4/15/2020
L23B: Sociolinguistics
2005-2006
Please Turn off all cellular phones & pagers
L23B Website: www.mona.uwi.edu/dllp/courses/l23b
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Topics for this Session
Theories explaining:
Language Variation
Language Change
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THEORIES/TOOLS developed to account for variation & change
Social Networks
Accommodation Theory
Acts of Identity
Ideology & language use
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Sources
1.
Social Network
Prescribed Text ch. 16, Wardhaugh
(pg.127-130, 180-183), Holmes (pg.183-
191).
2.
Acts of Identity
LePage (on reserve), Prescribed Text ch.
20. Article in Tutor’s pack
3.
Accommodation Theory
Prescribed Text ch. 18, Holmes (pg. 230-
234).
4. Language and Ideology
Prescribed Text ch. 6, Woolard (available at DITTO).
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Networks
 close knit networks will create value for variety of network
 close knit networks will create a counter balance to change
 those with loose network ties will be more susceptible to change
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Networks cont’d
 gender difference – in language production hence difference in networks.

Class differences – in language can be explained through networks
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Social Networks
MILROY & MILROY (1992)
Network Strength
“to the extent that ties are strong, linguistic change will be prevented,
… whereas to the extent that they are weak, they will be more open to external influences and so linguistic change will be facilitated”
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Social Network –
Caribbean Application
Walter F. Edwards. (1984)
Socializing the Continuum-
Guyana in SCL Occasional Papers – 5 th conference
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Ideology
“the particular system of beliefs and assumptions that underlies every linguistic analysis and every social event”
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Ideology
Society’s perception towards variants:

Correct

Prestigious

Stigmatized
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Ideology
Ideology - Changes in English centred on:
 language purity
 elegance of production

Logic

Comparison with other prestigious languages eg. Latin
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Ideology – Caribbean
Alison Irvine in JPCL vol. 19:1 (pp 41-75)
And also:
In English world-wide vol 15:1
(pp.55-78)
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Accommodation Theory
Giles was interested in:
“how speakers changed the way they spoke according to the person they were talking to”.
a speaker may converge or diverge along several dimensions.
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Accommodation Theory_Schema
Speakers A & B. (prescribed text)
(1) A samples B’s speech and: i.
draw inferences re personality of B.
ii. assumes that B values such characteristics iii.
assumes B will approve of him to the extent that A displays similar characteristics.
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Schema cont’d
Speakers A & B.
(2) A chooses from his repertoire, patterns of speech which will project characteristics of which B is assumed to approved.
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Accommodation_Jamaica
Done through:

Code-mixing, code-shifting, styleshifting.



These are influenced by: competence/proficiency topic selected participants (converge/diverge)
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Code-mixing/switching
Conversation between owner and gardener
Speaker A(owner): good morning, what can I do for you?
Speaker B(gardener): Mmm, a mi bil Maas Roy yaad, an im se yu a luk fi sumadi fi du fi-yu sar .
Speaker A: ohhh! Good. A niid wan gyardner bad bad. Humoch days yu kan gi mi ?
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Readings
Shields-Brodber (1992)
Hens Can Crow Too in SCL
– 9 th conference.
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Acts of Identity
•
LePage & Tabouret-Keller
(1985), Projection, Focusing,
Diffusing
•
“speakers often consciously rather than unconsciously use language to convey their social identity”
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Acts of Identity
Projecting and Focusing

Every speech act is an act of projection.

Each speech act is an announcement.
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Acts of Identity_Constraints
1. the extent to which we are able to identify our model groups
2. the extent to which we have sufficient access to them and sufficient analytical ability to work out the rules of their behaviour.
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Acts of Identity_Constraints
3. the strength of various (possibly conflicting) motivations towards one or another model.
4. our ability to modify our behaviour
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