Elective course - Sociology of Language-sem.1

elective courses
obligatory courses

Classroom

The aim of the course is to acquaint students with multifaceted relations between language and society: the functioning of language in a given community, as well as its influence on the social structure. The discussed topics cover the areas such as: language diversity and identity, social factors and social networks vs language, language ideologies and stereotypes. Special attention is given to the analysis of selected phenomena of English-language popular culture, in particular film and music, from both social and linguistic perspectives.

The aim of the course is to acquaint students with multifaceted relations between language and society: the functioning of language in a given community, as well as its influence on the social structure. Students are familiarised with fundamental terms and research methods in this field. The discussed topics cover the areas such as: the relations between language and social factors (gender, social class, ethnicity, age), language diversity and identity, language ideologies and stereotypes. The course also covers the topics of social networks, with the role of language in focus, as well as the ethnography of communication. Special attention is given to the analysis of selected phenomena of English-language popular culture from both social and linguistic perspectives, including the significance of ideology and stereotypes. The examples of the above phenomena are discussed with regard to the film industry, e.g. Disney’s productions, as well as the music industry, starting from The Beatles and Bob Dylan, ending with Adele and Dizzee Rascal.

The course covers the following topics:

1. Language and society: scope of interest and major currents, research methodology and

representative sociolinguistic studies.

2. Major concepts: accent, dialect and standardisation, register and style, prestige and

stigmatisation.

3. Language diversity. Language shift and maintenance.

4. Language and social factors: social class, gender, ethnicity, age.

5. Speech communities: the ethnography of communication and social networks

6. Language attitudes and ideologies; power and identity.

7. Social and linguistic perspectives on popular culture (music and film) – language attitudes,

perception, ideologies:

a) Staged performance: authenticity, stylisation, identity

b) English-language varieties in music – analysis of selected examples from the perspectives

of sociolinguistic theories

c) English-language varieties in films – linguistic stereotypes and attitudes

Obligatory sources (fragments):

Bell, Allan. 2014. The Guidebook to Sociolinguistics. Malden/Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell.

Coupland, Nikolas and Jaworski, Adam. (eds.). 1997. Sociolinguistics: A Reader and Coursebook, Houndmills: Macmillan Press

Fishman, Joshua 1968. Readings in the Sociology of Language. The Hague, Paris: Mouton

Fishman, Joshua 1971-2. Advances in the Sociology of Language. The Hague: Mouton

Holmes, Janet. 2013. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Abingdon: Routledge

Wardhaugh, Ronald. 2010. An Introduction to Sociolinguistics (6th ed). Malden/Oxford/Carlton: Blackwell Publishing.

Additional sources:

Beal, Joan C. 2009. “You're not from New York City, you're from Rotherham”: Dialect and identity in British indie music. Journal of English Linguistics 37(3). 223-240.

Bell, Allan and Andy Gibson. 2011. Staging Language: An Introduction to the Sociolinguistics of Performance, Journal of Sociolinguistics 15 (5). 555–572.

Coupland, Nikolas. 2007. Style: Language Variation and Identity, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Dobrow Julia R., Calvin L. Gidney. 1998. The Good, the Bad, and the Foreign: The Use of Dialect in Children's Animated Television. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 557, 105-119.

Giddens, Anthony. 1991. Modernity and Self-Identity: Self and Society in Late-Modern Age. Nowy Jork: Polity Press.

Lippi-Green, R. 2012. English with an accent: Language, ideology and discrimination in the United States (2nd ed.). London and New York: Routledge.

Milroy, Leslie. 1980. Language and Social Networks. Oxford: Blackwell.

Morrissey, Franz A. 2008. Liverpool to Louisiana in One Lyrical Line: Style Choice in British Rock, Pop and Folk Singing, [in]: Miriam A., Jürg Strässler (ed.), Standards and Norms in the English Language, 195-220. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.

Sackett S. J. 1979. Prestige Dialect and the Pop Singer. American Speech 54 (3), 234-237.

Simpson, Paul. 1999. Language, Culture and Identity: With (another) look at accents in pop and rock singing, Multilingua 18(4). 343-367.

Trudgill, Peter. 1983. Acts of Conflicting Identity. The Sociolinguistics of British Pop-Song Pronunciation, [in]: Peter Trudgill (ed.), On Dialect. Social and Geographical Perspectives, 141-160. Oxford: Blackwell

Knowledge: the graduate knows and understands:

-at an advanced level conceptual and terminological apparatus in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism

-at an advanced level main directions of development and the most important achievements in the area of multilingualism and multiculturalism

-at an advanced level contemporary research trends in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism

-at an advanced level the complex nature of language, its intricacy and changeability

-the latest research methodology used in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism

-relations between language and culture and religion sciences as well as sociology

-principles of creation and development of various forms of entrepreneurship

Skills: the graduate is able to:

-prepare written works in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism in English (including works bearing the features of a scientific text)

-search, analyse and utilise information using available sources

-recognize different genres of texts and conduct their in-depth analysis and interpretation using various methods

-argue substantively using the views of other authors and formulate conclusions

-integrate knowledge relevant to multilingualism and multiculturalism

-independently develop and give an oral presentation on a selected topic in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism using source literature

-formulate, analyse and synthesise research problems in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism and select adequate methods and tools to solve these problems, present the developed issues using various forms and methods

-work independently and in a group to acquire knowledge and develop research skills in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism

-use the English language in speech and writing compliant with the requirements set out for the B2+ level according to CEFR

Social competences: the graduate is ready to:

-recognise the importance of knowledge and seek expert advice when problems arise

-critically assess knowledge and skills in the field of multilingualism and multiculturalism

Assessment methods:

The final grade comprises:

- continuous assessment: class attendance, active participation and being prepared for the classes, quizzes (50% of the final grade)

-preparation of a short essay/end-of-term project (50% of the final grade)

Absences:

Students are allowed two unexcused absences per term