VARIATIONS IN EXPRESSION OF LOVE: A CRITICAL DISCOURSE ANALYSIS OF MALE AND FEMALE STYLES IN THE KISS QUOTIENT BY HELEN HOANG

Abstract

The area of love as a linguistic and cultural construct represents the clarity of emotion, gender and social ideology. Modern day fiction gives a worthy platform to explore the influence of gender roles on the expression of emotions. This study examines the way in which male and female characters in The Kiss Quotient are different regarding their linguistic behaviour expressions of love and the way in which the society conditions them to express their love. The theoretical analysis of the discourse is conducted through the selected dialogues and narrative bits of the novel using the three-dimensional Critical Discourse Analysis model by Fairclough to discuss the discursive patterns of gender. Findings demonstrate that the male and female characters employ different but similar linguistic techniques, women are more open and vulnerable, and men are more restrained in their emotions and assertive, disrupting the conventional gendered discourse. The study concludes that the novel by Hoang is a re-conceptualisation of the discourse of love by offering a balance in emotions, which demonstrate a changing ideology of gender equality in relationships when it comes to expressing love.