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LANGUAGE, SOCIETY AND POWER

LANGUAGE, SOCIETY AND POWER. AIMS: To analyse the nature of language To examine critically the relationship between language and society LEARNING OUTCOMES: To develop understanding of the rule-governed nature of language

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LANGUAGE, SOCIETY AND POWER

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  1. LANGUAGE, SOCIETY AND POWER AIMS: To analyse the nature of language To examine critically the relationship between language and society LEARNING OUTCOMES: To develop understanding of the rule-governed nature of language To develop understanding of the social nature of language and in particular in relation to race, class, and culture To become more aware of the variability of the English language and of attitudes towards language (throughout history and now) To promote equality between languages & dialects

  2. Language prejudice • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BX-vwEX8ZH4&feature=related (John Agard’s ‘Half-Caste’) • http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=PxWbhCAdNus (7 languages) • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q76UngzHX5Y (Fela Kuti ‘Zombie’ – e.g. Nigerian English) 5.15 • http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=8keZbZL2ero (language of politics)

  3. Language is not a transparent medium of communication, an innocent and clear channel through which information flows.We learn different discourse/s (within the culture/language/natural world? that we know – cf. Sapir/Whorf hypothesis)eg.s; rain, snow, colours (Shona, Dani), Hopi Indians, Pidaha etc..

  4. The teacher as a linguist If we are aware that language is never neutral and that it determines your place within society, then it follows that we need to facilitate the learning of English in a way that is as unbiased as possible and as empowering as possible. Linguistics lets us do that in as much as we can define and express our teaching of English in linguistic terms, in a descriptive rather than prescriptive manner (cf. Core curricula)

  5. Syntax & Grammar • Colourless green ideas sleep furiously (what constitutes a sentence?) • How do you define a ‘word’? • SVO vs. VSO? • Are grammatical rules useful to teach sometimes and why? • Think of at least 6 differences between how children learn their mother tongue and how adults learn a second language?

  6. Key grammatical & lexical termsACTIVITY In pairs, list as many as you can first, then be prepared to explain at least 1 of them to the rest of the group. You can look at the curriculum for help of course, or at a good grammar book, such as the Murphy.

  7. Language variation Society is not monolithic and nor is language. There are many interacting groups and subgroups of individuals making up the larger whole. We all vary our language to suit particular situations, particular media or particular human relationships. Moreover, the variety of language that we use is more permanently influenced by factors such as our age group, sex, geographical, educational and social background. So where does language change come from?

  8. Language Variation • Labov’s study of Martha’s Vineyard and of /r/ in New York • Trudgill’s study of Norwich • Milroy L. & J. – Belfast & the social networks theory • Fishman’s ‘domains’ theory & code-switching & Diglossia • B. Bernstein’s ‘elaborated’ vs. ‘restricted’ codes Standard English has undergone many changes from ‘above’ and from ‘below’ and only 1 variety became standard overtime.

  9. We looked at: • Language as a rule-governed system – rules of Syntax, of Grammar, of Semantics, operating in conjunction with what social conventions we follow (competence vs. performance but interconnected) • Language as world view – The language you speak affects your worldview • Language as power – For example ideology, gender, race and class • Language as discourse – For example how we change the way we speak depending on the situation, purpose, audience and context or media so that we make linguistic choices (a bit like multilingual speakers) • Language forever changing – a dynamic phenomenon • Why we need to be aware of all of this as language teachers • The usefulness of descriptive linguistic terms (like verbs, adjectives etc) that can help us plan & facilitate language learning

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