Language and Culture

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Language and Culture Language, Communication, and Culture Introduction to Language, Communication, and Culture  How is language related to culture?  How is a language related to a culture?  Both questions are valid, and we look at the issues through several lenses:  Kinesics and paralanguage  Ethnolinguistics and code switching  Similarities and differences between human and animal communication Nonverbal Communication    There are two basic types of nonverbal communication Kinesics involves the all-too-familiar body language: facial expression, gestures, even eye contact Paralanguage are the vocalizations that often accompany speech: slurs, tones of voice, nonmeaningful utterances including “um” and “uh” Kinesics: Gestures     Kinesics: System of analyzing postures, facial expressions, “body language” See that thumbs up? This gent likes whatever you’re doing Buying his brand of coffee, perhaps? In other countries, it would mean —well, you know! (Need a hint? Think middle finger) This is one example how the same gesture might mean different things in different cultures Kinesics: Facial Expressions    Social smiles are commonplace, though women may so more than men—a matter of expected social sensitivity Frowns express frustration, sometime cynicism, as this cartoon suggests—if you smile, you’re naïve Facial expressions and eye contact are the most widely used forms of kinesics; gestures are also frequent Gesture Call Systems: Paralanguage    Paralanguage consists of extralinguistic noises accompanying language Voice qualities: tone, slur (cartoon), other background noises Vocalizations: Identifiable noises turned on and off at short intervals—”uh,” “um,” other kinds of hesitation More Paralanguage    Vocal characteristics: Sound production such as laughing Vocal qualifiers: Tone or pitch-”Get Out!” Segregates: “Shh!” “Oh oh,” “hmmm!” (cartoon) among others Historical Linguistic Techniques       When tracing the history of language, linguists have no writing to rely upon Several techniques have been developed to trace the probable changes Glottochronology: the reconstruction of past languages on the assumption that 14% of a language changes every 1000 years Core vocabulary: Comparison of words for common objects based on similarity A list of words is compiled for each of two languages that refer to objects that are common everywhere: body parts, sun, rain, stones, trees, and others The closer the vocabulary—cognates or similar words between two languages, the more closely related the two languages are thought to be Models of Language Change      Language Family Group of languages descended from a single ancestral language Example: Indo-European is descended from Proto-Indo-European Family Tree Model: a model that emphasizes the derivation of language from a common source Wave Model: A model that emphasizes borrowing across contemporary languages Ethnolinguistics       Definition: Study of relationship between language and culture Named after Edward Sapir (top) and Benjamin Lee Whorf (bottom), the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis states that language, By providing habitual “grooves” of expression Predisposes people to see world in certain ways Thus guiding thinking and behavior Common Features of Language and Nonhuman Communication  Arbitrariness  Productivity  Interchangeability  Displacement  Specialization  Cultural Transmission Arbitrariness    Definition: Absence of intrinsic relation between communication element (speech sound) and thing or event to which it refers (referent) Iconic Relationship: Existence of such a relationship between element (e.g gesture) and its referent Importance: Utterance is not “married” to meaning, such as this gibbon’s warning call Arbitrariness (Examples)       Example [k], [æ], and [t] are not meaningful in and of themselves Meaning emerges when sounds are combined: [kæt] “cat” has one meaning (feline, the one who caught a mouse) [tæk] “tack” has another (small nail) [ækt] “act” has a third (dog and pony show) Even then, this string is language specific (English), not intrinsic Arbitrariness (Across Languages) Evidence of Arbitrariness: Diverse Languages  “Cat” has different pronunciations in different languages  Similarities are the product of common roots and/or diffusion from one language to another  Productivity (Definition)      Productivity is the capacity for elements of communication system to be combined to form new meanings which the speaker and listener may never have learned before, yet understands perfectly Try this exercise: the top figure is a wug Now here are two of them There are two If your response was [wəgz] you produced an entirely new—and correct utterance Productivity: Jabberwocky Riddle        From Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll (see illustration} ‘Twas brillig and the sllthy toves Did gyre and gimble in the wabe Identify: The nouns The verbs The adjectives Productivity: The Answers    The nouns: surely the article the is a dead giveaway for toves and wabe The verbs: ‘twas is poetic English for “it was,” and the helping verb did uncovers gyre and gimble The adjectives: Doesn’t the –y ending of slithy suggest an adjective, similar to slimy? And ’twas suggests brillig to be another one Productivity: Language Learning  Language drills use the principle of productivity  English: I am, you are  Spanish: Yo soy, tu eres  Productivity simply involves taking a few elements (phonemes, morphemes, even syntax) and generate unlimited combinations of expressions Productivity Among Other Species: Bee Dance      When a scout bee has discovered a flower or other nectar source, she returns and tell the other bees where it is with a dance Their figure-eight tell the other bees the direction and distance of the pollen source The waggle of the tail also indicates the direction Amount of pollen brought back indicates pollen available there Productivity involves variations of speed of the dance, the amount brought back, and the waggle Interchangeability         Definition: Use of same communication system to send and receive messages Illustrative Counterexample: Three-spined stickleback fish courtship (see diagram) Female elicits male response by presenting distended belly Male performs zigzag dance around female She follow him to nest Male point to nest on arrival Female enters nest, male rubs abdomen, She discharges eggs, and male fertilizes them with sperm Displacement (Definition)  Ability to refer to things and events not present, nonvisible, intangible, or nonexistent  Not present: Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco  Not visible: Termites in sealed mound  Intangible: math equations, square roots  Nonexistent: dragons, unicorns Displacement (Importance)        Ability to represent unseen parts of world Part of toolmaking ability: to conceive a design (above) Bee Dance Scouting bee gives information on nonpresent blossoms Direction of dance relative to sun: indicates direction of source Length of tail waggle: distance of source Other bees act on this information even though they cannot see the flower or blossom Cultural Transmission  Learning of an element of communication (speech sound, gestures)  Bees and stickleback acquire behavior genetically  Dogs learn by conditioning, not pass learning on  Chimpanzees learn by imitation and pass it on: e.g., termite fishing Specialization       Definition: Ability to transmit message with minimal physical effort Language is the most specialized of all communication systems Examples of unspecialized communication Chimpanzee displays Bee dance Stickleback courtship Conclusion         Language is the basis of culture Knowledge of linguistics is prerequisite to knowing how cultures function We have looked at the following: Descriptive Linguistics Language, Culture, and Society Comparative Human-nonhuman Communication One question remains: does culture condition language, or does language condition culture: the old chicken-egg question There are many similarities between human and animal communication [...]...  Language is the basis of culture Knowledge of linguistics is prerequisite to knowing how cultures function We have looked at the following: Descriptive Linguistics Language, Culture, and Society Comparative Human-nonhuman Communication One question remains: does culture condition language, or does language condition culture: the old chicken-egg question There are many similarities between human and. .. cattle In our own culture, we have a militaristic vocabulary; we make a killing on Wall Street, we bomb the exam, we have a war on drugs, cancer, poverty, you name it So we have a chicken and egg question Does language condition culture Or does culture condition language? Ethnolinguistics: Some Areas of Research    Kinship terms: The terms father and mother may be extended to uncles and aunts More... anyone’s guess  Defining communication and comparing different communication systems is a first step  Chimpanzees have used American Sign Language and computer buttons to convey messages somewhat like languages  But speech organs have long since deteriorated, so we have at best indirect evidence Language Origins: Fossil Evidence     Did Neanderthals have language? A humanlike hyoid bone, which... nail) [ækt] “act” has a third (dog and pony show) Even then, this string is language specific (English), not intrinsic Arbitrariness (Across Languages) Evidence of Arbitrariness: Diverse Languages  “Cat” has different pronunciations in different languages  Similarities are the product of common roots and/ or diffusion from one language to another  Productivity (Definition)      Productivity is... The nouns: surely the article the is a dead giveaway for toves and wabe The verbs: ‘twas is poetic English for “it was,” and the helping verb did uncovers gyre and gimble The adjectives: Doesn’t the –y ending of slithy suggest an adjective, similar to slimy? And ’twas suggests brillig to be another one Productivity: Language Learning  Language drills use the principle of productivity  English: I... of cerebrum and possible Broca’s area have been found among Homo habilis remains Another indication is the flat surface at the skull base, suggesting the larynx was too high to enable language; nonhuman primates also have a flat skull base and high larynxes Basic conclusion: no one really knows when language got its start   Features of Language Shared with Other Species Nevertheless, language does...Ethnolinguistics: Do Languages Structure Cultures     Example of Sapir-Whorf hypothesis; Hopi: Conception of time as processes, not discrete units For example, Hopi would not divide time into seconds or hours Nor would they perceive time as object, such as wasting time Or Do Cultures Structure Language        The Nuer of the Sudan are cattle herders Children are named after cattle, and poetry is... the speaker and listener may never have learned before, yet understands perfectly Try this exercise: the top figure is a wug Now here are two of them There are two If your response was [wəgz] you produced an entirely new and correct utterance Productivity: Jabberwocky Riddle        From Jabberwocky by Lewis Carroll (see illustration} ‘Twas brillig and the sllthy toves Did gyre and gimble in... such as gibbons, stickleback courtship, and bee dances indicating the location of a nectar source Common Features of Language and Nonhuman Communication  Arbitrariness  Productivity  Interchangeability  Displacement  Specialization  Cultural Transmission Arbitrariness    Definition: Absence of intrinsic relation between communication element (speech sound) and thing or event to which it refers... (e.g gesture) and its referent Importance: Utterance is not “married” to meaning, such as this gibbon’s warning call Arbitrariness (Examples)       Example [k], [æ], and [t] are not meaningful in and of themselves Meaning emerges when sounds are combined: [kæt] “cat” has one meaning (feline, the one who caught a mouse) [tæk] “tack” has another (small nail) [ækt] “act” has a third (dog and pony show) ...Introduction to Language, Communication, and Culture  How is language related to culture?  How is a language related to a culture?  Both questions are valid, and we look at the issues... question Does language condition culture Or does culture condition language? Ethnolinguistics: Some Areas of Research    Kinship terms: The terms father and mother may be extended to uncles and aunts... trees, and others The closer the vocabulary—cognates or similar words between two languages, the more closely related the two languages are thought to be Models of Language Change      Language