Review Of Tony Kornheiser's No Detail Is Too Small For Women

There has always been a debate about the differences in communication between males and females. In his essay, “No Detail Is Too Small for Girls Answering a Simple Question,” Tony Kornheiser believes that girls tend to give out more details and specificity about a subject (feminine style), whereas boys tend to be more straightforward and to the point (masculine style). The author uses examples of his daughter and son to compare the way they speak and the amount of facts they would give. By using them, the author shows the different styles of communication and their effects on listeners. Based on my experiences in a Model United Nations conference and Boy Scouts of America, I feel that the feminine style is more effective in communication.

Details and specificities are key tools in communication.

Kornheiser mentions that women “…gather information and dispense it without discrimination…they are fascinated by the multiplicity of choices that they see” (Kornheiser 279). This feminine style of communication is very important in formal settings such as the Model United Nations Conference that I attended. In the conference, I observed people who give vast amounts of details and those who did not. Those who give specifics about their solutions tend to attract more delegates. They are also usually the leaders of the conference. This is because many of the delegates put trust onto those who appear to demonstrate more knowledge and understanding of their ideas. Delegates that give details gain attention and dominance. In the delegates’ eyes, people who are able to talk more have more potential. Communication is effective in this sense because the delegates are more persuaded and convinced by the person with the most thorough speech. There is no room for question or doubt since the person seems

reliable.
On the other hand, those who are laconic and straight to the point tend to be followers, and fail to communicate properly. Kornheiser explains that boys, like his son, are “short and to the point” (279). This is not effective, however. I have observed a delegate who understands the wants of his country and the reasons why his ideas are better, yet his speech did not attract many delegates to him. Those who find his general ideas to be good still decide to find someone else since they feel that he is unreliable. In other words, they feel that his ideas may be useless since he did not give any unique or significant details. No one was fully convinced since his evidence is not credible.
This idea was reinforced when I was in Boy Scouts. In order to advance to the Eagle Rank, all Boy Scouts must create and complete an Eagle Project planned solely by the person. My Eagle Project was to fix a part of a sidewalk in front of an elementary school. I quickly realized that these large-scale projects are not as easy as I thought. When I was presenting it in front of my counselor, I did not explain enough of the project in my speech. Although I was thorough, explaining what I want and how I would execute the project, the details were not specific enough. My counselor rejected it and found many flaws in the plan. He mentioned to me that I missed many important details such as how I am going to feed volunteers, or how I am going to buy these materials without a fundraiser. These aspects never crossed my mind. In that moment, I realized that my project would have failed miserably if I explained my plan to the volunteers with the same lack of detail as I did to my counselor. After putting more thought into it, I presented my project to the Troop and it turned out to be a success. All the volunteers were able to do their job correctly and properly. I was able to finish the project on time.
For successful planning, people not only have to be leaders, but also effective communicators. Tony Kornheiser explains the general differences in talking between male and female. Between the two styles, however, the feminine style communicates the best. To convince and persuade, one needs specifics that others can trust and believe in.