Part I Linguistic form I find it helpful to think of linguistic form as if it were located in a pane of glass through which ID: 597448
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Slide1
INTRODUCTION TO LINGUISTICS AND LANGUAGE STUDIES
Part
ISlide2
Linguistic form„I find
it
helpful
to
think
of
linguistic
form
as
if
it
were
located
in
a
pane
of
glass
through
which
ideas
are
transmitted
from
speaker
to
listener
.
Under
ordinary
circumstances
language
users
are
not
conscious
of
the
glass
itself
, but
only
of
the
ideas
that
pass
through
it
.
The
form
of
language
is
transparent,
and
it
takes
a
special
act
of
will
to
focus
on
the
glass
and
not
the
ideas
.
Linguists
undergo
a
training
that
teaches
them
how to
focus
on
the
glass
…
the
experience
of
becoming
conscious
of
previously
unconscious
phenomena
is
one
of
the
principal
joys
of
linguistic
work
” (
Wallace
Chafe
1994:38)Slide3
Language studiesLinguists use a variety
of
methods
of
analyzing
language
in
order
to
find
how
we
acquire
it
, how
and
why
we
pronounce
it
the
way
we
do, how
we
string
words
together
to make
meaning
, how
we
understand
meaning
, how
and
why
we
are
effective
in
using
language
for
communication
in
some
situations
but
perhaps
not
in
others
, how
and
why
it
changes
,
why
languages
disappear
…Slide4
Linguistic terminology: meta-languageLinguistics
needs
a
language
to talk
about
language
,
i.e
.
it
needs
a meta-
language
Linguistics
shares
this
meta-
language
with
prescriptive
grammar
,
which
may
lead
to
the
idea
that
linguistics
is
about
correctness
in
language
use –
this
is
very
far
from
the
reality
of
linguistic
studiesSlide5
Exercise 1.1.1. Make a list of word classes
as
you
know
them
.
2.
Now
analyze
the
sentence:
‘
Criminologists
,
in
order
to
uncover
clues
not
visible
to
the
eye
, use
specialized
tools
,
such
as
luminal
, a
liquid
that
reacts
with
the
hemoglobin
in
blood
to
illuminate
previously
invisible
blood
stains
’,
3.
Assign
each
of
the
words
to a word
classSlide6
Content wordsNouns, verbs
,
adjectives
,
adverbs
Refer
to
something
in
our
experience
(
whether
real
or
imagined
)Slide7
Function wordsAllow us
to
connect
different
parts
of
phrases
,
clauses
and
sentences
,
or
to
convey
another
type
of
meaning
,
such
as
polarity
(‘
yes
’
or
‘no’
polarity
),
prepositions
,
prepositional
phrases
,
articles
,
discourse
markersSlide8
Exercise 1.2.Make a list of utterances
which
you
have
heard
or
have
used
yourself
which
you
consider
bad
usage
,
or
incorrect
language
.
Can
you
identify
why
you
consider
them
incorrect
?Slide9
Variability of languageLinguistic
work
is
about
describing
language
,
not
about
prescribing
what
people
should
do.
Language
is
constantly
changing
All
languages
and
dialects
are
equal
from
a
descriptive
linguistic
point
of
view
All
languages
and
dialects
have
the
necessary
resources
to
draw
upon
to
create
new
meanings
in
a
systematic
way
,
in
order
to
match
the
communicative
needs
of
the
community
which
speaks
the
language
or
dialectSlide10
Variability of languageFrom
a
social
perspective
,
there
are
differences
in
how
languages
and
dialects
are
perceived
Certain
ways
of
speaking
are
considered
more
appropriate
in
given
contexts
and
situations
,
and
people
attach
judgments
to
different
ways
of
speaking
which
in
some
settings
are
considered
as
not
appropriate
or
which
one
might
not
usually
encounter
in
a
given
situation
or
contextSlide11
Who are linguists?Persons who
speak
many
languages
?Slide12
How can linguistics help us?
Working
with
multiple
perspectives
concerning
the
nature
of
language
and
how
it
works
in
different
contexts
can
provide
an
understanding
which
can
help
us
be
more
successful
in
using
our
first
language
in
a
range
of
situationSlide13
LinguisticsA scientific study
of
language
Different
theoretical
perspectivesSlide14
Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913):founder of modern
linguisticsSlide15
18th and 19th c. linguistics1) historical
and
comparative
studies
:
history
of
language
,
relationships
among
languages
,
regularities
in
language
change
;
2)
also
:
grammars
of
different
languages
,
describing
their
pronunciations
,
rules
for
forming
words
and
sentences
, to
aid
those
wishing
to
learn
another
language
or
for
translation
of
documents
and
literary
textsSlide16
Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913)Cours de linguistique
générale
(1913)
Synchronic
approach
:
focuses
on
describing
language
at
any
point
in
time as
it
exists
as a system
Language
: system
of
signs
,
which
consist
of
two
parts
:
signified
and
signifierSlide17
SignSignifiedSignifier
CATSlide18
Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913)The relationship
between
a
signified
and
its
signifier
–
arbitrary
The
relationship
between
a
signified
and
its
signifier
–
not
fixed
:
differences
in
how
we
carve
up
experience
in
different
languages
(
e.g
.
words
for a
mother’s
sister
and
a
father’s
sister
in
Arabic
and
English);
differences
across
time
in
relationships
between
signifieds
and
signifiers
:
e.g
.
meat
in
17th c.
meant
‘
food
’)
Signs
are
not
stable
in
terms
of
the
relationship
between
signified
and
signifierSlide19
Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913)If language
is
not
a
fixed
nomenclature
for
pre-existing
concepts
, how do
we
use
it
to
mean
anything
?
Language
is
a set
of
signs
which
are:
a)
members
of
a system
B)
defined
by
their
relationships
to
each
other
(
e.g
. pat
and
bat)Slide20
Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913)Elements of
language
stand
in
relationship
to
each
other
in
two
important
ways
:
1)
syntagmatic
:
the
ways
in
which
they
string
together
; a set
of
smaller
structural
units
combined
according
to
appropriate
rules
(
e.g
.
the
little
girl
)
2)
paradigmatic
:
constitute
choices
,
so
that
only
one
linguistic
item
may
be
present
at a time
in
a
given
position
(
e.g
. Lat. N.
amicus
, G.
amici
, D.
amico
, A.
amicum
…)Slide21
Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913)Linguistics – a study
of
the
system
of
a
language
in
order
to
articulate
the
elements
which
distinguish
one
functional
form
from
another
Langue
–
the
abstract
system
Parole –
the
actual
use
of
language
by
individual
speakersSlide22
Discussion questionWhen we
learn
another
language
,
we
sometimes
discover
words
and
phrases
that
do
not
have
an
exact
counterpart
in
our
own
language
.
Discuss
Saussure’s
notion
that
there
is
no
signified
without
a
signifier
,
especially
in
terms
of
translating
terms
for more
abstract
notions
.
How
can
this
be
applied
to
legal
translation
?Slide23
Noam Chomsky (1928)Slide24
Noam Chomsky (1928)In Chomsky’s
view
:
structuralist
analysis
was
adequate
for
descriptions
of
phenemes
,
morphemes
,
and
clause
constituents
(
e.g
.
noun
phrases
,
verb
phrases
etc
.) but
it
was
not
robust
enough
to
account
for
syntax
,
especially
the
ability
of
syntax
to
generate
an
infinite
number
of
sentencesSlide25
Noam Chomsky (1928)For Chomsky
,
actual
language
use,
or
performance
,
was
only
the
tip
of
the
iceberg
of
linguistic
competence
,
or
the
underlying
mental
processes
which
we
carry
out
in
our
production
of
languageSlide26
Noam Chomsky (1928)We
have
a
repository
of
the
rules
by
which
our
language
organizes
linguistic
elements
into
well-formed
strings
;
We
have
syntactic
expertise
in
terms
of
a set
of
finite
rules
which
allows
us
to
generate
an
infinite
number
of
sentences
,
many
of
which
we
have
never
heard
beforeSlide27
Noam Chomsky (1928)Syntactic
theories
attempt
to make transparent
the
mental
knowledge
by
modeling
it
,
and
in
many
cases
showing
how
language
might
be
generated
by
a
computer
if
programmed
to
have
the
same
kind
of
rule-based
knowledge
Chomsky’s
mentalist
syntactic
theory
–
contemporary
to
the
growth
of
computer
technology
,
which
added
a
dimension
to
the
study
of
syntax
: a
desire
to
be
able
to
replicate
the
ability
of
humans
to
produce
languageSlide28
Noam Chomsky (1928)This
desire
calls
for a
theory
of
language
which
is
precise
and
explicit
:
formulas
and
definitions
in
the
style
of
mathematics
to
describe
and
model
linguistic
competence
Such
theories
–
formal
(
contrasted
with
functional
)
Because
of
the
interest
in
underlying
mental
structures
rather
than
on
actual
performance
,
Chomsky’s
theory
focuses
on
idealized
utterances
,
or
instances
of
language
which
are
considered
to
be
well-formed
according
to
syntactic
rules
,
rather
than
on
real
language
in
useSlide29
Noam Chomsky (1928)Chomsky
later
moved
from
the
terms
competence
and
performance
to
using
the
terms
I-
language
and
E-
language
(
Chomsky
1986)
I-
language
:
internal
set
of
linguistic
rules
E-
language
:
external
language
,
often
incomplete
Humans
have
an
innate
faculty
for
acquiring
the
idealized
I-
languageSlide30
Michael Halliday (1925)Slide31
Michael Halliday (1925)Systemic functional
linguistics
Influenced
by
J.R.
Firth
,
who
drew
attention
to
the
relationship
between
meaning
and
context
,
including
the
surrounding
co-text
that
a
piece
of
language
participates
in
;
this
co-text
lends
meaning
to
words
: ‘You
shall
know
a word
by
the
company
it
keeps
’
Halliday
: a
systemic
framework
of
functional
choices
Language
– a system
of
choices
at
different
levels
,
and
each
choice
provides
an
aspect
of
meaningSlide32
Michael Halliday (1925)Clauses function
to
create
meaning
at
the
same time
in
three
ways
1)
interpersonally
:
by
establishing
and
maintaining
relationships
between
people
;
2)
ideationally
:
by
constructing
the
world
,
whether
real
,
invented
,
or
abstract
,
and
3)
textually
:
organizing
the
interpersonal
and
the
ideational
into
coherent
textsSlide33
Michael Halliday (1925)Functional
choices
:
Mood
:
imperative,
indicative
:
declarative
,
interrogativeSlide34
Michael Halliday (1925)Register=
linguistic
choices
made
in
a
situational
context
:
1)
lexico-grammatical
;
2)
field
(
subject
matter
),
3) mode
(
written
or
spoken
),
and
4)
tenor
(
relationship
between
interlocutors
:
symmetrical
, as
between
friends
,
or
asymmetrical
, as
between
employer
and
employee
)Slide35
Exercise 1.3.Analyze the
following
texts
in
terms
of
field
, mode
and
tenor.
Explain
your
choices
1.
Keep
out
!
2.
Watcha
doin
’?
Wanna
get
a
burger
or
somethin
’?
3. I am
writing
to
enquire
about
the
position
in
sales
advertised
in
the
Saturday
August 12
edition
of
The
Times
.Slide36
Exercise 1.3.Shadows covered
t
he
wide
areas
of
European
life
in
the
fourteenth
and
fifteenth
centuries
.
The
vigorous
expansion
into
bordeing
areas
that
had
marked
European
history
since
the
eleventh
century
came
to
an
end
.
The
Christian West
fought
to
halt
the
expansion
of
the
Muslim
Turks
.
Plague
,
famine
,
and
recurrent
wars
decimated
populations
and
snuffed
out
their
former
prosperity
.
The
papacy
and
feudal
government
struggled
against
mounting
institutional
chaos
.
Powerful
mystical
and
heretical
movements
and
new
critical
currents
in
Scholasticism
rocked
the
established
religious
and
philosophical
equilibrium
of
the
thirteenth
century
. Slide37
Exercise 1.4. Attribute each of the
following
to
either
F. de
Saussure
, N.
Chomsky
,
or
M.
Halliday
1. ‘
If
we
could
embrace
the
sum
of
word-
images
in
the
minds
of
all
individuals
,
we
could
identify
the
social
bond
that
constitutes
language
.
It
is
a
storehouse
filled
by
the
members
of
a
given
community
through
their
active
use
of
speaking
, a
grammatical
system
that
has
a
potential
existence
in
each
brain
,
or
,
specifically
,
in
the
brains
of
a
group
of
individuals
. For
language
is
not
complete
in
any
speaker
;
it
exists
perfectly
only
within
a
collectivity
.’
(De
Saussure
, Ferdinand (1959)
Course
in
General
Linguistics
. New York:
McGraw-Hill
, 13-14)Slide38
Exercise 1.4. Attribute each of the
following
to
either
F. de
Saussure
, N.
Chomsky
,
or
M.
Halliday
2. ‘
It
seems
clear
that
we
must
regard
linguistic
competence
–
knowledge
of
a
language
– as
an
abstract
system
underlying
behavior
, a system
constituted
by
rules
that
interact
to
determine
the
form
and
intrisic
meaning
of
a
potentially
infinite
number
of
sentences
’
(
Chomsky
,
Noam
(2006)
Language
and
Mind
. 3rd
ed
.
Cambridge
University Press)Slide39
Exercise 1.4. Attribute each of the
following
to
either
F. de
Saussure
, N.
Chomsky
,
or
M.
Halliday
3. ‘
Every
text
–
that
is
,
everything
that
is
said
or
written
–
unfolds
in
some
context
of
use;
furthermore
,
it
is
the
uses
of
language
that
,
over
tens
of
thousands
of
generatons
,
have
shaped
the
system.
Language
has
evolved
to
satisfy
human
needs
;
and
the
way
it
is
organized
is
functional
with
respect
to
these
needs
.’
(
Halliday
, M.A.K. (1985)
An
Introduction
to
Functional
Grammar
. London: Edward
Arnold
, xiii.)Slide40
Exercise 1.4. Attribute each of the
following
to
either
F. de
Saussure
, N.
Chomsky
,
or
M.
Halliday
4. ‘
Linguistic
theory
is
concerned
primarily
with
an
ideal
speaker-hearer
,
in
a
completely
homogeneous
speech
community
,
who
knows
its
language
perfectly
and
is
unaffected
by
such
grammatically
irrelevant
conditions
as
memory
limitations
,
distractions
,
shifts
of
attention
and
interest
,
errors
(
random
or
characteristic
)
in
applying
his
knowledge
of
the
language
in
actual
performance
’.
(
Chomsky
,
Noam
(1965)
Aspects
of
the
Theory
of
Syntax
.
Cambridge
, MA: MIT Press, p. 3)Slide41
Exercise 1.4. Attribute each of the
following
to
either
F. de
Saussure
, N.
Chomsky
,
or
M.
Halliday
5. ‘
Language
is
a system
of
interdependent
terms
in
which
the
value
of
each
term
results
solely
from
the
simultaneous
presence
of
the
others
…To
determine
what
a
five-franc
piece
is
worth
one must
know
: 1)
that
it
can
be
exchanged
for a
fixed
quantity
of
a
different
thing
,
e.g
.
bread
;
and
2)
that
it
can
be
compared
with
a
similar
value
of
the
same system,
e.g
. a one-
franc
piece
,
or
with
coins
of
another
system (a
dollar
,
etc
.). In
the
same
way
a word
can
be
exchanged
for
something
dissimilar
,
an
idea
;
besides
,
it
can
be
compared
with
something
of
the
same nature,
another
word.
Its
value
is
therefore
not
fixed
so
long
as one
simply
states
that
it
can
be
‘
exchanged
’ for a
given
concept
’
(De
Saussure
, F. (1959)
Course
in
General
Linguistics
. New York:
McGraw-Hill
, p. 114-115)Slide42
Exercise 1.4. Attribute each of the
following
to
either
F. de
Saussure
, N.
Chomsky
,
or
M.
Halliday
‘
Spoken
and
written
language
,
then
,
tend
to display
different
KINDS
of
complexity
;
each
of
them
is
more complex
in
its
own
way
.
Written
language
tends
to
be
lexically
dense
but
grammatically
simple
;
spoken
language
tends
to
be
grammatically
intricate
but
lexically
sparse
’… ‘
The
value
of
having
some
explicit
knowledge
of
the
grammar
of
written
language
is
that
you
can
use
this
knowledge
,
not
only
to
analyze
the
texts
, but as a
critical
resource
for
asking
questions
about
them
’.
(
Halliday
, M.A.K. (1987)
Spoken
and
written
modes
of
meaning
. In
Horowitt
, R. &
Samuels
, S.J. (
eds
)
Comprehending
Oral
and
Written
Language
.
Orlando
, FL:
Academic
Press, 66.)