L23B: Sociolinguistics
2005-2006
Please Turn off all cellular phones & pagers
L23B Website:
www.mona.uwi.edu/dllp/courses/l23b
6/30/2016
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Topics for this Session
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Communication as a social activity
Components of Communication
Ethnography of Communication
Readings: Downes,Hymes, Gumperz(PT)
Also relevant sections from Wardhaugh &
Holmes
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ACQUISITION OF LANGUAGE
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WHEN TO SPEAK
WHEN NOT TO SPEAK
WHERE TO SPEAK
TO WHOM
WHAT TO TALK ABOUT
IN WHAT MANNER
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COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE
“underlying systems of
knowledge and skill required
for communication”
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Components of Communication
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Linguistic Knowledge
Interaction Skills
Cultural Knowledge
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Linguistic Knowledge
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verbal elements
non-verbal elements
patterning of elements
range of possible variants
meaning of variants
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Interaction Skills
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selection of forms
interpretation of forms
discourse organization and
processes
norms of interaction and
interpretation
strategies for achieving goals
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Cultural Knowledge
social structure
 values and attitudes
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e.g.
Mary: He cheated on me!
John: My father died yesterday.
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Dell Hymes: Social Units
essential to communication
Speech Situations
 Speech Events
 Speech Acts
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Speech Situation
contexts of language use
such as ceremonies,
fights, hunts, lovemaking
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Speech Events
(main text – chapter 10: speech events)
defined by a unified set of
components through out:
same purpose of communication
same topic
same participants
same language variety
(generally)
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Speech
Acts
(Wardhaugh, chapter 12);Searle & Austin
“group of utterances with a
single interactional function”
e.g.
request, command, a greeting,
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Speech Situation: at the
UWI bus stop
Speech event (asking the time)
Speaker A: What is the time? (speech act 1)
Speaker B: It’s 1 o’clock
(speech act 2)
Speaker A: Thanks
(speech act 3)
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Speech Situation: at the
bus stop
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Speech Event (asking the time)
Speaker A: Can you tell me the time? (speech act 1)
Speaker B: Yes!
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(speech act 2)
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Ethnography of Communication
Hymes (1974):
 components of communicative
events
 relations among components
 the capacity and state of
components
 the activity of the whole
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Hymes ‘SPEAKING’
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S – refers to Setting and scene
P – refers to Participants
E – refers to Ends (outcomes)
A – refers to Act sequence
K – refers to Key (tone, manner)
I – refers to Instrumentalities(channel)
N –refers to Norms of interaction and
interpretation
G – refers to Genre –
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