perspective

Abstract

Sociolinguistics have found that women use nonstandard and informal forms less frequently than men do. The present study has examined whether these gender-related differences are reflected in the dialogue in the TV series "Friends" and to what extent linguistic features in this TV series differ from corresponding features in natural conversation. The 36 episodes of TV series "Friends" were examined for the use of the reduced forms "gonna", "wanna" and "gotta" by the main characters, and a gender-related comparison was derived from the results of this examination. The corpus linguistic approach was the main method used in the present study. As the results show, the hypothesis was corroborated only in the case of "gotta": female characters use this particular reduced form less. The use of the reduced forms "gonna", "gotta", and "wanna" in "Friends" have a tendency to increase over time which corresponds with the results of research into natural conversation. A significantly greater frequency of reduced forms was reported for the TV series "Friends'" conversation than for the natural spoken component. In general, the dialogue in "Friends" demonstrates the same tendency that characterizes the use of reduced forms in natural conversation, though some differences are apparent.