Post on 12-Sep-2021
American Anthropological Association Conference
Becoming Cosmetologists: Becoming Cosmetologists: Language Socialization in Language Socialization in
an African American an African American Beauty CollegeBeauty College
Lanita Jacobs-HueyAnthropology and American Studies & Ethnicity
University of Southern California November 19, 2003
Why Study Hair?Cultural Significance of PlaceCultural Significance of Place
Beauty Salon/Kitchen as Quintessential “Black Women’s Space”
Cultural Significance of Cultural Significance of PracticePractice
Hair Care Practice as Cultural and Highly Gendered eventsPractices and Places of Hair Care are, likewise, Important Sites of Language and Identity Socialization
Cultural Significance of HairCultural Significance of HairSocio-Political Semiotics of HairCultural Discourse(s) around both Hair and Hair Care
Cultural Sites of Black Hair Care
Home Hair CareHome Hair Care (Oakland, CA)Beauty SalonsBeauty Salons (Oakland, CA, Los Angeles, CA)Regional & International Hair ExposRegional & International Hair Expos (Los Angeles, CA, Columbia, SC, Atlanta, GA, London, England)Hair Educational SeminarsHair Educational Seminars (Los Angeles and Beverly Hills, CA, Charleston and Columbia, SC, Atlanta, GA, London, England)Christian Cosmetology AssociationChristian Cosmetology Association (Los Angeles, CA)Electronic/Listserv CommunitiesElectronic/Listserv Communities(Cyberspace)Cosmetology SchoolCosmetology School (Charleston, SC)
200 Hours of Recorded Data200 Hours of Recorded Data
From the Kitchen to the Parlor: Language & Becoming in Black Women’s Hair Care
66--year, multiyear, multi--sited sited ethnographic studyethnographic studyExplored women’s Explored women’s talk in beauty talk in beauty salons, hair salons, hair seminars, seminars, cosmetology cosmetology schools, bible study schools, bible study meetings, and, more meetings, and, more recently, black recently, black standup comedystandup comedyIssues of Issues of representation often representation often at heart of my at heart of my observations and observations and discoveriesdiscoveries
The Cosmetology Institute: Learning from Mistakes
Breaches (Breaches (GarfinkelGarfinkel 1967) or 1967) or “breaks in frames” (“breaks in frames” (GoffmanGoffman1981) happen when clients or 1981) happen when clients or stylists act “out of line” or in stylists act “out of line” or in other ways contest or subvert other ways contest or subvert their respective role expectations their respective role expectations as hair novices and hair expertsas hair novices and hair expertsClients can “break” implicit Clients can “break” implicit frames governing clientframes governing client--stylist stylist negotiations by asking too many negotiations by asking too many questions (Jacobsquestions (Jacobs--Huey 1996a) Huey 1996a) or actively monitoring the or actively monitoring the progression of their hairstyleprogression of their hairstyle
Learning from MistakesStylist, too, can disrupt implicit Stylist, too, can disrupt implicit institutional “scripts” (institutional “scripts” (SchankSchank & & AbelsonAbelson 1977) governing client1977) governing client--stylist stylist negotiationsnegotiations
Publicly or indirectly criticizing Publicly or indirectly criticizing colleague’s workcolleague’s workLexical breaches (saying “curling iron” Lexical breaches (saying “curling iron” versus “curler”) can mitigate the versus “curler”) can mitigate the professional nature of professional nature of cosmetologicalcosmetologicalpracticepractice
Breaches often compel speakers to Breaches often compel speakers to “bracket” or animate what went wrong “bracket” or animate what went wrong or was supposed to happen in or was supposed to happen in interaction (interaction (SchieffelinSchieffelin 1990)1990)
Learning from MistakesEthnographic & discourse Ethnographic & discourse analysanalys--eses of breach episodes reveal:of breach episodes reveal:
How cHow clients, stylists, and students lients, stylists, and students “bracket” specific linguistic exchanges“bracket” specific linguistic exchanges
Implicit linguistic ideologies about the Implicit linguistic ideologies about the communicative roles that distinguish communicative roles that distinguish service providers service providers from from service service recipients recipients in hair care in hair care Ideas about communicative stances Ideas about communicative stances deemed “suitable” for students and deemed “suitable” for students and their clients during hair caretheir clients during hair careThe “voices” (e.g., cultural, The “voices” (e.g., cultural, professional) employed by clients, professional) employed by clients, students, stylists in the execution students, stylists in the execution and/or resolution of a breachand/or resolution of a breachSpeakers’ mental states and intentions Speakers’ mental states and intentions in the perpetration of a “breach”in the perpetration of a “breach”
Linguistic Breaches inthe Field
LanitaLanita: : Mrs. Collins do Mrs. Collins do you plan on you plan on washing your washing your hair today?hair today?Mrs. CollinsMrs. Collins::Do you mean Do you mean shampoo?shampoo?Because you Because you wash dogs not wash dogs not hair.hair.
Linguistic Breaches beyond the Field
The Essay:The Essay: “Like Combing through My Kitchen with a Fine-Toothed Comb”The Ultimate Breach:The Ultimate Breach:Calling My Mother Out of Her NameThe Reprimand:The Reprimand: “I am not a hairdresser! I don’t dress the hair. I cultivate the hair.”
Insights from the Breach
Language a means of constructing expert identityProfessional talk as a means of socializing novices into proper discourse knowledge and roles
Reverberations across the Data
Language Socialization in Cosmetology SchoolLanguage Socialization in Advanced Hair Care SeminarsContending with Vulnerability: Exposing the Breach
Reverberations across the Data
Language Socialization Language Socialization in Cosmetology Schoolin Cosmetology SchoolLanguage Socialization in Advanced Hair Care SeminarsContending with Vulnerability: Exposing the Breach
Becoming Cosmetologists
Learning the Science of Hair = Learning the Professional Language of CosmetologyStudents learn to abandon Cultural/Kitchen Terminology for Scientific TerminologyStudents learn the symbolic power of word choice and correction as a rhetorical display of one’s expertise
Client-Stylist Negotiation at TCI
Client: Hi, I want to get something for this bad hair day hehheh
Ms. Smith: What do you want?
Client: A perm
Ms. Smith: A relaxer?
Client: A relaxer
Ms. Smith: Okay, that will be $20
Client-Stylist Negotiation at TCI
Client: Hi, I want to get somethingfor this bad hair day heh heh
Ms. Smith: What do you want?
Client: A perm
Ms. Smith: A relaxer? A relaxer?
Client: A relaxer
Ms. Smith: Okay, that will be $20
Ms. Smith’s rising intonation marks her reply
as a question; an explicit repair
Ms. Smith’s rising intonation marks her reply
as a question; an explicit repair
Client-Stylist Negotiation at TCI
Client: Hi, I want to get something for this bad hair day heh heh
Ms. Smith: What do you want?
Client: A perm
Ms. Smith: A relaxer? A relaxer?
Client: A relaxer
Ms. Smith: Okay, that Okay, that
will be $20will be $20
Ms. Smith’s rising intonation marks
her reply as a question; an
explicit repair
Ms. Smith’s rising intonation marks
her reply as a question; an
explicit repair
Only when client provides “right”
answer is her request legitimized
before all
Only when client provides “right”
answer is her request legitimized
before all
The Work of Correction
Linguistic means of displaying expertise and socializing novices
Ms. Smith’s correction establishes establishes her expertise as a stylist/teacherher expertise as a stylist/teacherMs. Smith’s repair also socializes the socializes the client to respect her knowledgeclient to respect her knowledgeand use “proper” salon use “proper” salon communication when making a communication when making a hairstyle requesthairstyle requestThe client’s subsequent visit proves this socialization to be a “success”
Breaches in preferred courses of discursive action can be actively or tacitly used to provoke repairs and, as such, act as mediators of language and cultural socialization (Mertz 1992)
Reverberations across the Data
Language Socialization in Cosmetology SchoolLanguage Socialization Language Socialization in Advanced Hair Care in Advanced Hair Care SeminarsSeminarsContending with Vulnerability: Exposing the Breach
Language Socialization in Advanced Hair Care
Seminars
““We are We are like like
Doctors” Doctors” [Transcript 1][Transcript 1]
“We are Like Doctors”
Language as a Mediator of Professional IdentityMeta-pragmatic Ideology of Language
Language as a resource in the socialization of professional beings
What’s at stake?
What’s at Stake?
““Clients as Clients as Potential Potential
Competitors” Competitors” [Transcript 2][Transcript 2]
Clients as Potential Competitors
Dilemma: Hairstylists’ skill and knowledge must be constructed and is oft-contestedBecause clients are not “dependent” on stylists to the same degree as patients are on doctors, Khalif stresses the importance of obscuring clients’ lay knowledge and hair care skillStylists rely on the register of medical discourse and an ideological alignment with doctors to represent themselves as experts
What’s at Stake?Clients as Potential CompetitorsCosmetologists’ Cosmetologists’ expertise is subject expertise is subject to contestation, to contestation, resistance,resistance, and ridicule
What’s at Stake? Social Face
Expositions on the “Difficult Expositions on the “Difficult Client”Client”
“She [client] steady struggling to see. I turn her chair this way, she turning against me…” (Deirdre, TCI Student)
After Lynn (TCI student) completes a client’s hair, the client picks up Lynn’s curling iron and proceeds to curl her hair. After the client leaves, another sympathetic client observes, “You have to be patient, huh?” Lynn responds, “Yeah, I have to be in my profes-sion.” The client adds, “Yeah, I do too … but that client tried to curl her hair with your curler!” Lynn replies, “Yeah, but I took it away from her.”
What’s at Stake?
Clients as Potential CompetitorsCosmetologists’ Cosmetologists’ expertise is subject expertise is subject toto contestation, resistance, and ridiculeridicule
What’s at Stake?
“Hairstylists? …You “Hairstylists? …You know ya’ll know ya’ll ain’tain’tsh%! right?” sh%! right?”
[Comedy Clip][Comedy Clip]
Black Humor as a Marker of Local Knowledge
Black/“urban” standup comedy as a communal forum
Black comedy exposes in-group/cultural knowledge and secrets
Black comedy as counterhegemonic narrative
Black comedy “speaks truth to power”
Jokes about black stylists and Jokes about black stylists and black hair salons, as well as black hair salons, as well as audience’s laughter, reveal local audience’s laughter, reveal local knowledgeknowledge
Reverberations across the Data
Language Socialization in Cosmetology SchoolLanguage Socialization in Advanced Hair Care SeminarsContending with Contending with Vulnerability: Vulnerability: Exposing the BreachExposing the Breach
Contending with Vulnerability
Cosmetology Students = Vulnerable SubjectsClient’s challenges can = assaults on students’ professional faceResolution of linguistic breaches further reveal “what is at stake” in language and representa-tion for student and licensed stylists
The Case of Multiple Breaches
Notes from the FieldNotes from the Field(See Handout, Pg. 3)
The Case of Multiple Breaches
Notes from the FieldNotes from the Field(See Handout, Pg. 3)
Clients distinction between “cut”and “trim” and reference to her 46 years of hair care service situate her as co-expert Ms. Collins must empathize with the client, while preserving her own professional face - even as the client threatens to subvert itHigh-stakes engagement before attentive audience of vulnerable and impressionable bystanders (e.g., clients and students)
The Case of Multiple Breaches
Notes from the FieldNotes from the Field(See Handout, Pg. 3)
Deirdre, an “unratified partici-pant,” signifies on the perceived inappropriateness of the client’s verbal and nonverbal behavior: “Acting like she the stylist … No she didn’t!”The client recognizes herself to be the intended target and, in turn, exposes and critiques Deirdre’s interferenceMrs. Collins also attempts to silence DeirdreMrs. Collins’ failure to align with Deirdre is viewed by students as a stance of disloyalty
The Case of Multiple Breaches
What counts as a linguistic breach?Who is responsible for the breach (i.e., client, student, teacher)? These questions become the focus of a subsequent lesson on “Salon Management”(Transcripts 3(Transcripts 3--4)4)
Where’s the Breach?Transcript 3Transcript 3 (See Handout, Pg. 4)
Where’s the Breach?Transcript 3Transcript 3 (See Handout, Pg. 4)
Mrs. Collins’ comments seem apropos to the earlier exchange involving her, Deirdre, and the disgruntled client (lines 16-20)Deirdre contests the relevance of the textbook script to interactions at the school; she feels clients unfairly exploit student labor and treat them poorly (line 21)
Where’s the Breach?Transcript 4Transcript 4 (See Handout, Pg. 5-6)
Where’s the Breach?Transcript 4Transcript 4 (See Handout, Pg. 5-6)
Deirdre invokes the case of “multiple breaches” and again critiques the clients’ perceived breach of stylists’ professional face (lines 41-43)Deirdre acknowledges her “veiled” critique of client (line 42)Mrs. Collins explicitly problematizes Deirdre’s involvement (lines 44, 46)
Where’s the Breach?Transcript 4Transcript 4 (See Handout, Pg. 5-6)
In particular, Mrs. Collins suggests that a client-stylist negotiation is a personal affair and Deirdre breached this implicit contract (lines 55, 57, 60, 66, 72, 75)Deirdre disavows her “veiled” critique of the client (lines 56, 58)Deirdre problematizesclient’s “expert” stance (lines 71, 73-74)
Where’s the Breach?Transcript 4Transcript 4 (See Handout, Pg. 5-6)
Deirdre perceives Mrs. Collins to be complicit in breaching implicit linguistic protocols governing stylists’ conduct by occasionally obliging clients’ hair care requests for a seasoned cosmetologist (lines 49, 67-69, 76-91)While Deirdre and Mrs. Collins disagree on the exact nature and person(s) responsible for the breach, they broach a consensus on clients’ need to understand the fact that students are (still) learning (lines 93-95)
Final RemarksLanguage is an important mediator of Language is an important mediator of stylistsstylists’’ professional identityprofessional identity
Lexical ChoicesLexical ChoicesLinguistic IdeologyLinguistic Ideology
Language socialization is a principal Language socialization is a principal means through which cosmetology means through which cosmetology students students ““becomebecome”” cosmetologists and cosmetologists and stylistsstylists’’ affirm their membership in a affirm their membership in a shared (and ever vulnerable) shared (and ever vulnerable) community of practicecommunity of practiceCorrection is but one of many means Correction is but one of many means of socializing novices to respect of socializing novices to respect stylistsstylists’’ authority and knowledgeauthority and knowledge
Learning from the Breach
Breaches reveal the linguistic Breaches reveal the linguistic ideologies and strategies which ideologies and strategies which comprise stylistscomprise stylists’’ faceface--work (work (GoffmanGoffman1967)1967)Students are socialized Students are socialized throughthrough and and totoprofessional identity and language use professional identity and language use –– even in the violation and subsequent even in the violation and subsequent reconstitution of communal and reconstitution of communal and institutional metainstitutional meta--scripts.scripts.The professional and cultural discourse The professional and cultural discourse strategies student and licensed stylists strategies student and licensed stylists employ to mitigate threats to their employ to mitigate threats to their individual and collective social face individual and collective social face reveal implicit linguistic contracts reveal implicit linguistic contracts governing their servicegoverning their service--related related encounters.encounters.
Learning from the Breach
Whether enacted by clients or stylists, Whether enacted by clients or stylists, unwittingly or intentionally unwittingly or intentionally –– breaches breaches are prime occasions in which to are prime occasions in which to investigate TCI studentsinvestigate TCI students’’ acquisition acquisition and use of professional and use of professional literaciesliteracies
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