Transcript
Language and meaning (Ch. 3.)
MARIA SUBERT
What is language?
Language is a collection of symbols, letters, words with arbitrary meanings, governed by rules and used to communicate.
Language has rules:osemantics
osyntax
opragmatics
Semantics:
The study of the way humans use language to evoke
meaning in others.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcBvGToIxgA
Syntax:the way we arrange
words
to form phrases
and sentences
Pragmatics:Language as it is used in social context
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aeCxWyNAQQ
Phatic communication:When we Do NOT to communicate information or ideas, rather to establish a mood of sociability.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v80J9E11tlk
The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis:“Language shapes reality.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Df25r8pcuI8
Words are arbitrary: They have NO inherent meaningThey have only the meanings people give them…
Denotative meaning:the dictionary meaning of a world
Connotative meaning:individualized or personalized meaning
avoid these when you speak:grammatical errors
Slang
Clichés
Euphemism
Profanity
Jargon
Regionalism
sexist/racist/heterosexist/ageist languages
Slang, ClichéSlang: informal, casual street language
Cliché: overused expression that lost originality
Profanity: language that is disrespectful of sacred things
http://www.worldmag.com/2011/11/profanity_and_art
Euphemism:
avoiding language that would be offensive in a social setting (not necessary to be avoided)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CNk_kzQCclo
Jargon, RegionalismJargon: language particular to a specific profession
Regionalism: words and phrases specific to a region
Technical Jargon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aW2LvQUcwqc
Regionalism, and why it works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w8TWfuOiNzE
Descriptiveness and Paraphrasing
Descriptiveness: instead of judging it, we describe the observed
behavior or phenomena
Paraphrasing is restating the content of the message by rephrasing
Operational definition
identifying something by describing ◦how it works◦how it is made◦what it consist
Confusion can arise…
If you suspect someone might misunderstand your terminology, you must define the term.
Define potentially confusing words when you speak.
It is recommended to use concrete language rather than vague or abstract when you speak.
Dating & Frozen evaluationDating: specify when you made the observation since everything changes over time.
Frozen evaluation: in which you don’t allow your assessment to change over time.
Dating is the opposite of frozen evaluation.
Observation & InferencesObservation: descriptions of what is sensed
Inferences: conclusions drawn from observations
top related