Midterm exam Flashcards
Denotational theory of language
language is just a collection of labels, language is unable to change the world just describe it.
Performativity – constative v. performative
Performative- Language can actually change the word, instead of just describing it (constative- describes situations)
Social meaning
aspects of a person’s speech that identify traits of the person’s social identity.
contextual meanings ascribed to words, for example “wicked” to describe something cool or something evil
semantic meaning-
the direct interpretation of words. the dictionary meaning
Structuralism
-language is a system of signs that enables communication between individuals.
-each word in a language derives it’s meaning from other words in the language
Ex. “Red” derives its meaning from other colors
-theory by Ferdinand de Saussure.
“Language is a system of interdependent terms in which the meaning of each term results solely from the simultaneous presence of others”
Linguistic diversity
The major differences between languages in terms of grammar, labels, communication etc
Linguistic relativity/the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis
A hypothesis by Sapir-Whorf that suggested that the way we speak influence the way that we view and partition reality
-Our common sense is derived from natural proceedings of the groves laid down by the language we speak instead of the objective nature of the world
-Weak Language relativity
Language can influence the way you think
-Strong Language: Language determines how people think
Orderly heterogeneity (in sound change)
the idea that language varies through measurable, organized ways, both through context and through time.
-social factors can influence language variation over time as they dictate who dictates innovative sound changes and how quickly they spread
Linguistic insecurity
The theory that people attempt to mimmic the pronounciation of words from social identities they want to be a part of (higher class)
Hypercorrection
the idea that low middle class people may over exaggerate their pronounciation of words in their attempt to mimmic higher class speakers
-When a grammatical rule is applied to the incorrect context
-indicator of language variation
Doing “being ordinary”
a term by Harvey Sacks, suggesting that people actively put on different personas in order to appear socially acceptable in different situations
-we are able to interact with strangers because we actively put on recognizable personas depending on the situations we are in
Adjacency pairs
A way of quantifying conversations. the request is the first part of the pair while the response is the second part. Adjacency pairs may be nested.
-Two utterances by two speakers that are reliant on one another, examples are: question-answer, compliment-thanks, or request-acceptance/denial
Interaction rituals
The idea that virtually all of our interactions are based of predefined rules depending on the social identities of the participants, culture, and context.
What happens during the Enlightenment that changes the way that people think about language?
The rise of nationalism in Europe made language feel less of a tool and more of a cultural identity marker
What theory of language is J.L. Austin known for?
The Speech Act Theory
Why does Austin get rid of the constative/performative distinction?
Austin believed that all language is performative and the idea of the constative utterance is incorrect
What theory of language is Ferdinand de Saussure known for?
The theory of structuralism
How does the structuralist theory of language differ from the denotational theory of language?
The denotational points to words referring to a physical thing in the word, whereas structuralism views words as a label for mental representations
Do languages just vary in terms of what words they have for things? What other parts of a language show variation besides just the vocabulary/lexicon?
No, aside from vocabulary/lexicon, word order (syntax), way sounds are produced (phonetics), and phonology (how the mind groups the sounds in the language)
Who was Franz Boas and how was his idea of culture different from the concept of civilization?
Franz Boas was a German-American anthropologist and the father of modern American anthropology, his idea was that culture is something to be understood and appreciate as a means unto itself, as opposed to in respect to an arbitrary metric of Civilization
What theory of language did Benjamin Lee Whorf become known for? How is it related to the concept of culture?
The theory of Linguistic Relativity/The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis, which is related to culture because since it states that language shapes thought, it must also have a hand in shaping culture.
Does your language determine the way you think? Does your language affect the way you think?
While language isn’t the determiner of the way we think, it does have a profound effect on the way we think.
What organizes sound-change-in-progress for Labov?
For Labov, organizes sound-change-in-progress is socioeconomic class
Why do lower middle-class people engage in what Labov calls hyper-correction?
Because lower middle class people tend to have a higher degree of linguistic insecurity since they are aware of a “higher class” above them