Language + Social groups

Question 1

Describe the difference between prescriptivist and descriptivist:

Answer 1

People who believe that Standard English is the ‘correct’ form that all should aspire to are known as prescriptivists, whist those who resist this urge to police language and instead celebrate variation (people like linguists!) are known as descriptivists.

Question 2

Describe ‘Standard English’.

Answer 2

Standard English is the form of the English language that is accepted as a national norm. It is the agreed common usage, taken from the writing system of English, that is used in formal spoken contexts. It is also used as the basis to teach English as a second language.

Question 3

Define Covert Prestige​

Answer 3

Covert prestige: a norm or target the speakers unconsciously orient to, with a sort of hidden positive evaluation that speakers give to other (presumably non-standard) forms. The linguistic equivalent of street credibility. Generally perceived by the dominant culture group as being inferior but which compels its speakers to use it to show membership in an exclusive community

Question 4

Define Overt Prestige

Answer 4

Overt prestige: positive or negative assesments of variants that are in line with the dominant norms associated with sounding ‘proper’ and that people are aware of, often coinciding with the norms of the media, educational institutions, or higher socio-economic classes.

Question 5

Define Idiolect

Answer 5

Each individual has there own language style.
Key characteristics:
tone of voice
handwriting
vocabulary / phrases
interactive constructions

Question 6

Why do we develop Sociolects?

Answer 6

Language can signal a complex range of connections between individuals and the society they are a part of, or see themselves as separate from.
Language reflects societal patterns and divisions, as well as sustaining and reproducing them.
Some forms of language will signal that we are a part of a group, or wish to be seen as a part of it.

Question 7

How do sociolects form?

Answer 7

We develop language in interaction with people around us from the communities we are a part of, leading to the concept of a sociolect.

Question 8

What is the difference between an idiolect and a sociolect?

Answer 8

Idiolect; an individual’s language style
sociolect; a language style associated with a social group.

Question 9

Give examples of social groups that might contain sociolects:

Answer 9

We are all members of multiple different groups.
Social background, age, occupation, interests, activities(sport, arts, hobbies)
Many of these groups overlap.

Question 10

Define sociolect.

Answer 10

A language style associated with a social group, with a field specific lexis, or shared linguistic features (dialect, vocabulary)

Question 11

Sociolinguistic research studies take…… and look at the variables that include such things as….. and then measured against socio economic indices such as…… to better understand the relationship between language and society.

Answer 11

1) Samples from sets of random population subjects
2) pronunciation, word choice and grammatical patterns.
3) education, occupation, income/wealth, ethnic heritage, age, family dynamics

Question 12

What did Milroy’s social network theory in Belfast propose?

Answer 12

There was a correlation between linguistic variation and a speakers integration in a social network: even when the variables of age, sex and social class are held constant, the closer an individual’s network ties with their local community are, the closer their language assimilates to localised vernacular norms.
Summarised: The more people are integrated socially in their local community, the stronger their local accent / regional dialect is, and the people who are more removed from their society have weaker vernacular norms.