ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the rhetorical strategies of few CEOs to determine if women with power in the business community use different strategies from their male counterparts. It then reviews linguistic and rhetorical research on gender and language and identifies attributes of male and female rhetorical strategies. Pedagogical advice on rhetorical style has traditionally been framed in male terms. Since the time when practical rhetoric was taught in colleges in the United States, textbooks have prescribed the 'plain style' with its emphasis on vigorous and forceful prose. The English language contains many male biases in grammar and diction, some particularly salient in business discourse. The language choices display the most salient differences from males' style of competitive sports and war metaphors; these texts contain metaphors equated with women's interests and values: romantic love; nurturing and stewardship; connectedness; and psychological growth and development.
