Unit 4=Language and speech

What is language?

• Symbolic:

• Arbitrary:

what is symbolic?

linguistic communication is meaningful even when the referent is absent.

what is arbitrary

the meaning of a sound isn’t instinctive, it is learned – no “natural” relationship between words or grammar rules and the objects/thoughts they refer to.

language varies…

in significant ways cross- culturally.

How do we study language?

Descriptive linguistics

What are some Descriptive linguistics?

Phonology

Morphology

Syntax

what are phonology?

The smallest unit of sound that can be altered to change the meaning of a word is called a phoneme

what is Morphology?

(Morphemes – the smallest combination of sounds that have meaning and cannot be broken into smaller meaningful units)

ex: re/run =2 morphemes

over/re/act= 3 morphemes

what is syntax?

How words are strung together to form phrases and sentences. Native speakers know these implicit rules but are not usually consciously aware of them.

what are habits of speech?

the words and phrases that you use every day, without thought.

How are we shaped by language?

language influences mind

not of what it allows us to think but rather what it habitually obliges us to think about.

shapes our experience

What is the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis?

Languages impose on their speakers a picture of reality different from ours therefore not being able to understanding certain notions.

(native Americans not being able to understand the flow if time or distinctions between objects.)

What does Deutscher argue, in contrast?

when we learn our mother tongue, we acquire habits of thought that shape our experience, therefore having a very different word for a notion, but understanding that notion

What ethnographic examples does he discuss?

French speakers, English speakers, German speakers, Guugu yimithirr.

What does he say about gendered languages?

They shape our the feelings and association towards objects.

What does he say about the language of space?

Guru Yimithirr have a compass in their mind, because language obliges them to know the cardinal points, therefore making them great at orienting themselves in space.

what are Historical linguistics?

Languages are dynamic – they change over time

Specific forms of linguistic change

Dialect

• Shared language = separated because of geographical or socialreasons.

• E.g. African American English (AAL)

Pidgin and creole

Pidgin and Creole

• Social interaction between different cultural groups.

• Pidgin = simplified language for communication between different linguistic groups.

• Creole = fully developed language resulting from mixing two or more languages (born of pidgin).

what is code-switiching?

alternating between two or more languages

Language becomes a tool through which…

our social and cultural world is described, evaluated, and reproduced.”

How are we shaped by language (and *vice versa*)?

Enculturation through language acquisition

• Ethnography of speaking• What we say and how we say it says something about *us*.-Social identity (status, group membership and belonging)

• Language use *creates* meaning (rather than simply referring to things that already exist).-Language play, variance, and experimentation can enact social change

what is the indexicality of speaking?

Referential meanings• Non-referential meaning

• What is communicated *about* a person, through his/her speech acts?

• E.g. “Dude”

What is *indexed* through the use of dude?

Masculinity and “cool solidarity” (Kiesling)

 • Multiple uses•

 Layered meanings•

Identity and belonging

Male bonding and sexuality

“Effortless kinship that’s not *too* intimate”

Hegemonic masculinity

women and dude?

The women tended to use *dude* 

(1) when they were commiserating about something bad or being in an unfortunate position,

(2) when they were in confrontational situations,

(3) when they were issuing a directive to their addressee.