A New Perspective on Women's Language in Japanese: An Interview with Sachiko Ide

要旨

A New Perspective on Women's Language in Japanese: An Interview with Sachiko Ide Satomi Mishina University of California, Los Angeles PROFILE Sachiko Ide is currently a professor in linguistics at Japan Women's University in Tokyo. After she completed her B . A . in English at Japan Women's University, she pursued her M . A . in Education at International Christian University in Tokyo, during which time she also studied at University of Wisconsin, Madison. From the very early days of her studies, she had a strong interest in the relationship between language and culture/society, and she was one of the very few researchers of her time who recognized the significance of the socio-cultural aspect of language. Her major research on linguistic politeness, women's language and Japanese evidentials and epistemological stance, much of which was supported by major grants, has been very innovative, and her publications have made a significant impact on academic and non- academic audiences alike. Thanks to her keen intuition about the value of examining language in real context coupled with her powerful leadership abilities, she is now a leading scholar in the field of pragmatics and sociolinguistics. Her contribution to the field through other professional activities is also outstanding: She is the Editor for Multilingua (Journal of Cross-Cultural and Interlanguage Communication) and Gengokenkyuu (Journal of the Linguistic Society of Japan). She is a member of the organizing committee for major linguistic associations including the Linguistic Society of Japan and the English Linguistic Society of Japan. A n d most importantly, she has inspired a very large number of young researchers to follow her and to further explore this exciting field. IAL is delighted that Sachiko Ide agreed to spend time with us for this Special Issue to answer some highly relevant questions regarding women's language in Japanese. The interviewer, motivated by an issue in her own teaching experience, was genuinely eager to discuss this topic with Professor Ide. The interview was conducted at Japan Women's University on July 15th, 1994. Issues in Applied Linguistics © Regents of the University of California ISSN 1050-4273 V o l . 5 No. 2 1994 425-435