ebook img

Living Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology PDF

361 Pages·2011·3.59 MB·English
Save to my drive
Quick download
Download
Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.

Preview Living Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology

Living Language AAhheeaarrnn__ffffiirrss..iinndddd ii 22//11//22001111 99::4422::0099 AAMM Blackwell Primers in Anthropology Each volume in this series is a lively first look at a traditional area of anthropological study. These concise books provide theoretically sophisticated yet accessible and engaging introductions for nonspe- cialists. They will be invaluable for undergraduate instruction as well as offering pithy overviews to those unfamiliar with the primary issues in the chosen subdiscipline. Published 1. People and Nature: An Introduction to Human Ecological Relations by Emilio F. Moran 2. Living Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology by Laura M. Ahearn AAhheeaarrnn__ffffiirrss..iinndddd iiii 22//11//22001111 99::4422::0099 AAMM Living Language An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology Laura M. Ahearn A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication AAhheeaarrnn__ffffiirrss..iinndddd iiiiii 22//11//22001111 99::4422::0099 AAMM This edition first published 2012 © 2012 Laura M. Ahearn Blackwell Publishing was acquired by John Wiley & Sons in February 2007. Blackwell’s publishing program has been merged with Wiley’s global Scientific, Technical, and Medical business to form Wiley-Blackwell. Registered Office John Wiley & Sons Ltd, The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, United Kingdom Editorial Offices 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148-5020, USA 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford, OX4 2DQ, UK The Atrium, Southern Gate, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 8SQ, UK For details of our global editorial offices, for customer services, and for information about how to apply for permission to reuse the copyright material in this book please see our website at www.wiley.com/wiley-blackwell. The right of Laura M. Ahearn to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, except as permitted by the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, without the prior permission of the publisher. Wiley also publishes its books in a variety of electronic formats. Some content that appears in print may not be available in electronic books. Designations used by companies to distinguish their products are often claimed as trademarks. All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners. The publisher is not associated with any product or vendor mentioned in this book. This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold on the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ahearn, Laura M., 1962– Living language : an introduction to linguistic anthropology / by Laura M. Ahearn. p. cm. – (Blackwell primers in anthropology) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-1-4051-2440-9 (hardback) – ISBN 978-1-4051-2441-6 (paperback) 1. Anthropological linguistics. 2. Language and culture. I. Title. II. Series. P35.A38 2011 306.44–dc22 2010049292 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. This book is published in the following electronic formats: ePDFs 9781444340532; Wiley Online Library 9781444340563; ePub 9781444340549 Set in 11.5/13.5 Bembo by SPi Publisher Services, Pondicherry, India 1 2012 AAhheeaarrnn__ffffiirrss..iinndddd iivv 22//11//22001111 99::4422::0099 AAMM For Mellie, whose words and smiles have brought me indescribable joy AAhheeaarrnn__ffffiirrss..iinndddd vv 22//11//22001111 99::4422::0099 AAMM Contents List of Figures viii List of Tables x Preface xi Acknowledgments xvi Part I Language: Some Basic Questions 1 1 The Socially Charged Life of Language 3 2 The Research Process in Linguistic Anthropology 31 3 Language Acquisition and Socialization 50 4 Language, Thought, and Culture 65 Part II Communities of Speakers, Hearers, Readers, and Writers 99 5 Communities of Language Users 101 6 Multilingualism and Globalization 119 7 Literacy Practices 140 8 Performance, Performativity, and the Constitution of Communities 160 Part III Language, Power, and Social Differentiation 185 9 Language and Gender 187 10 Language, Race, and Ethnicity 214 11 Language Death and Revitalization 240 12 Conclusion: Language, Power, and Agency 259 Notes 292 References 307 Index 336 AAhheeaarrnn__ffttoocc..iinndddd vviiii 22//11//22001111 99::4411::5566 AAMM Figures 1.1 Cartoon demonstrating how certain styles of speech can both reflect and shape social identities 4 1.2 Khim Prasad during the Pounded Rice Ritual, with the bride, Indrani Kumari, and the bridal attendant 6 1.3 Cartoon about the varying cultural meanings associated with language use 13 1.4 Jakobson’s model of the multifunctionality of language 18 1.5 Cartoon playing off the language ideology that considers French a romantic language 21 1.6 Semiosis as a relation between relations 26 3.1 The cultural concepts of hed and save in Gapun, Papua New Guinea 59 4.1 Relationship between language and thought according to the (mistaken) “strong” version of the Sapir–Whorf Hypothesis 69 4.2 Relationship among language, thought, and culture according to contemporary understandings of the Sapir–Whorf Hypothesis within linguistic anthropology 70 4.3 Another of the many representations in popular culture of the “Eskimo words for snow” myth 79 4.4 Set-up for experiment involving coordinate systems 88 5.1 De Saussure’s “linguistic community” 104 5.2 Santa Ana and Parodí’s model of nested speech-community configurations 108 AAhheeaarrnn__ffbbeettww..iinndddd vviiiiii 22//11//22001111 99::4422::1144 AAMM List of Figures ix 5.3 Strong, multiplex, high-density network with individual “X” at center 114 5.4 Weak, uniplex, low-density network with individual “X” at center 114 6.1 Peter Auer’s continuum of codeswitching, language mixing, and fused lects 133 7.1 Nepali love letter (with all identifying features removed) 152 8.1 Spatial configuration at August 1990 Tij songfest in Junigau 181 9.1 Cartoon referring to author Deborah Tannen’s ability to understand gendered language 196 9.2 Cartoon showing how certain linguistic forms can index social identities 212 10.1 Political cartoon that appeared in the wake of the Ebonics controversy 231 11.1 Cartoon depicting normal and inevitable changes in a language over time 253 12.1 Doxa as that which is taken for granted and therefore outside the universe of discourse 269 AAhheeaarrnn__ffbbeettww..iinndddd iixx 22//11//22001111 99::4422::1144 AAMM Tables 4.1 English pronouns in the nominative case 81 4.2 Nepali pronouns in the Junigau dialect 82 4.3 Noun classes in Swahili 83 4.4 Spatial categorizing in English and Korean 90 5.1 Santa Ana and Parodí’s typology of speech-community configurations 109 7.1 ‘Be + like’ as a percentage of total quotatives in face-to-face and IM talk 155 9.1 Findings of Hyde’s meta-analyses regarding gender differences in communicative behavior 198 11.1 Ten most commonly spoken languages in the world 244 AAhheeaarrnn__ffbbeettww..iinndddd xx 22//11//22001111 99::4422::1144 AAMM Preface Language as used in real-life social contexts is fascinating but extremely challenging to study. Linguistic anthropology as a discipline offers a set of concepts and tools for undertaking this challenge. My goal in this book is to provide an accessible introduction to the main princi- ples and approaches of linguistic anthropology without overly simpli- fying the complex contributions of scholars in the field. To the degree that this book succeeds in accomplishing this goal, it will be useful not just to graduate and undergraduate students studying linguistic anthro- pology for the first time (to whom I very much hope to communi- cate my enthusiasm for the field) but also to all sorts of other readers who might for various reasons be interested in “living language.” These readers might include, for example, cultural anthropologists, sociologists, or political scientists who have never looked closely at language in their research but could benefit from doing so. I also hope the book will be of value to linguists whose work thus far has been more technical and abstract in nature but who would like to turn their attention to the study of actual instances of linguistic p ractice. And finally, I hope the book will appeal to anyone who has a natural curiosity about the central role language plays in shaping and reflect- ing cultural norms and social interactions. Within the United States, linguistic anthropology is one of the four traditional fields of anthropology: archaeology, biological (also called physical) anthropology, cultural anthropology, and linguistic anthro- pology. When Franz Boas helped to establish the discipline of anthro- pology in the United States more than one hundred years ago, most anthropologists were trained in all four of these fields and often AAhheeaarrnn__ffpprreeff..iinndddd xxii 22//11//22001111 99::4422::0000 AAMM

Description:
Accessible and clearly written, Living Language: An Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology introduces readers to the study of language in real-life social contexts around the world through the contemporary theory and practice of linguistic anthropology. A highly accessible introduction to the study
See more

The list of books you might like

Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.