重点大学语言学Chapter 8 Sociolinguistics - Teaching Plan.doc

Chapter 8 SociolinguisticsObjectivesThe Students will learn how linguistic forms and social functions are interrelated so as to facilitate their understanding of how social factors influence the structure and the use of language.Students will be able to 1) Understand some basic terminologies: standard language, dialects, registers, pidgins, creoles, etc. and identify the association between the varieties of language;2) think critically about how social factors influence language structure and language use;3) identify and analyze scientifically various forms of language change as well as their correlation the society;4) analyze the possible reasons of code-switching in communication.Key points1) the difference between bilingualism and diglossia;2) the difference between the varieties of language;3) the functions of euphemisms and the negative effects of excessive use of an euphemism.Time required: 120 minutesProcedureWarm-up questions:v 1. What do you think of the following sentences:v 哪款AOC，卖到了VDP？v 我今天早上吃了一个apple.v 2. In the recent CPPCC (2010), some members of the 11th CPPCC National Committee in Beijing propose that we should have law passed against the invasion of English into the Chinese language. What do you think of it?v 3. Do you think that it is necessary to promote putonghua in every aspect of our social life?1. What is sociolinguistics?l When we study language in relation to society, it is called sociolinguistics.l Generally speaking, in sociolinguistics we are interested in how social factors influence the structure and use of language.Discussion questions:1) In what way does language interrelate with society?2) How can language inform you of any information about the social backgrounds of the user?2. Language varieties2.1 Standard languagel Definition of standard languagel Status of standard language2.2 Dialectsl Definition of dialectl Classification of dialectsActivities:1) The teacher can provide students with examples of dialects of Chinese and English.2) The teacher asks students to discuss the relationship between dialects and social status of the language user.2.3 Registersl Definition of registerl Study on register in linguistics2.4 Pidgins and creolesl Definitions of pidgin and creolel Differences between a pidgins and creoles2.5 Language planningl Definition of language planningl Types of language planningl Functions of language planningDiscussion questions:1) What is the relationship between standard language and nonstandard language?2) What examples of language planning do you know? What effect do they have?3. Choosing a code3.1 Diglossial Definition of diglossia3.2 Bilingualism and multilingualisml Definitions of bilingualism and multilingualismDiscussion question:1) What is the difference between bilingualism and diglossia?3.3 Code-switchingl Definition of code-switchingl Classification of code-switchingDiscussion questions:1) Do you know any examples of code-switching?2) Can you summarize the possible reasons for code-switching?4. Linguistic taboos and euphemismsl Definitions of taboo and euphemisml Examples of euphemisms in Englishl Source for euphemismsDiscussion question:1) What is the possible negative effect of excessive use of euphemism?5. Language and genderl Two main focuses of the study of language in relation to genderl The difference between male and female use of languageActivities:1) The teacher shows students the following excerpt from Pride and Prejudice and ask them to find the characteristics of female use of language.Oh! My dear Mr. Bennet, we have had a most excellent ball. Jane was so admired. Every body said how well she looked. Mr. Bingley thought her quite beautiful, I was so vexed to see him stand up with her. I am quite delighted with him. H is so excessively handsome.2) Encourage students to find more such examples which can demonstrate the difference in the use of language between male and female.Reference: Besides the differences outlined in the book, we can find that women tend to use more tag questions, more statement questions with a rising tone in the end. Womens linguistic behavior is usually more indirect and more polite, etc.Discussion question:1) Can you list Chinese examples that may reflect sexism in society?Lecture Note1. IntroductionWhen we study language in relation to society, it is called sociolinguistics. Generally speaking, in sociolinguistics we are interested in how social factors influence the structure and use of language. It is the field that studies the relations between language and society, between the uses of language and the social structures in which the users of language live. It is also a field of study that assumes that human society is made up of many related patterns and behaviors, some of which are linguistic. For example, when you meet strangers, the way they talk informs you about their social and geographical backgrounds, and the way you talk sends out some signals about what you think of them. It is these aspects of language use that sociolinguists are out to examine.2. Language varietiesLanguage changes often along social changes. A typical example is found in our Chinese language: the rise and fall of xiaojie (小姐). Language also changes from region to region, from one social group to another, and from individual to individual. The products of such changes are the varieties of language. Therefore, language varieties are related to region, social class, educational background, and the degree of formality of a situation in which language is used. And such varieties of language include standard language, dialects, register, pidgins, creoles, and so on.2.1 Standard languageStandard variety or standard language/dialect, the variety of a language which has the highest status in a community or nation and which is usually based on the speech and writing of educated native speakers of the language.In China, the standard language is putonghua, which is often used by national news broadcasters and some other mass media. The standard language of British English is Standard British English. And the standard language of American English is known as Standard American English (SAE), a variety of English that many Americans almost speak.2.2 DialectsA variety of a language used recognizably in a specific region or by a specific social class is called a dialect. A dialect is not necessarily less complete, less logical, less language than a language. It is a variation of language different enough to be classed as a separate entity, but not different enough to be classed as a separate language. Sometimes a dialect rises in status and becomes the standard variety of a country.The study of dialects is called dialectology. Dialects can be categorized into the following types: Regional/geographical dialects: varieties of a language spoken in a geographical area, such as Cockney dialect, and Yorkshire dialect in Britain.Temporal dialects: varieties of a language used at particular stages in its historical development.Social dialects or sociolects: varieties of a language used by people belonging to particular social classes. Sociolects may be categorized as high or low in status as illustrated by the following in English:(1) He and I were going there. (higher sociolect)(2) Im n me was goin there. (lower sociolect)Idiolects: varieties of a language used by individual speakers, with peculiarities of pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary. When we speak of “Shakespeares language” or “Lu Xuns language” we are referring to their idiolects respectively.2.3 RegisterMost speakers of a language speak one way with friends, another on a job interview or presenting a report in class, another talking to small children, still another with their parents. These varieties classified according to use are called registers, which can differ in vocabulary, phonology, grammar, and semantics. Registers vary along certain dimensions. For example, people generally speak (and write) in quite different ways in formal and informal situations. Formality and informality can be seen as opposite poles of a situational continuum along which forms of expression may be arranged.Many linguists have tried to work out theories to describe the relationship between social variables and linguistic features. A well-known version of these theories is M. A. K. Hallidays register theory. In Hallidays systemic functional grammar, the term register is regarded as specifically opposed to varieties of language defined according to the characteristics of the users (e.g. their regional dialect), and is determined by three factors: field, mode and tenor of discourse. The field of discourse refers to what is happening, including what is being talked about, e.g. the fields of linguistics, religion, and advertising. The mode of discourse refers to the medium of language activity which determines the role played by the language in a situation, e.g. speech vs. writing. The tenor of discourse refers to the relations among the participants in a language activity, especially the level of formality they adopt, e.g. colloquial, or formal English.2.4 Pidgins and creolesA pidgin is a variety of a language that is not a native language of anyone, but is learned on contact situations such as trading. The process by which a pidgin develops is called pidginization. A pidgin is usually based on one language, though it soon takes on substances of other languages. For example, Tok Pisin is based on English, and many of the words sound somewhat like English ones:(3) Mi go long taun. (I go/went to the town.)(4) Yu wokabaut long rot. (You walk/ walked along the road.)A pidgin usually has a limited vocabulary and very reduced grammatical structure which may expand when it is used over a long time or for many purposes.When a pidgin develops beyond its role as a trade language and becomes the first language of a social community, it becomes a creole. The process of by which a pidgin becomes a creole is called creolization. Creoles have large numbers of native speakers and are not restricted at all in their uses. For example, a French-based creole is spoken by the majority of the population in Haiti, and English-based creoles are used in Jamaica and Sierra Leone. Once a creole is in existence, it may (i) continue almost without change, as appears to be the case for Haitian creole; (ii) become extinct; (iii) evolve further into a normal language; (iv) gradually merge with its base language (e.g. the Standard English) through decreolization, a process by which a creole becomes more like the standard language from which most of its vocabulary comes.2.5 Language planningThe importance of language can never be overstated: it is central to social life, it is a ladder to power and influence and it is a symbol for social status and ethnic identity. For this very reason, governments make plans for the regional use and/or development of other languages and dialects. This is now called language planning or language engineering. Through language planning, an official language policy is established and implemented.Language planning may involve both of these aspects. The first is called status planning, the second is corpus planning. Status planning changes the function of a language or a variety of a language and the right of those who use it. Corpus planning seeks to develop a variety of language or a language, usually to standardize it, that is, to provide it with the means for serving most language functions in society. Corpus planning may involve such matters as the development of a writing system, new sources of vocabulary, dictionaries, and a literature and the deliberate cultivation of new uses so that the language may extend its use into such areas as government, education, law and trade. Our central government has helped many minority languages in corpus planning.3. Choosing a code3.1 DiglossiaWith a handful of languages, two very different varieties of the same language are used, side by side, for two different sets of functions. A situation of this kind is called diglossia. Usually, the more standard variety is called the High variety (H) or H-variety, the other is called the Low variety or L-variety. The High variety is learnt in school, tends to be used in sermons, political speeches, lectures, in the media, and in poetry and letters; and as a result it has greater social prestige. The Low variety is used in family conversations, and other relatively informal contexts.3.2 Bilingualism and multilingualismBilingualism refers to a situation where two languages are used by an individual or by a group of speakers, such as the inhabitants of a particular region or a nation. Canada, for example, is an officially bilingual country, with both French and English as official languages. If the languages spoken in a bilingual society have equal status in the official, cultural, and family life of the society, the situation is referred to as horizontal bilingualism, whereas diagonal bilingualism obtains when only one language has official standard status.Multilingualism refers to a situation where three or more languages are used by an individual or by a group of speakers such as the inhabitants of a particular region or a nation.3.3 Code-switchingBilinguals often switch between their two languages or language varieties in the middle of a conversation. This phenomenon is called code-switching. It can take place between or even within sentences, involving phrases or words or even parts of words.There are two major kinds of code-switching: situational code-switching and metaphorical code-switching. Situational code-switching occurs when the language used changes according to the situation in which the participants find themselves; they speak one language in one situation and another in a different one. No topic change is involved. When a change in topic requires a change in the language used we have metaphorical code-switching. It has been found speakers bilingual in Swahili and English would use Swahili when talking about education and English when talking about racial prejudice.4. Linguistic taboos and EuphemismsIn our daily life, our attitudes towards something may be so strong that we are reluctant to refer to them directly. Some words are rarely used in formal contexts because they are socially unacceptable in such contexts. A word that we are reluctant to use may be called a taboo word.A more acceptable substitute of a taboo word may be called a euphemism. A euphemism is a polite or more pleasant word or expression you use instead of a more direct one in order to avoid upsetting others. Euphemisms are everywhere. In English, for example, there are many ways to talk about death and dying: to pass away, to expire, to be no more, to rest in peace, etc.The source for euphemisms is the power of the connotations and associations that a wor