COM 374
McGarrity
COM 374 Final Exam Study Guide
Week 7: Dialects
dialect
dialect vs. language (linguistic vs. nonlinguistic
criteria)
mutual (un)intelligibility
idiolect
dialect continuum
factors that affect dialect
3 ways dialects can differ
accent
regional dialect
Northern, Midland, Southern, Western
characteristics
isogloss
dialect leveling
social dialect
William Labov’s NYC ‘r’ study (methods,
results, conclusions)
registers/styles
factors that affect speech situation (topic,
setting, participants)
levels of formality
markers of style (phonology, lexicon,
grammar)
slang (characteristics)
jargon
neologisms (blends, clippings, compounds,
acronyms, conversions)
Readings:
Pederson
Roberts
Macaulay
Wolfram & Schilling-Estes
Week 8: Language and ethnicity
standard vs. nonstandard dialect
hypercorrection (phonological, lexical,
syntactic)
overt vs. covert prestige
African American English (AAE)
misconceptions about
characteristics (phonological, syntactic)
style-shifting / code-switching
linguistic profiling
Oakland School Board Ebonics controversy
background
precedent
goals (vs. wording) of resolution
popular vs. intended interpretation
reaction of media, African-Americans
supporters
Empirical studies
effectiveness of correction, use of
nonstandard in education
Bilingual education
English Only debate
arguments for/against
Readings:
Oakland School Board
Rickford
Caldas & Caron-Caldas
Hayakawa
King
Weeks 9, 10: Language, gender and power
effects of gender on speaker, addressee, referent
linguistic gender differences
examples: phonological, lexical,
grammatical
behavioral gender differences (examples)
gender-exclusive vs. gender-preferential
differentiation
Sexism in language
(asymmetry btw. male/female terms, nongender-specific terms, male terms as
generic)
2 views on ‘sexist’ (also racist, etc.) language
politically correct language
relationship(s) btw. language and power
taboo words
euphemism
Speech codes
loaded words
epithet
doublespeak
4 types: euphemism, jargon, gobbledygook,
inflated language
Readings:
Talbot
Johnson
Tannen
Kakutani
Lutz