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72 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Maltz and Borker’s ideas about how and why men and women use language differently |
- men and women inhabit two distinct subcultures with different rules regarding language use - differences are CULTURAL - women subculture use speech more for cooperation and inclusion, men for expressing dominance |
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Lakoff's ideas about how and why men and women use language differently |
- women use more hedges, polite/superpolite forms, tag questions, questioning intontation in statements, and emotional expression - womens place is to sound nice but sounding nice makes you less authoritative - men to sound authoritative makes them sound less nice - DOUBLE BIND: women who take on authoritative male role viewed as cold and mean, but unauthoritative if nice -> men as incompetent if sound nice
CONFIRMED BY DUKE WL GUISE TEST
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Be able to describe OBarr and Atkins’ study of language use in North Carolina courts. What were their main findings and conclusions? |
Counted instances of women's language in courts - found that women more often use women's language features, but not when at an expert witness status -> both genders of higher status less likely to use it -> therefore not WOMEN's language, but POWERLESS language however, because in US there are more male experts than female, people EXPECT women to talk in powerless language and react badly if they don't |
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matched guise test and findings in Quebec |
- records same speaker in different guises, though Quebecs pride French language, rate English speakers more intelligent and competent |
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ideological model of literacy |
impact of literacy will vary according to the way it is used in society and attitudes associated with it |
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hysteresis effect |
in reference to the generational differences in models of agency -> older more fatalistic, younger more individualistic
-conditions of existence, with different definitions for the imposs, poss, and probable, case one group to experience as natural and reasonable practices what the other group considers unthinkable, scandalous, etc. and VICE VERSA
-> because they have existed in diff times with diff definitions for life and expectations, each group oppose what the other considers natural and fact |
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structures of feeling |
perceptions and values shared by a group at a particular time (like culture in that = values and beliefs, BUT emphasis that its ALWAYS CHANGING) |
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be able to describe the ways that Nepalese villagers internalize assumptions about the Nepalese nation, about family, about development and about individual agency as they learn to read. |
Within the development discourse of materials such as textbooks, magazines, film, government materials, etc. attempts are made to portray a new modern and "developed" ideal of modernity. Though Nepalis might not directly adopt or agree on the exact message of these materials, they nevertheless internalize the structures of feelings that take shape from them in terms of agency, responsibility for actions, and how they view themselves as individuals
THIS HAS BEEN SHAPED IN TERMS OF: Nepalese Nation: advocate a nationalism that incorporates Hinduism as the state religion Family: advocates the happy, nuclear family in which members contribute to the capitalist working of the unit (distant from the extended family notion where people work for the family as opposed to for money?) Development: in terms of the individual actions that take place to contribute to development, it is a result of INDIVIDUAL responsibilities and actions that development takes place. Development is also associated with love -> while challenging certain cultural features (like poor sanitation) REINFORCING gender and age hierarchies Individual agency: propose a new conception of individual agency that attributes responsibility for events to INDIVIDUALS rather than fate (though not entirely the case, contextual) -> efficacy of human action Personhood: espouse more individualistic notion of personhood
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Be able to describe changing ideas about individual agency and consent. |
changing ideas promote individualistic causality via elopement over fatalistic via forced/ coerced marriage
--> change in beliefs of agency and structures of feeling have created this emphasis on the INDIVIDUALS causality and a belief in the responsibility of INDIVIDUALS in events rather than purely fate... recognizing efficacy of human action ... this has inspired not MORE agency, but a changed ideas of agency in terms of how they attribute responsibility to events, percieve constraints and possibilities for action, and how they view themselves as individuals
-> in CONSENT: change to believe in elopement over forced or arranged marriage, an emphasis on consent appears to be more agency but in reality only changed in how they view it -> consent also means to obey - many people are coerced into elopements, idea of a "good" female says should not decide for themselves, women remain passive and still can be convinced into these marriages -> "fate" controls their live, nothing they can do |
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Practice theory of meaning constraint |
determination of a constrained range of possible meanings associated with situated speech events
rather than attempting to formulate a definitive interpretation, instead look at the information that may CONSTRAIN the type and number of meanings ---> do this by looking at the text and the context for factors that limit interpretive indeterminacy
HOW INDIVIDUALS ACTIVELY CONSTRUCT AND CONSTRAIN, RATHER THAN PASSIVELY RECEIVE, INTERPRETATIONS THAT ARE BOTH SOCIALLY MEDIATED AND INTERTEXTUALLY SITUATED WITHIN A BOUNDED NETWORK OF DISCOURSE |
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Be able to explain why Ahearn believes that literacy has changed ideas about individual agency and about romantic love but may not have given women more control over their own lives. |
Literacy has made it so that romantic love is associated with being educated and modern -> love as something that happens TO YOU, romantic love allows you to overcome obstacles (though still love is viewed as uncontrollable)
The idea of romantic love as being that you choose your marriage partner out of love, both parties consent, therefore you have more control over your own life IN REALITY -> love as uncontrollable so people lose control over their own decisions; forced into elopements, role of men to convince and coerce women into marriage through love letters, role of women to passively accept those invitations to love -> not actually giving them more agency, consent = obeying ideas of a good female = not decide for self but be passive, receive proposals NOT making them, shouldnt want to be sexually active, decline dance offers even if like them
women believe there is still something else controlling their lives -> marriage not entirely their decision, therefore not an increase of agency just a changed form of it -> women at altar don't really want to be but feel "what can you do" not own choice |
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"Imagined communities" |
- Benedict Anderson - "imagined community" = communities not based on face to face interaction, but with people like oneself, who live at the same time but in a different place -> consociates who you feel to be like yourself (because share common background and experiences) but don't necessarily KNOW
- the way that newspapers used a common language and detailed shared experiences created imagined communities which people developed a deep sense of pride about -> because prior, people didn't have any sense of belonging to a larger unit beyond people they knew, this created NATIONALISM
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"networked public" |
- spaces where people who consider themselves to be a community connect and help construct society as we understand it - a VIRTUAL public space where they can interact, centered around social media - teens now spend more time in networked publics than in real publics ---> serve many of the same functions as spatial/real publics (like malls) did for previous generations of teens
SOCIAL MEDIAS CREATE NETWORKED PUBLICS THAT ALLOW PEOPLE TO SEE THEMSELVES AS A PART OF A BROADER COMMUNITY (A COLLECTIVELY IMAGINED COMMUNITY) ----- this is exactly why teens desire networked public just as any public - because want to be part of a broader world through connecting with others and having freedom of mobility (so can make own independence) |
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MORAL PANICS |
ALL TECHNOLOGIES INSPIRE MORAL PANICS- fearful commentaries (even sewing machines)
- DYSTOPIAN = focuses on the terrible things that a technology will do to a society in which it ruins everything (sometimes once laughable, but at the time very real concerns) ERODE REAL COMMUNICATION, PRESENT DANGEROUS ONES 1) young people have no social skills because they are just glued to their text messaging all the time; have no ability to communicate face to face 2) young people will become alienated from family and face to face communities and have anonymous and perhaps dangerous friends who they don’t really know 3) people present false personas over virtual networks
- UTOPIAN = belief that a tech, when adopted, will transform society in great ways (will solve the major world problems, but when fails to, people become disillusioned) will level social divides; allow people to communicate over geography, race, social class; give everyone equal access to information ---CREATE EQUALITY
-BASED ON TECHNOLOGICAL DETERMINISM -> that tech possess intrinsic powers to affect ALL people in ALL situations the same way
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Be able to describe Fijian use of Facebook as an illustration of the ways Facebook tends to reinforce existing social divisions rather than transcending them. How does Fijian facebook help Fijians to create a young modern identity? |
- though Fijians have many friends overseas they would like to keep in contact with they primarily use Facebook to connect with people they regularly see ---> this is because: 1) they use Facebook for posting and tagging photos from events, so naturally communicating with those they are close with 2) they reinforce existing social divisions rather than transcend them as their a) references to the Christian themes standard to their society but not others, alongside their b) usage of Finglish in-group slang hard to understand if not Fijian, as well as c) Fijian style joking/teasing difficult for outsides to understand (jokes about weight, etc.)
FIJIAN FACEBOOK THEREFORE ALLOWS PEOPLE TO: - joke around and tease as equals without the formality of contexts with tradition and elders, etc. -> GIVES PEOPLE A PLACE TO JOKE AROUND WITH THOSE THEY ARE CLOSE WITHOUT FORMALITY thus: because more young and educated people use Facebook, ideology that FB is a place where you act in an informal, "modern," urban way - not like a tradition bound villager
REINFORCES EXISTING SOCIAL NETWORKS BECAUSE USE IT TO REALIZE THEIR ATTRACTION TO A SOCIALITY THAT EXPRESSES HOW TO BE A "MODERN" FIJIAN |
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Affordances |
properties of the communicative medium that influence the kind of communication that goes on --> analyzed in terms of 1) what does it allow easily 2) what does it not allow easily and 3) what are the unintended circumstances
DO NOT PREDICT HOW PPL COMMUNICATE, SOLELY SHAPES THE SITUATION IN WHICH THEY DO
--> 4 main affordances of social media: 1) persistence 2) visibility 3) searchability 4) spreadability ------- these have all existed previously, but now new tools attuned to them alter and amplify the situation and create new social dynamics
TEENS ARE AWARE OF THESE AFFORDANCES TAKING PLACE, BUT THE FACT THAT IT IS EVERYDAY LIFE LEADS THEM TO NOT ANALYZE THEM LIKE PARENTS DO |
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Media Ideologies |
- a set of beliefs about communicative technologies that shape the way people use them, what they should be used for, and what kind of communication is appropriate --> not always fully shared - e.g., generational diffs on views of emails (older ppl sometimes view it more lax)
- differences in media ideologies in texting/FB/email -> email boss and profs, don't FB boss / profs ... don't post anything overly personal on FB, not too many selfies, texting personal OK
------WHO YOU COMMUNICATE WITH, HOW YOU COMMUNICATE (ETIQUETTE), WHAT YOU COMMUNICATE (TOPICS DISCUSSED), ETC. |
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Why does Danah Boyd think that American teens use social media in ways that enhances their relationships from the people around them but does not radically transform their relationships? --- how do they use social media to 1) reinforce, but also 2) achieve what they wish they could in face to face |
- teens use to reinforce existing social relationships because of their desire to cultivate CHOSEN relationships and because their reason for using them is the same as their reasons for hanging out in real publics, just to separate from family and create individual identity in the world, not trying to branch out and start new relationships just trying to concrete their current relationships ...
in using social media therefore they reinforce their social networks because of this desire. and subsequently attempt to distance themselves and achieve privacy in public from their parents, etc. which is different in face to face interaction (limited freedom in this day in age) -> gives them a place to socialize regardless of these restrictions |
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How and why does social media reinforce existing social divisions rather than allowing people to overcome these? |
Because kids only use social media to connect with their existing social networks, and social divides existing in those IRL relations transfer over to social media. Because those relations are strengthened, then so are the divides as opposed to transcending them. RACIAL AND CLASS DIVIDES REINFORCED BY THE AFFORDANCES OF THE MEDIA -> control their privacy through in-group references that keeps out outsiders (as seen in Fijians)
e.g., Schenectady IB program segregated by race, therefore only added on FB people from their race because thats "who they knew"
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affordances of social media sometimes lead to new kinds of problems such as remarks being taken out of context and reaching audiences they weren’t intended for. |
- because easy to search, everything public by default, this makes it so that things can be searched by people not intended to see it - > admissions officer rejecting student whose profile clearly contradicted his essay about getting out of gang life
----> when taken out of context, seems to hold a new meaning |
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Be able to describe positive and negative predictions for the impact of the internet and social media on social relations and why Boyd feels these have not materialized. |
dystonian beliefs of inability to communicate regularly and talking with dangerous people utopian beliefs that it will level all social divides --- havent materialized because only talk with people they already talk with, and don't really face danger because they don't use it enough for that context (more dangerous IRL where you can be abducted unexpectedly, more often child molestation occurs in the home, etc.) |
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Be able to explain Boyd’s argument about how teens are able to control social media much more than adults realize. |
Through social steganography - hiding messages in plain sight by leveraging shared knowledge and cues embedded in particular social contexts. ----> therefore sharing publicly but keeping the true meaning private
also use sharing as a means to CONTROL a social situation – keep people occupied with what THEY put out of themselves as a public image to protect their more intimate personal life
often want to keep their profile on private so as to avoid any interference / surveillance from their immediate authority figures, → to this extent it is the same as in public – though want to be in public like the mall surrounded by people they want to keep their discussions and immediate activities private so they can be a part of the larger world but still hold control over their individual agency |
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What did studies of ketai use in Japan show about the effect of smartphones on social relations there? |
- studies on ketai use in Japan showed that 90% of communication was used between 5-10 intimate friends, so clearly used more within same social groups rather than create new ones --> ENHANCES these face to face relations as opposed to replacing them because allowed communication in even more situations, where you wouldn't have been communicating before now you can
ketai largely used PHATIC communication (comm. for purpose of social interaction rather than just sharing information) - mood checks, short cute messages, emoticons, "I'm thinking of you"
As families are largely urban, who only spend one hour a day together, ketai can INCREASE communication as mom who stay at home can communicate with children |
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Selective Sociality
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- less hanging out with the people who are just right around you and more CHOOSE who you hang out with -> e.g. students don’t go to coffee shops after class, instead they have a few close people they like a lot and keep in close touch with
IN JAPAN, TWO CATEGORIES OF FRIENDS: 1) close friends from middle school, 2) close friend from old neighborhood
---> people choose from their situations who they want to be social with and thus their sociality is selective
creates networked individualism |
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Homophily
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- tendency of people to choose to interact with people like ourselves
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Positive and negative sides to selective sociality and homophily |
POSITIVE OF THIS: more choice and control over whom we interact with rather than just being stuck with the people right around us ---> which as seen in Japanese teen girls COMBATS BULLYING
B/C selective sociality (we choose who we like to socialize with rather than just socialize with all those around us) and homophily (we like to socialize with those similar to us) ----> CHOICE OF WHO WE SOCIALIZE WITH IS CHARACTERIZED BY THOSE SIMILAR TO US therefore: NEGATIVE: 1) May not necessarily socialize with people other than yourself, therefore when you have to, its difficult SO 2) we then have little feeling of obligation to something bigger than ourselves, we feel we can just "opt out" because we just stick to the people we're comfortable with rather than getting to know people different from us. |
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Networked Individualism |
- the result of selective sociality - each person selects people that they like and arranges to meet them for specific purposes
---> your network of friends isn't just based on the school or neighborhood you live in, its a culmination of people you specifically choose, from a variety of groups (social situations) THUS: each network is UNIQUE -> a constellation of people who you are connected to at the center, these people may also be connected with each other but have own network with them at center
More flexible interpersonal relationships based on choice (each relation can be used for diff purposes)?
look at friends list on FB -> people you chose to friend from a variety of different contexts you've been in - nobody else has that same network
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Be able to explain the main points in American Tongues about attitudes towards accents in the US. |
There are lots of biases and stereotypes based on accents in US ->
1) portrayed in media and movies to seem wrong for professional setting 2) regional accents tend to make you sound less intelligent and less educated 3) people often will "slip into" their regional accent when they're around others using it - influenced by the people around them |
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What are the positive and negative connotations of strong regional accents? |
POSITIVE = relatable / a person of the people?, being "real," "raw," and natural, southern=charming, comforting
NEGATIVE = unprofessional, often viewed as less intelligent and educated, can't do their job properly, southern/NY= incompetent and wrong |
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Why do stigmatized regional dialects persist in the US? |
- not just because of geographic isolation or mass media anymore, now largely because they express IDENTITY and thus dialects hold many symbolic associations-----> WE USE REGIONAL DIALECTS TO SIGNAL AN IDENTITY OF TRUSTWORTHINESS AND INTEGRITY |
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Be able to explain the shifts in broadcaster English over the 20th century in the US. |
- broadcaster english is the perceived standard, accentless version of English in america, what most consider "correct" - Up until WW2 people emulated British "International English" by dropping "r"s (unless before vowel) and annunciating "t" -> non-prevocalic r ----> this was viewed as prestigious, associated with upper crust
POST WW2: stopped using this r dropping, and now r dropping is associated with lower class uneducated ------> shows a shift in how standard is viewed similar in pattern to Australia - standard once associated with upper crust, NOW deals with identity as Americans --therefore standard shifted to an accentless midlands version and those "r" dropping dialects (NY) viewed as improper English |
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Be able to describe the main findings of Labov’s studies on r dropping in NYC department stores and on “Ing” vs. “In” use. |
had ppl in department stores of 3 diff classes say "fourth floor" -> studied linguistic variable of dropping NONprevocalic "R" -> found that nonprevocalic r dropped most in lower social class, less as class increases -> yet also dropped more in informal contexts -> however higher status didn't drop as much even in these informal contexts
- STRONG ASSOCIATION OF DROPPING NONPREVOCALIC R IN LOWER CLASSES AND INFORMAL CONTEXTS
- When asked questions using that nonprevocalic variable, found that r retaining associated with education and intelligence, r dropping with toughness and trustworthiness ---> STANDARDS = more overt prestige (associations of intelligence, education, competence) ---> VERNACULARS = more covert prestige (associations of toughness, integrity)
study in NYC on sociolinguistic variable of "ing" vs "in" usage found that ING vs. IN was associated with social class, but also associations regarding context ---> everyone uses ING in formal contexts, but higher class use ING in informal as well
----> people rated ING as being more appropriate for newscaster, and being more intelligent
SIG B/C ING V. IN NOW USED ALL OVER COUNTRY DEPENDING ON PURPOSE -> EVEN OBAMA USES IN (SEEN IN BBQ V. CONFERENCE) TO SHOW IDENTITY OF TRUSTWORTHINESS AND INTEGRITY -> a "man of the people"
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sociolinguistic variable |
different ways of saying the same thing - can be phonetic (sound, accent -> ou in Canadians) or can be a word (roundabout/traffic circle) --> we associate this variable with a social group or context |
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How and why do accents in Australia differ from the US? |
In Australia, don't have regional or class related accents despite being settled by different people and being a big country like the US
Australia like US standard started off associated with upper crust and British accent ---> later a push to associate standard with national identity and a push away from being elite in BOTH created a push for a diff standard (a standard of their own)
- Australians pride having OWN standard of language that isn't differentiable, expresses an EGALITARIAN society that embraced a lower class, Cockney accent and made that the standard ---versus USA, this accent is now associated with lower class, standard is accentless, but because accents are associated with regional IDs still they are used for some purposes depending on their associations |
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Be able to explain why accents such as the Inland North/great lakes accents have diverged from standard American English over the second half of the 20th century. |
- inland north dialect developed northern city vowel switch - this is a dialect / accent thats STRENGTHENING with time -> DIVERGING from standard - pronounce "ae" such as in "happened" like the vowel sound in "yeah" -> what "heappened" ---- this has then served to shift 4 other vowel sounds creating a new dialect in an area that used to be considered the most accentless, standard ------------------because it affects so many of the vowels in such drastic way this causes a lot of miscommunication and difficulty understanding what people say -> bosses becomes buses, etc.
WHY IS THIS STRENGTHENING? not isolation, bc it expresses identity -> blue state and counties , MOVE FROM ITALIAN ID?? (how does this relate to eckert who found that upwardly mobile, a student 'jocks' use the dialect more than 'burnouts' who rebel against school culture?) |
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Why has the southern accent faded among educated southerners since WW2? Why has a generic country/southern accent spread among truckers and country and western singers? |
Southern accent fading in Southerners because of its associations with slavery and a push for more civil rights (and just generally over time fading out). Also, large migrations of northerners into the big cities of south are diluting the accent and making it fade out -> even pronouncing their "r"s ------> in the areas where used to have r-dropping (like north carolina / savannah, etc) now pronounce R's, poss because were influenced by the Scot-Irish settlers in the same area who DO pronounce R's -> NOW, "southern" accent not characteristic of dropping "r"s but by "ay-ungliding" shift in vowels pronunciation
generic country/southern accent spread among truckers (on the road they listen to country music, over their walkytalky radio sound very country accented) and country/western singers (even if don't have that accent, sing country music with an accent), say it has "character", use it because it signals a positive ID for them, emphasizes a "cowboy" image in which their independent, haven't kissed ass nor have they buckled down to authority, they are rugged and go their own way THIS IS GOOD FOR THEM BECAUSE --- VIDEO |
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How and why has AAVE diverged from standard American English over the 20th century?
***************** UNDERSTAND WHAT IDENTITY AND WHAT GRAMMAR MORE ******** |
As African Americans moved from South into North, their language changed and lost its Southern features. Also, because blacks largely inhabited isolated and distinct communities as opposed to being more within the same as whites, their language developed along this independent path -> therefore black and white language patterns have developed distinctively THUS BECAUSE OF GREATER SEGREGATION AND ISOLATION, DEVELOPED ALONG OWN PATH ALSO -> BECAUSE IT SIGNALS A POSITIVE IDENTITY because language signals IDENTITY-> because shifted from being in the south, it gave them their own way of speaking that developed from their own communities -> one language unites us kind of like nationalism |
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McWhortner's argument on HOW LANGUAGES CHANGE |
- languages are perpetually changing (ever-changing organism) - like a lava lamp - EROSIONS and RENEWALS of endings, and DRIFTs in word meanings - language change does NOT mean decay, the forms of change work together so that every language properly expresses human needs, thoughts, and emotions - change is hard to predict
---> Erosion: 1) endings - drop the vowel endings of past, dropping of "g" in "singin" currently, 2) sounds - dropping the sound systems of past (e.g., how "a" sound of "nama" was dropped - then renewed with a diff form)
---> Renewal: 1) sounds - "a" in "name" used to be pronounced "ah" in the term "nama" -> this form eroded and to dipthong of current 2) endings - "sweet-like", "day-like" used to be the ending for what is now "sweetly" and "daily"
SHEDDING AND GROWING OF NEW SOUNDS AND ENDINGS
---> Drifts in word meaning: Today, "to" used as a neutral infinitive, "to sing" In Old English, would use "sing-case ending" Since dropped the endings after Old English, added "to" which holds a diff meaning than the use of "to" as in going TOWARDS something (doesn't really even make much sense in comparison to what expect to mean, completely diff meaning)
BECAUSE EROSIONS, RENEWALS, AND DRIFTS ALL COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER, NO LANGUAGE (REGARDLESS OF WHAT STATE OF CHANGE ITS IN) IS EVER UNSUITABLE FOR PROPER EXPRESSION OF HUMAN NEEDS -> language change is NOT decay, no language "wears out" or "goes to the dogs", only takes on a NEW FORM
LIKE A LAVA LAMP BC 1) "lava" is always changing, 2) when one piece breaks off another joins up, 3) we never see one clump as "better" than the previous we just like to see how overall it takes on different forms while holding consistent expression 4) can't predict exact pattern a future clump will form in -> like language, always changing, when one part erodes, renewal follows, value not in one particular form but the fact that so many diff forms of same expression
hard to predict, e.g., "th-" sound is very hard to make and can/have been substituted with s, f, and t sounds b/c of how formed in mouth, but predicting which transformation a language will take is CHANCE ---> languages can change in numerous varieties - in Roman Empire, Latin changed into the various Romance languages (like setting up 5 lava lamps with lava in same place, turn them on and 5 min later all have completely diff clumps going on) |
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Dialects |
different branches in a single language plan.
---> all branches/dialects in the single language can understand one another despite their diffs, and consider themselves to be speaking the same language
- we can't help but think of standard English as the "pure" version of all the dialects, and view dialects as variations from that pure standard -----BUT IN REALITY, they are ALL dialects of that single English language, in a diagram of dialects, standard is not the SOURCE of dialects but a dialect itself - the source is English language itself (which is hard to pin as a source itself - there is no "default" variety this all stemmed from, they are just dialect end products of Old English) |
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Why standard English is a dialect |
- it is just as much a dialect of Old English as all other dialects -> it in no sense diverged from this source any less than the others - cannot be viewed as the "ideal" or "first" of the dialects YET EVEN OLD ENGLISH can't be viewed as the REAL ENGLISH because itself was a cover term for a bundle of dialects spoken by various Germanic tribes ----> in Britain, the standard English wasn't picked because its somehow more logical/better. Just happened to be the dialect spoken in area where government buildings were |
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Be able to explain McWhorter's objections to the idea that correct, standard written English grammar is more logical - be able to give an example of two to show why this is not so. |
1) dialects develop through language change, and language change is NOT decay (all are functioning) 2) standard and nonstandard dialects evolve in the same way, from the same source 3) the source of dialects (standard included) is long dead and would be unrecognizable as English 4) there is nothing illogical about nonstandard dialects (they all function fully to express human needs) -----> THUS THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS A "DEFICIENT" LANGUAGE, AND STANDARD LANGUAGE CANNOT BE CONSIDERED CORRECT
standard English is just as much a dialect as nonstandard varieties. it is just as logical as well as it serves all the same purposes -> it is just a different form / configuration of lava ---------> e.g., 1) standard AND nonstandard english deviated from Old English to the same extent as one another, followed the same process and in American English, all of the dialects came from a mixture of colonists which cannot be traced back to one "pure" source -------------> THE FACT THAT THE STANDARD HAS CHANGED SO MANY TIMES OVER HISTORY (FIRST THE DROPPED R, NOW AN ACCENTLESS) PROVES THAT THERE REALLY ISNT A CORRECT LANGUAGE
2) many of the things we frown upon as incorrect english, i.e., deviations from the standard, actually follow the same trends found WITHIN standard language.. for example: 1) we are quick to consider "goin'" instead of "going" or "dose" instead of "those" as LAZY bc it takes less effort, yet the standard language has CONTRACTIONS that take less effort as well. furthermore 2) we criticize double negatives as illogical based on our logic we atttribute to it as 2 negatives cancelling a positive, but Old English USED double negatives and equally valid logic can be applied to defend this in which using negative twice makes it more clear and avoids misunderstandings/potentially missing the negative value 3) our standard usage of "to" in the neutral infinitive form is result of a MEANING DRIFT which doesn't really make sense with our typical understanding of the word as in "towards".. this usage was not found in OE, thus clearly a change that at one point didn't make sense and was probably looked down upon but is now normal 4) ******* OUR USAGE OF PRONOUNS IS SOMETIMES BASED OFF OF LATIN WHICH DOESNT ALIGN WITH OUR ACTUAL RULES ********** (whom preserving dative for some random reason) |
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Levels of Language Mixture |
Different levels of what a language takes in from another language Level 1: mere words ---> usually where only ruling classes and elite are bilingual in the 2nd language, thus most speakers not using the 2nd alongside the 1st in a daily basis, so just the isolated words, etc. easy things to pick out "trickle down" from elite to common people ---> e.g., Norman French invasion in England, masses only really spoke English, but French words for concepts of gov't still exist today
Level 2: words and some sentence structure (word order, etc.) ---> most of the world's languages have had this type of mixing at some point in history bc most of a language's speakers speak another one alongside it ---> e.g., Romania
Level 3: creole languages, influence of outside language so deep it creates an entirely new language ---> most emerged in Euro slave trade on plantations where slaves spoke too many diff African languages to use a single one, and lack of contact with Euro speakers led slaves to only partially learn master's language -> result = PIDGIN, b/c couldn't use native language anymore but not able to learn English, so basic human need for more proper communication was required -> SO, supplemented knowledge of Euro words and rudimentary structure with structures from native language plus linguistic strategies of all languages = CREOLE
Level 4: Intertwined languages, the closest two languages can mingle ---> e.g., Media Lengua (Middle Language) of native Quechua and Spanish in Ecuadorian Indians, who began to identify with the urban life that used Spanish language diff from their native Indian communities so developed way of speaking that intertwined the two languages -> used spanish vocab within Quechua sentence structure and applied Quechua word endings -> more mixed than creole b/c everyone speaking it knows Quechua so can combine with even more detailed components of structure (like ENDINGS) whereas creole has to use whats common to all native (like verb stringing)
NO DISCRETE LINE DIFFERENTIATING LEVELS, sometimes ppl had more access to english than native so language used too much english to be creole but still diff enough from english to be distinct |
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Pidgin |
- rudimentary "lingo" with small vocabulary and little structure - capable only of communicating basic ideas, depends on context just as much as language - e.g., initial slave language, early colonial NA english and Euro NA |
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Creole languages |
- a Level 3 language mixture - brand-new languages that use words from one language and structure from others - e.g., SC Gullah, PNG Tok Pisin, French colonies with various different ones (Haitian, Martiniquan, etc.) ---> Sranan creole language in Suriname mixes English with West African languages - unlike pidgin, they are full languages capable of expressing precision and nuance - USED WHERE THERES A LOT OF PEOPLE WITH DIFF LANGUAGES SO USES THE STRUCTURE THAT IS COMMON TO ALL OF THOSE NATIVE LANGUAGES |
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Descriptive Grammar |
Not interested in telling people what they should say
language changes all the time, its “self cleaning” in that it removes features that inhibit communication
There are many dialects of a given language like English and all are equally good (even the standard)
Grammar is not based on logic, it is a convention, and though we need to share conventions to communicate, they don’t need to be logical/fit our "standard" - using double negative is redundant in a GOOD way, HELPS communication |
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Prescriptive Grammar |
Holds strict rules regarding what should be said, conventions aligning to a "correct" standard of grammar
says: there is a correct and logical way to use English and that if you are educated then you will use English better therefore communicate better
- changes in language are sloppy and if you do it you are illogical, it is the role of the teacher to fix this |
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He argues that spoken language often departs from prescriptive grammars because prescriptive grammars are based on an inaccurate view that English follows the same logic as Latin |
English is GERMANIC, it is not based on Latin, yet many pushes to get it to follow Latin because view Latin as the "correct" language --> this is why prescriptivists are wrong, because they base off of standards that are not even ENGLISH!! like wtf??
e.g., "English Grammar" book and it's rules:
1) don't end a sentence in a preposition “IDK what to do it with” needs to be “IDK what to do with IT” because Latin did it 2) can't split an infinitive (nothing between to and verb... can't say “i wanted to carefully explain” → in Latin, did this but bc infinitive was one word, no “to” to get split up)
e.g., PRONOUN RULES attempting to shoehorn English pronouns into Latin behavior ---> "Billy and me went to the store" WRONG, because should be a subject pronoun (I), yet it is natural to say. WHY? because applying latin rules -> Latin had numerous different pronoun forms for its various cases, English only has two pronoun types (subject and oblique), attempts to use English as Latin would involve pronouns such as "to me," "by me," which aren't pronouns but prepositions+pronouns, thus only really have I and Me (the oblique, used wherever subject pronoun is not) the fact that you answer "who did this?" as "me" not "i" because english rule that if pronoun occurs alone, must take oblique form - not "he" but "him"... "billy and me" follows similar systematic rule that 1) oblique is used to express a subject after "and" 2) oblique used after all conjunctions (and, but, or) ---> seen by fact that you don't say: "who should do it? billy or we?", also the fact that "me and billy" works even though by same logic should be "billy and i" IN SPEECH WE USE "ME" AS SUBJECT PRONOUN AND ITS OK, PERFECTLY USEFUL FOR COMMUNICATION BUT NOT HERE JUST BC WE USE LATIN RULES FOR THIS APPARENTLY GOES AGAINST THE INTERNAL SENSE OF WHEN TO USE SUBJECT PRONOUNS THAT WE LEARN FROM EVERYDAY PATTERNS LIKE WHO DID IT? ME, ETC. |
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be able to explain his idea that spoken English use of “they” as a gender neutral third person singular pronoun or the use of “we” instead of I – is perfectly logical and comprehensible. |
- naturally in spoken english they/them for gender neutral singular references, but prescriptivists say WRONG because it is PLURAL - so for gender neutral, use HE --> with feminist revolution, this is a problem as it implies all somebodies are men --> also just illogical and incomprehensible because it changes the meaning, makes us picture/assume males doing whatever it is (often use "he or she" but this doesn't work because 1) issue of who you put first, and also its just 2) never going to stick in spoken language - nobody says it as initial spontaneous reaction -> puts a bandaid on formal speech, leaves they to casual/spoken speech
THOUGH ENGLISH DOESN'T ORIGINALLY HAVE A GENDER NEUTRAL 3RD PERSON SINGULAR, DOES NOW - THEY (EVERYONE USES IT, PRESCRIPTIVISTS JUST LOOKS DOWN ON IT) -----> we're told not to use it because it doesn't make sense, but now it has CHANGED, its used for both singular AND plural now because change has made it so e.g., of vous - used to only be plural, now also stands for a specified singular ; our own singular "you" began as the plural "thou" - but we don't consider "you" as sloppy |
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SPOKEN GRAMMAR GETS INDOCTRINATED INTO WRITTEN LANGUAGE |
- a word has one meaning --> - changes from that meaning deemed sloppy by prescriptivists --> - can't stop language change, so OK casually --> - becomes so prevalent its starts popping up in formal language (whole nother) --> - grammarians give up and jump on newest forms (hopefully, she'll come) --> - eventually nobody even remembers it was bad (you instead of thou) |
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Toyota everyday |
should be every day because adj+noun, but everyone gets it so why does it matter |
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What is a standard? |
- the variety of a language which is used in print, and which is normally taught in schools and to non-native speakers.
- the only variety of a language which is “codified” - described in dictionaries, grammar books and so on. English had no standard until 18th century
- "a vernacular with an army" the standard is still a dialect just as much as any other, it just has more people defending its usage / is codified, usually associated with more historically dominant groups (Parisian French=standard bc Paris is capital) |
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What is a vernacular? |
- variety of a language that differs from other varieties in vocabulary, accent, and grammar |
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Why do linguists regard standards and vernaculars as socially unequal but linguistically equal? |
Standards are more prestigious and may get you more in terms of opportunities -> therefore socially unequal, some are better than others for MOBILITY But they are not more logical, not linguistically superior - they are linguistically equal |
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Why does Bourdieu believe that standard forms are just there to support social class? |
- “distinction” gives cultural capital to educated elite - cultural capital - social assets that promote mobility - as in how you act, speak, etc. SO by making a dialect "standard" it is only benefitting those who speak it and allowing them opportunity for upward mobility
(job interview e.g.,) |
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Why do some people believe standards are necessary for written communication? |
Writing is an impoverished medium, 1) there are no face to face checks to clarify certain meanings/emotions of words, 2) no contextual information 3) yet it communicates across space and time so people who don't have any idea context or might not understand the intended emotion are viewing it THUS: So needs to be more standardized than verbal speech
BUT LINGUISTS NOTE THAT THOUGH THEY MIGHT HAVE MORE PRESTIGE, STANDARDS ARE NOT LINGUISTICALLY BETTER |
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Lippi Green |
- We think people who speak in standard dialects are more educated and intelligent simply because schools teach people how to write and speak in standards
- Self-fulfilling prophecy: parents and teachers think that children need to speak in standards to succeed in life, so these are taught in schools, then become associated with being more educated
- Schools should let people speak, and perhaps even write, in their own dialect in class and then eventually we would regard all dialects as equal
BECAUSE ITS THIS SELF FULFILLING PROPHECY, SHOULD LET KIDS SPEAK AND WRITE IN OWN DIALECT SO THAT WAY THEY WILL BE REGARDED AS EQUAL |
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1996 Oakland School Board Ebonics policy |
- Saw that AA kids weren't doing well in school because they thought they were speaking an entirely different language - "ebonics", so they taught ebonics classes from grades k-2, 3rd grade teach in english bc wanted them to get all the basics down in THEIR language
- controversial for non-linguists - a bilingual education modeled after bilingual latino education (where teaching english to spanish kids)
- based partly on the assumption of level 3 language mixture where ebonics is an african language using english vocab to make a whole new language diff from both component languages (a type of creole language)
- he disagrees because he thinks its a level TWO mixture, in that its not different from standard English... compared to the differences between standard and ACTUAL real creole languages where people really do have a lot of trouble understanding standard english... so attempting to treat their language like one would be confusing to children, like giving them a "paint by numbers" set |
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Be able to explain why McWhorter believes that BE is not just a corruption of SE. Be able to produce examples to show that this is not just "lazy" English but is a rule governed dialect that in some ways is more complicated than standard English |
not a corruption of SE, it is just a different dialect as SE is as well, they both underwent the same process of change and formation bin married in BE = shes been married and still is, in SE = she has been married before in the past |
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Be able to describe patterns of use, and associations with, Bauan standard Fijian and regional dialects in Fiji? Where and why do people use Bauan? Where and why do they use regional dialects? What are the gender differences in the use of these dialects and why do these occur? |
Bauan is the national language in Fiji, because so many regional dialects so government uses this, taught by methodist church, in schools, etc. like a creole trade language, REGIONAL dialects like Ra, etc. where used at home differences between bauan and regional: tui in Bauan, ra people drop t → becomes “ui” girls use bauan more because theres more english in bauan which is more polite, soft, view foreigners/english as “soft” which is feminine ------------>whereas view native regional dialect as tough, associated with males Use Bauan generally in more professional setting, for jobs, etc. where gaining mobility, WHY because its more formal, will help mobility Use dialects at home in villages, etc. because more comfortable / less formal |
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What is diglossia and how does the Fijian case illustrate diglossia? |
- diglossia = using diff languages for diff purposes, shown in Fiji bc use Bauan for professional, use regional for being comfortable and at home |
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societal multilingualism v. individual multilingualism |
societal= more than one language used in a society (most are) individual = individ speaks more than on |
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unstable bilingualism |
- minority groups gradually take on the language of the majority and lose their ethnic tongue - when immigrants come to a country, through the generations they lose their ethnic language - b/c intermarriage, want kids to do well, etc.
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chain migration |
- possible to live and work using only ethnic language - Often possible to learn majority language and retain ethnic language
E.g. Yiddish among Hassidic Jews in NYC |
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Diglossia |
- using different languages for different purposes
usually follows that:
”“high language used mostly for interactions with outsiders, officials, formal contexts “low language” language of solidarity within the community of friends and family
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Involuntary minority |
- become part of a country against their will (sometimes when their territory is encompassed by an expanding nation) - colonialism ----> They often feel forced against their will to adopt the ways of the majority culture.
- Face glass ceilings in culture at large (part of society but largely limited)
- maintain strong community identity
- e.g., NAs |
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Vertical multilingualism v. Horizontal multilingualism |
VERTICAL MULTILINGUALISM: languages are unequal; one or more of the languages has greater prestige, brings with it greater opportunities -----> often leads to language shift (e.g., Bauan in Fiji, Tok Pisin in PNG)
HORIZONTAL MULTILINGUALISM: languages are all equal in terms of opportunity and prestige ---> more stable because nobody feels the need to drop their native tongue (e.g., WAS HORIZONTAL IN PNG BECAUSE OF LIMITED CONTACT BETWEEN THE DIFFERENT ISOLATED POCKETS) |
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Linguistic totemism |
- Proliferation of difference - in PNG, different words for same thing (tuwa v. tiva for coconut -> 2 diff communities with diff language structure - in same marketplace all have the same stuff but they keep their language divided because of PRIDE) |
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Be able to describe forces that led to a historical pattern of stable multilingualism for most of human history and illustrate this by discussing Papua New Guinea.
Be able to describe the forces that lead to multilingualism and the forces that lead to stable and unstable bilingualism. Illustrate your answers by describing patterns of language shift among European Americans of the Capital district, patterns of bilingualism among the Tiwa of New Mexico. |
In PNG, stable multilingualism little communication/exposure to different communities, because a lot of mountains, no roads, locally self sufficient BUT had huge trade network where all different cultural groups traded shell necklaces & bracelets and this was a economic trade arrangement -----> theres nothing at this time that makes any group more prestigious/ dominant than the others
A SOCIETY BECOMES MULTILINGUAL VIA: 1) immigration 2) encompassment 3) colonization ---> generally just bringing together numerous groups
this becomes stable if all are treated equally, not much contact between one another possibly but mostly because there is no single dominant/prestigious language delineated
this becomes unstable if one is given preference, favored for mobility
IN THE TIWAS: - tiwa native americans losing their native language, in distinctly diff way than the Euro-American pattern because though they needed to go to school and forced them to speak english, less discrimination yet less native ID -> integration POST 1960S goes from 1% english - 25% english, 0% tiwa, 75% trilingual -> huge shift to english only bc NEED to be able to speak to foreigners, so if wanted to retain native would go to trilingual over purely tiwa |
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Language Ideologies |
- Associations of languages with activities, people and character traits
- associating native PNG languages with being tough, strength, asserting yourself -----> appropriate for local discussions, land disputes, etc. versus Tok Pisin as soft - appropriate to church and court) |
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Patwa (history) |
- French based creole language that was introduced by French plantation owners and their slaves centuries ago in DOMINICA
in PAST deep separation of English and French society -> - Dominica started as French colony, Patwa as creole language between slaves and masters - Then a British colony, English was used as the language of government, schools, etc - the language of opportunity and Patwa was stigmatized - Deep separation btwn French and English society-> English = British colonial officials in towns, dominated government, Patwa = freed slaves in farming communities very isolated and self-sufficient bc suspicious of outsiders - didn't have any reason to learn English because not assimilating, but had good reason to HOLD ONTO local bc was self-sufficient also identity
PRESENT situation: extension of English speaking education to rural areas, independence = new pride in Patwa as symbol of local cultural identity gov't actually saw it as GOOD for first time yet now parents discourage it bc want them to know English
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Be able to describe the way associations of Patwa and English in Dominica have led children to retain Patwa even though adults discourage them from speaking it. |
- adults discourage speaking Patwa because want them to learn English, feel that this is the language for mobility and know that speaking Patwa will interfere with their ability to speak English more fluently, bc CALQUE
- kids use it anyways amongst themselves because when their parents yell at them, they do it in Patwa (more emotional/forceful), also parents speak it amongst themselves casually accidentally - so therefore though not TAUGHT it, they are exposed to it -----> make the association of English with school, therefore obedience and subservience bc told to learn it as an order (not bc its respected), viewed as soft and gentle since taught features of politeness with it , -----> association of Patwa as an adult language, if want to be an adult must speak Patwa, also parents value kids speaking Patwa when its a matter of them sticking up for themselves - parents on one hand emphasize obedience but also being assertive |
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calque |
use of grammar in one language to speak another
common in bilinguals, fear of this interference in Dominica (same in Fiji with broken english jokes) |
