History of the English Language

Sean Meehan

History of the English Language: Fall 2007

Language Log: Glog

Will incorporate class notes into this glog and link to course web.

Wednesday 8/29: our world of language

1]glog: --set up (can combine with reading log)

--5 minutes: initial reflections on language autobiography: what are favorite aspects/strengths of your language world/use; less favorite/weaknesses—think of examples

2]saunter: begin to fill in the world (circle) of our language

Couse explores a more complicated and creative—and larger, fuller—circle (even ‘web) of our English language: theory, practice, history

3]focus: course objectives

Use of web: assignments, links, blackboard (for reading logs)

Resources: OED—one way to start seeing this more complicated picture; and for English majors to be more active in language understanding

Look up together: ‘language’ [what do we start to see about this simple or obviously understood word?]

Look up a favorite slang or taboo word

Another resource example: mla language map http://www.mla.org/map_main

4]quiz: questions for me? (with a note about quizzing, and how I will emphasize developing understanding and application, not rote memory of the terms (though some learning of definitions will be necessary); also emphasize your active participation—I challenge you to challenge me, to go further into what you need and want to delve into; and finally: I am always willing to experiment and explore.

Friday 8/31: the play of language

1]glog: --your language experiences (p. xiv): survey yourself; also: what do you want to expect to learn (given this is a course about language history and practice) and what do you want to learn—what kinds of questions do you want to pursue?

2]sauntering: reading logs [do one together—develop understanding of how to use]

hear from reading (initial summary, reflection, notes):

wordgames: apples to apples, scrabble

attempts to stifle the play

notice (a key that stood out, pursued further):

every word choice a risk/experiment

wonder (any and all questions, especially things you want/need to pursue further in class):

3]focus: what does play of language mean/imply? What best represents that in this chapter (if we are not just talking about having fun)?

--OED: look up the word—what do we see about this familiar word ‘play’?

--two ways to consider this fuller picture of play and language from reading

Britton continuum

p. 22: discourse: fluid relation between ideas and language; linked to constructivism (English Ed take note)

p. 27: full play of language—fundamental properties of language

This full play of language illustrates fundamental properties of language

1] ‘meaning’ is determined by both speaker and hearer, writer and reader

2]’ideas’ are inseparably bound with the language used to express them

3] even as it transmits ideas and messages, language adds its own element, sometimes contributing ambiguity, sometimes discovery—reaching towards the ‘poetic’

4]language constrained by rules but those rules developed by common consent of users and constantly broken and rewritten

Consider (as application): what is the language of college—the language you experience as a college student?

4]quiz: take in glog; review with a peer (highligh any additional questions)

Give the basic definition of the following words (definitions relating to the context of the reading); if it helps your definition, you might also give an example.

language conventions

discourse

acrostic

onomatopoeia

emoticon

cliché

euphemism

expressive language

transactional language

poetic language

Wednesday 9/5: the nature of language

entry slip: from your log—identify something from chapter you start to grasp; one or two aspects you need more time with

note: will have brief quiz Friday to review ideas and terms from this chapter—so let me know what we need to do.

Not grasping yet: descriptive vs. prescriptive; phonetics/phonology; language change

1]glog: 5 minute warm-up

which of the definitions of language (all languages are…) intersect with your language experience? Explain how the experience is an example of this characteristic, what are some key ideas with that characteristic.

2]Sauntering:

From glog: all languages:

Are Systematic: rule-governed

Are Grammatical (Have a grammar): key grammar rule for English--SVO

Are Complex and Successful

Change

Are Creative

Are Social

From reading logs: (pair up, prepare to present back on one of the parts, asking and answering questions you have: what keywords are, what a linguist studies when focusing on this aspect of language, etc). Might also consider, what are some basic rules associated with this aspect of language, and what are some examples of how those rules might be broken.

Basic parts of language study

Phonetics

Phonology

Morphology

Syntax

Semantics

Friday 9/7: the sound system

Follow up from last class: descriptive vs prescriptive (also note: encourage you to read other logs posted on blackboard)

The descriptive approach (actual linguistics, what I will later call Big G grammar): is interested in the rules (mostly subconscious) that allow us to communicate successfully. Analogy might be the basic rules of a sport required for every playing of that sport. [the rule book most players don’t know, except for the most basic rules]

The prescriptive approach (little g grammar from schools): is more about social rules attached consciously to language use, making judgments of right and wrong (rather than understandable, not understandable). Analogy would be a coach saying that shooting a basketball with one hand is the wrong way to play the game (not a rule infraction).

1]Quiz/Review

Continue from last class—further study.

Questions from further reading

--what insight can we apply back to ELO and our study thus far?

--what do we need to spend more time with?

2]Exploring in writing [note first focal point and first case study: autobiographical reflection and analysis of your language]

In glog (5-10 minutes): Pick an aspect of your language world of interest (new, or one you already started to write about)—and explore it further by applying a concept or idea or term from what we have studied so far—explore how a linguist would begin to describe this aspect of your language

Monday 9/10: language and society

DOED [daily oed] warm-up: gender

Any insight or surprises?

1]sauntering in logs: [3 notices, 2 wonders]

2]Focus: domains and gender can culture

--Domains: in what domains and registers are you literate? Use the Hymes model (speaking acronym) to explore a register in which you are illiterate—and where the illiteracy is located. Does this or other experiences you have with a particular register support the view that speech can shape (and even help create) the event, not merely reflect it?

--Gender: note the key figures and ideas: Tannen and Gilligan.

Interruptions, back-channeling, questions

Do you have experiences that confirm the basic assertion that linguistic interaction tend to be gendered—that is, differ among men and women? How do these tendencies play out in language?

--Culture: note the key ideas from the Whorfian hypothesis, linguistic determinism

3] Exploring in writing [note first focal point and first case study: autobiographical reflection and analysis of your language]

Wednesday 9/12: language and/as media

Review from last class: 1 notice (Sarah’s log: observing family speaking); 1 wonder (Kelsey)

General note about logs: keep in mind I am looking for your response/ideas/questions in relation to the reading—need to see specific connections: think 2-3 key concepts addressed (or more if that is the case).

1]sauntering: most interesting or engaging idea you noticed.

2]Focus: medium and McLuhan

DOED: medium

Rhetoric: a metalanguage for language (not unlike literary theory).

Both get at the understanding that our language is not transparent or mere reflection of reality, but very much shaped by the tools we use to express—and even further, language is itself already a tool, a medium for expression.

Key of McLuhan (and expanded by Burke’s pentad): understanding that the medium (the agency or channel of communication) shapes the content, even becomes the content.

“the medium is the message”

http://www.cyberartsweb.org/cpace/infotech/asg/ag6.html {linked in blackboard external links}

my critical link: Remediation: Understanding New Media by Bolter and Grusin.

Every new medium re-incorporates and revises the older medium it claims to surpass. With digital: notice all the language we use: web page, scroll, blackboard

Consider then how language also remediates

--Where do you most or best experience the mediation of language? What form does it take? What lessons about language as medium do we see from that? How can we apply McLuhan or Burke to this medium of language?

Visual thesaurus?

Friday 9/14: focal point—intial language autobiography

1]groups of three: share/pitch your focal point—what you focused on, how you might expand this for the case study; what aspects of linguistics and language study you are starting to focus on (make a specific connection back to one of our texts and/or discussions)

--class discussion: survey the aspects of language/linguistics that we are considering; and types of experience that relates to these linguistic ideas.

2]play with language:

--Sarah’s game

Monday 9/17: the writing system

Discuss assignment for Wednesday: bring in an article/essay (something with an author attached, no random web pages—use a library database or a focused web search) that will help you delve further into the language autobiography. Write up a summary of the article (1 page): its basic focus and thesis; 2 or 3 key examples (with specifics—think potenial quotations); how this might connect to your case study; and as always, provide a basic citation [use citation monster if you like].

DOED: writing

Writing is something we take for granted—and generally don’t consider its (or it’s?) history. What insight or surprises do we learn from the history?

1]Sauntering: insight from the chapter (review from log)

Notice: the evolution of letter formation

Graphology: psychology applied to writing. Does it make sense?

Spelling: a microcosm of the descriptive vs presecriptive tension; also of the buried, complicated history of language that frequently bubbles up to the surface (think potato vs potatoe)

Question: does spelling intelligence relate at all to linguistic intelligence? How would a linguist answer this?

Extra graphic dimensions of writing: graphic means visual, not just written. Writing is already a visual text, whether or not that text has pictures, etc.

2]Focus: Punctuation—a microscosm of the desrciptive vs prescriptive.

--Pick a punctuation issue you have (list p. 283)—evidence of your bad ‘grammar’. Dig into the rules/issues for this punctuation [use the web: consult Guide to Grammar and Writing]. Write down/report back to class.

--Compare/contrast to the descriptive definition and to the history we get on p. 283. What’s the difference?

--consider some creative uses of punctuation (Dickinson; Emerson’s semi-colons; others?)

Wednesday 9/19: further reading—case study

Focus: Making the link.

1]Reading groups (5 minutes each person)

-present your further reading: summary, key ideas—how someone might use this, what you migh do with it. Then give progress report on where you are in your thinking/writing of case study—what do you need to do? Listeners: ask questions of the writer.

Class discussion of the readings: what are we seeing in the field? Connections to ideas/issues we have read thus far?

2]writing workshop

Focus: making the connection to text/linguistics

How to do that well? Think of the link: in your exploration of an idea, you have a keyword or two. The connection is the elaboration of that word or concept. Can also be the reverse: you have the theory/elaboration from an article, then need to go to the autobiographical part and find the place to link it. [using word, you might even play with this literally, using the hyperlink function; or the comment function]

Practice: take an idea from your reading today and link it to something in your essay in progress.

Game: I challenge each of you to build into your essay the most creative (intentional) mis-use of ‘grammar’ (in the prescriptive sense): think punctuation, spelling, other aspects of the writing system. Prize to the winner.

Friday 9/21: case study #1: language autobiography

1]Postings: to assignments

2] Conference: 4-5 minutes each

Present the gist of your language experience and the key idea(s) from linguistics you applied/linked to it. What did you learn from linguistics thus far about something (your language) you already were doing or experiencing, just didn’t know it?

Overall question for all of us: what do we learn from linguistics about our language?

Preservation/losing of language: example of Native American languages

Bilingualism strengthens language: example of lingua program in europe

Creativity of language: created every day; also viewed from old english to modern

Another view of language change: slang, the word ‘cool’; history of the word ‘fuck’

3]If time is left: leftover questions/threads from the first 4 weeks.

Monday 9/24: Language change/Old English

Note on upcoming assessment: a brief quiz Friday on stuff grasped this week (mainly from chapter 5 dealing with the history of English from OE to Modern English); a midterm (long quiz) next Friday on terms and key ideas thus far from all the reading to this point (ie, all the chapters in ELO)

1]Self-diagnostic [5-10 minutes]

These are some key words and concepts from the reading—stuff we need to get our heads and hands around in order to grasp better the historical perpsective of English we will be exploring the next few weeks. Use only your journal at first to respond (no book).

Diachronic vs. synchronic view of language

Saussure (name)

Internal vs. external change (examples)

Analogy

Levelling

Inflection

vernacular

What are some key characteristics of OE: how it emerges, etc.

Highly inflected (think Latin); external changes: Vikings, Germanic tribes, Romans, Latin influence (Christianity)

2]Peer discussion [10-15 minutes]

Working together, assess your responses, fill in blanks [use book at this point].

Pick one question that you least grasp, dig into it, discuss it, prepare to inform the rest of us.

Write down 1-2 questions that you have from the reading.

Class review:

Problem areas (with help/insight from the groups)

Questions that remain:

[note: I would like to have at least one question that we still have by Friday that we post to Ask a Linguist for additional help]

Wednesday 9/26: Further reading OE

1]insight and/or further questions from CEL reading

--5 min: go back into the chapter and identify one area that provided insight (further help with our focus from Monday); one area that confused or raised additional questions.

--discuss insights and questions

If forced to sum up (asked at a job interview: “I see you took HEL, what did you possibly learn about Old English? I always hated Shakespeare myself”): what are keys from our historical perspective thus far?

2]Analogy:

Borrowed from X2 on page 145 of ELO: focusing on the various language registers we engage in at this given point in time, in this location (ie, synchronic view of our language today), can we develop an analogy for how on earth language change takes place—and thus might have taken place way back (in ye olden days)?

Steps to do this:

--identify 3 or 4 registers we are familiar with.

--identify some of the lexicon (and other linguistic features—if there are different aspects of syntax, morphology, phonology, etc)

--identify changes taking place between the registers, or any interaction we see (that could analogize the kind of internal and external changes we see from IE to OE)

Friday: finish chapter 5

1] quiz: Identify some key characteristics, dates, changes, ideas, terms and/or names associated with each of the three periods of English. You should also write down any questions you have regarding any of the items in each period.

Old English (OE)

Middle English (ME)

Modern English

2]focus: mapping out the changes from OE to ME to Modern E

OE:449-1100

Highly inflected

Parataxis (vs hypotaxis: subordination of clauses)

External change: Viking, O Norse: Scandinavian loan words (about 1,000)

Compounding of words—key way new words are created

Roman/Latin influence leaves (fall of Roman Empire)

Bede

Beowulf

Middle E: 1100-1500

Norman Conquest: French, 1066

External change: French vocabulary (about 9,000 words remain)

Influence of Latin

Chaucer (Canterbury Tales): the vernacular or vulgar becomes established

Levelling of inflection; thus grammar changes: word order becoming more fixed

Modern E: 1500--today

Great Vowel shift (example of an internal change)

Printing press: standardizing language use (spelling); Caxton

Shakespeare

World englishes

Note digital resources

Question for Ask a Linguist

3]OED:

New case study

Explore some loan words: an OE (anglo-saxon) word still with us; Scandinavian; Latin; French

What does this diachronic view of the language reveal about English and its changes?

Wednesday 10.3: author focus: Chaucer/Shakespeare the language-makers

Objective today: gain an appreciation for what these writer mean linguistically to the English language—and thus what we can learn about the history of the language from them.

1]OED: author searches

Chaucer: browse a couple of his words in the OED. Think about how what you are seeing in the entries relates to the history we have been reading.

Examples; connections to the history?

Recall p. 49

Shakespeare: browse some of his words. Connections to the history—what are we seeing?

Recall p. 63.

Thou/you: p. 71: a microscom of language change (also of larger significance buried in the history of a word—think how important ‘you’ is to Whitman’s poetry).

Note also key influences in later modern: 18^th c.: Johnson’s Dictionary and Lowth’s/Murray’s prescriptive grammars

Questions on the history from Old to Modern? Key insights?

2]Second Case Study: making the OED.

--read/discuss the assignment

Read p. 453 in CEL

Monday 10/8: Lexicon

1]Logs: sauntering (notice this is a neologism borrowed from Thoreau)

--read logs of person to your right and left; post a brief response to a question they raise/wonder.

--class discussion from logs:

2 hears:

Lexicon:

Lexeme: leixcal unit

2 notices:

[overall question: what are the key ideas regarding the nature of the lexicon?] which of the sources of the lexicon most intriqued you?

Lexeme

How many words in our lexicon?

Sources of the lexicon: borrowings (loan words) or making new out of old (3 ways: affixation, conversion (change word class), compounding

Note from midterm: difference between morphology, inflection, syntax

Additional creations:

abbreviation

Back-formations

Blends

Portmanteaux

Nonsense

Nonce

Neologism

2]DOED (daily oed, pronounced dude; another neologism I hope to circulate)

--look up one or more of the words discussed: notice what you see of its lexical history—if it is even in OED.

--p. 133: words not yet in circulation: note that you have this option for the case study. Will need to consult other resources—and use the OED to create your own blends, portmanteaux, nonce, neologisms, etc.

What are some possibilities?

--literary neologizing: samples (to explore further—with OED)

Joyce: Finnegans wake; Jabberwocky; Manley Hopkins

Wednesday 10/10: etymology [meet in library]

Explore resources for lexicon other than OED

Friday 10/12: lexical dimensions

[for Monday: pursue further research for your case study; will submit a draft of the work in progress, for feedback from a peer—updates/follow up from library session: ideas for the case study?

Note some refinements of the assignment: must cite something from Crystal reading this week on lexicon; do not copy from OED or other electronic sources—synthesize, re-create, and hyperlink to relevant sources; will present to class by showing us an entry—and helping us understand the linguistic elements and rationale.]

1]Review and further discussion from reading:

Questions from last log: Sam (literary neologizing); Audrey (any way to guage if a word will survive?)

Warm-up: in your journal right now: identify one part of the reading (particular idea or concept or example) that you grasp; one part that you need help with. Then ask/answer questions and explain what you grasp with a partner.

Some keys: collocation, semantic structure, semantic field

Exploration: do a semantic structure/field (collocation)

2]application: the issue of schools and vocabulary

--based on your understanding of the reading, the insight from a linguistic (descriptive, not prescriptive) perspective, how should schools (k-16) approach the matter of ‘improving vocabulary’? what should matter? What are we doing wrong? Point to specific ideas from the week’s reading for your support. Begin to develop a curriculum plan you would propose for your former teachers.

Connection to American literature: Emerson’s “American Scholar”, ‘life is our dictionary/this is the way to learn grammar.’

If it were only for a vocabulary, the scholar would be covetous of action. Life is our dictionary. Years are well spent in country labors; in town, — in the insight into trades and manufactures; in frank intercourse with many men and women; in science; in art; to the one end of mastering in all their facts a language by which to illustrate and embody our perceptions. I learn immediately from any speaker how much he has already lived, through the poverty or the splendor of his speech. Life lies behind us as the quarry from whence we get tiles and copestones for the masonry of to-day. This is the way to learn grammar. Colleges and books only copy the language which the field and the work-yard made.

Monday: OED case study workshop

1]peer reading [peer eading; peer eating; pear eating: the telephone game based on lexical drift]

--On Blackboard: read and respond to drafts. Identify places where you the reader want more lexical/etymological information; and also want more linguistic analysis; identify a place in Crystal that the writer should consider—explaining the insight that the citation would offer. Then follow up with a brief discussion.

2]class discussion: examples of where more information is wanted. Examples of citations from Crystal—what the insight is, how the writer could use it)

3]experiment

--do a collocation map for your word: cf p. 161

--continue (as needed) discussion of how we would re-do vocabulary teaching in schools—what are lessons from your case study?

10/22: Traditions in Grammar (ELO chapter 6)

1]some review:

--remaining OED presentations

--midterm review: the objectives;

Informal midterm eval

where are you currently in meeting these objectives [indicate: partially, mostly, completely]

3]Applies knowledge of English language structure and history, language conventions, media techniques, figurative language, and genre to create, critique, and discuss texts; adjusts his/her use of spoken and written language to communicate effectively with a variety of audiences. As such, the course will focus on your making substantial progress in developing specific skills, competencies, and points of view needed by professionals in the field of English, specifically in using and studying the English language.

8]Participates actively as a knowledgeable, reflective, creative, and critical member of a variety of literacy communities, in the classroom, in the department, and in the larger communities of the College and the region. As such, the course will focus on your developing greater understanding and appreciation of the complexity of English, in its history and theory and practice.

evaluate your course performance thus far: weak, average, good, very good, excellent.

as you go into second half, what is one thing you might do differently to improve your course performance?

What is one thing teacher/course might do differently to help improve your course performance

2]Traditional grammar

--diagnostic sheet: take the test. Is this prescriptive or descriptive?

Distinctions (with examples):

Grammar (and Grammatical)

grammar (and grammatical or non-grammatical or bad grammar)

school grammar

Historical perspective from reading (and review of your logs)

Where do we get our notions of ‘grammar’ from? What did you notice?

[note: on Friday—your focal point will include a presentation to class of a particular aspect of traditional grammar you research and present both the prescriptive rules, some history, and then begin to consider a descriptive approach. We continue to explore this Wednesday]

Wednesday 10/24: grammatical mythology

1]Reading review:

--logs from Monday: saunter. Identify some key things to notice; some questions so far

-Crystal: further insight

2]grammar issues

Explore some usage myths

Begin to research your own—from your list of top 10 ‘grammar’ issues.

Friday 10/26: Focal Points—grammar issues: myth and reality

The history of a grammar issue, its prescriptive rule, a more descriptive approach. Moving from little to big G Grammaticality

Issues: commas, semi-colon, [discussed how both are punctuation inventions from early print early, invented by individuals], pronoun agreement (everyone/their), prepositions (at ends of sentences).

Monday 10/28: chapter 7 (ELO): Modern Grammar

Note: today we will focus mainly on your repsonses to the reading and mainly the first half of the chapter; for Wednesday, in addition to the Crystal reading, go back and review the second half: from Word Classes through all the tree diagram stuff. By Friday (when you will have a short quiz on key concepts from this chapter), we will work towards having a better sense of what transformational grammar means, how it is different from traditional, and whether it is a more powerful way to describe what we do with language. All week, be prepared to ask lots of questions in class concerning what you don’t get.

1]Grammar Groups

--Read each log from your group

--Discuss the reading and decide upon 2 things you will report back:

A concept from the chapter you have best grasp of, can help us understand; a question you want an answer to, or need more help with concerning any aspect of Modern Grammar

Response from groups

A]things we (some of us) are starting to grasp: [groups will elaborate]

What are some differences between Modern and traditional grammar (or as we categorized it last week: Big G and little g)?

Consider the competence/performance distinction.

B]things we have questions about: [other groups will try to answer]

--gat: How does modern grammar deal with exceptions? For example: Look out!

There is an interest in exceptions—to go back and find a more general rule.

--psa: What is difference between surface and deep structure?

--lmk: How do tree diagrams help with understanding a sentence?

2]Exploration

In your grammar group, begin to discuss and write out (in your journals, consulting the chapter) as far as you can a grammar for the following rule-based process: getting into college

--5-10 minutes in group

--discussion: what can we describe as the competence vs. the performance? The principles and the parameters?

Wednesday 10/31: Word classes, phrase structure, sentence structure

1]Grammar groups [10 minutes]: Review and elaboaration

Prepare to explain to class one of the following concepts from chapter, with at least one practice example: [1]word categories [and how we test for them, what distribution and morphology mean in this sense]; [2]phrase structure and what the basic phrase structure rules are; [3]the sentence and how we do a tree diagram: show us how/why you diagram this sentence: “The boy saw that the cat sat on a mat.”

--presentations from groups

[rest of us ask questions along the way, and practice some examples]

2]Tree diagram:

--do some from page 222

--page 226: disambiguate a sentence

Friday 11/2: Chomsky, transformational grammar

1]Grammar Groups

--read logs

--discuss (prepare to report back): what are key differences between modern grammar (influenced by Chomsky, etc) and traditional? Do you agree that this way of describing language is more powerful than the traditional approach (p. 237)

--discuss/answer any questions that remain: report back one question you still have, or (if none) one that has been answered this week. [you will be taking a short quiz after the discussion, so don’t be shy]

Discussion/reports from groups.

Quiz:

1]Competence v. performance

2]word categories/classes

3]phrase structure rules [structure dependency]

4]transformation [deep structure to surface structure]

2]Transformation

--exploration: p. 231-one of the transformations—

-back to our descriptive grammar of getting into college: how might we describe a rule for a transformation?

Monday 11/5: Comparative Grammars

1]Reading review:

--questions remaining from last week

--notices and questions from chapter 8

Artificial vs. natural languages

Some keywords: artificial language, natural language, dead language, lingua franca, pidgin, creole

2]applications:

--Esperanto: translate/read the story p. 257

--natural languages: describe key characteristics—prepare to teach us [5 minute review of reading]

Latin, French, German, Chinese, African

--create your own language

Options: a language/grammar not based on vocal sounds (think other ways of using signs); or one based on vocal sounds/alphabet—check out the language construction kit.

[can continue to dig into this for your research case study—creating an artificial language]

Wednesday 11/7: Further reading: Research

1]Research groups

Discuss your research; read and respond to logs. Where might this go—what might you dig into for the case study?

2]Class discussion

What is out there in the world of research regarding linguistics/language study (non-traditional areas of grammar)? What did you notice in your further reading that links to or expands upon something we have been reading/discussing?

Friday 11/9: Language variation

1]Logs: sauntering

Hear: language varies by class (social variation), and geography (regional variation)

Notice: the isogloss; variety (example of world English)

Wonder: the systematic nature of AAVE (consistent)—why is the variation not influenced by standard/prestige English?

[note: we will be doing further reading next week on AAVE and the Ebonics debate]

2] Focus: Elaborating/Distinguishing varieties of a language

--[5 min]Draw a language map of some sort showing how these terms relate, what they mean, think of examples. Is there a hierarchy? Refer back to chapter for help.

dialect, register, variety, idiolect, domain, slang, jargon, lingua franca, pdigin, creole

Electronic resources for dialect/variety research:

n MLA map

n --Do you speak American site.

Monday 11/12: regional and social variation, cont.

1]review: --your own mapping of your language universe—the relevant terms

n --resources: MLA map

n --Do you speak American site; DARE?

--insights from Crystal reading

2]mapping your social/regional variation [in pairs]

Develop a list of examples of both regional and social varieties of English that you have in your idiolect. Consult with partner on varieties he/she may share or not be familiar with.

Thinking as a linguist—your sampling should include the following:

Phonological variation

Lexical variation

And (this may be harder) grammatical variation (syntax, morphology)

Example of syntactic variation: What it is? For What is it?

Example of morphological variation: adding an –s- to an existing plural: mens, childrens

Wednesday 11/14: Nonstandard Variation

1] reading response: The chapter is from a linguistics textbook—so the perspective is linguistic. Identify and elaborate upon what you consider to be a key to the linguistic perspective on language variation—with specific reference to the chapter and one of the many examples they give.

--Discussion: key to the linguistic perspective—with examples.

Are these principles relevant to your research focus?

--research exploration (10-15 minutes): look for additional resources (and ask questions for help).