folk linguistics Flashcards
what does folk linguistics consist of?
folk linguistics consists of statements, beliefs or practices concerning language which are based on uninformed speculation rather than the scientific method
what was the extract in 1665 that raised interesting ideas about language and gender?
natural and moral history of the antilles islands in america
evidence from the extract that supports this:
It would have been shameful for men on these islands to use ‘women’s language’
- the women have words and phrases which the men never use or they would be laughed to scorn
- the savage natives of dominica say that the reason for this is that when the caribs came to occupy the islands, these were inhabited by an arawak tribe which they exterminated completely, with the exception of the women, whose they married in order to populate the country
evidence from the extract that supports this:
male children were receivers but not producers of the language of their mothers
- these women kept their own language and taught to their daughters
- though the boys understand the speech of their mothers and sisters, they nevertheless follow their fathers and brothers and conform to their speech from the age of 5 or 6
evidence from the extract that support this:
the arawak women were perceived as a poisonous linguistic force
- there is some similarity between the speech of the continental arawaks and that of the carib women.
- but the carib men and women on the continent speak the same language, as they have never corrupted their natural speech by marriage with strange women
who quoted ‘the natural and moral history of the antilles islands in america’ and what in?
otto jespersen’s influential 1922 text ‘ language: its nature, development and origin’
what ideas about language and gender does otto jespersen’s ‘language: its nature, development and origin’ (1922) raise?
- some features of language were used exclusively by males
- some features of language were used exclusively by females ( and never by males ) - there are clear links to masculinity
- language use was clearly linked to maintaining an identify
what is a parody?
- creative work designed to imitate, comment on and/or mock its subject by means or satiric or ironic imitation.
- often it’s subject is an original work or some aspect of it, but a parody can also be about a real-life person, event or movement
how many primary theories are there which mark the 20th century gender debate?
4
what are the 3 theories that all define and judge women’s language against that used by men?
- deficit
- dominance
- difference
in more recent studies, what has the focus shifted to?
how society influences the language we use and whether we actually ‘perform’ our gender by demonstrating features and ways of speaking associated with being a women or man
- diversity
in 1922, otto jespersen published ‘language: its natura, development and origin’ which included a chapter titled what?
‘the woman’
what were the two things that otto jespersen argued?
- he argued that ‘women much more often than men break off without finishing their sentences because they start talking without having thought about what they are going to say’
- also argued that women’s language could simply be typified as ‘lively chatter’ since their roles consisted of ‘the care of the children, cooking, brewing, baking, sewing, washing etc. things for the most part demand no deep thought
why is otto jespersen not a linguist?
he’s not a linguist by modern standards due to lack of accumulated data and analysis
is jespersen’s work considered folk linguistics or not?
jespersen’s work is what would be called folk linguistics today, meaning that many of his points represent basic and flawed ideas about women’s language that seem more anecdotal than based on valid and reliable research methods
