Making Sense of Language
Readings in Culture and Communication
2nd Edition
Published on 15. June 2012
Book
Paperback/Softback
608 pages
978-0-19-984092-2 (ISBN)
Description
Chosen for their accessibility and diversity, the readings in Making Sense of Language: Readings in Culture and Communication, Second Edition, engage students in thinking about the ability to use language--perhaps the most uniquely human of all our characteristics--and how this skill relates to both classical theories of language and contemporary life. Instead of taking an ideological stance on these issues, the text presents a range of theoretical
perspectives and bolsters them with pedagogical support, including chapter introductions; critical-thinking, reading, and application questions; and a comprehensive glossary. Weaving in questions of power, gender,
identity, ritual, interaction, and the nature of language throughout, the second edition of Making Sense of Language is an exemplary text for courses in language and culture and linguistic anthropology.
perspectives and bolsters them with pedagogical support, including chapter introductions; critical-thinking, reading, and application questions; and a comprehensive glossary. Weaving in questions of power, gender,
identity, ritual, interaction, and the nature of language throughout, the second edition of Making Sense of Language is an exemplary text for courses in language and culture and linguistic anthropology.
Reviews / Votes
"There is no other reader that is as accessible to undergraduate students who have no prior experience studying language."--Emily McEwan-Fujita, University of Pittsburgh"Making Sense of Language is an excellent collection of highly accessible yet intellectually challenging readings that are well contextualized by lucid and well written introductions. It addresses all of the challenges I face in teaching this course."--Amy Paugh, James Madison University
"I wish this book had been available when I first started teaching Language and Culture! It
has transformed my teaching of the course."--Robey Callahan, California State University, Fullerton
"The author has made an excellent selection, combining classics with new, cutting-edge research and mixing anthropology of far-flung peoples with studies of situations familiar to our students in the U.S." --Dorothy Wills, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
More details
Edition
2nd edition
Language
English
Place of publication
New York
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Illustrations
Figures; Maps; Illustrations, black and white
Weight
1396 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-984092-2 (9780199840922)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Susan D. Blum is Professor and Chair of Anthropology at the University of Notre Dame. She has been teaching and writing about language, culture, communication, and human society for more than twenty years. Her research centers on China and the United States. Among her publications are My Word: Plagiarism and College Culture and Lies that Bind: Chinese Truth, Other Truths.
Content
* INDICATES READINGS THAT ARE NEW TO THIS EDITION
PART I THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE
Unit 1 What Is Language?
1. Robbins Burling, Smiles, Winks, and Words.
2. Ferdinand de Saussure, Nature of the Linguistic Sign
Unit 2 Language Origins
3. Charles Hockett, The Origin of Speech
4. William C. Stokoe, Signing and Speaking: Competitors, Alternatives, or Incompatibles?
*5. Derek Bickerton, Symbol and Structure: A Comprehensive Framework for Language Evolution
Unit 3 Language and Thought
6. Benjamin Lee Whorf, The Relation of Habitual Thought and Behavior to Language
7. George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, Metaphors We Live By
8. Stephen C. Levinson, Language and Mind: Let's Get the Issues Straight!
Unit 4 Language Socialization
*9. Elinor Ochs and Bambi B. Schieffelin, Language Acquisition and Socialization: Three Developmental Stories and Their Implications
*10. Shirley Brice Heath, What No Bedtime Story Means: Narrative Skills at Home and at School
*11. Patricia Baquedano-Lopez, The Pragmatics of Reading Prayers: Learning the Act of Contrition in Spanish-based Religious Education Classes (Doctrina)
Unit 5 (New) Media
*12. John DeFrancis, What Is Writing?
*13. Maryanne Wolf, How the Brain Adapted Itself to Read and The Birth of an Alphabet and Socrates' Protests
*14. Neil Postman, The Peek-a-Boo World
*15. John Durham Peters, The Quest for Authentic Connection
*16. David Crystal, Why All the Fuss?
*17. Jabari Mahiri, Literacies in the Lives of Urban Youth
*18. Marshall T. Poe, Homo Somnians: Humanity in the Age of the Internet
PART II LANGUAGE AND SOCIETY
Unit 6 Multilingualism
Societal Multilingualism
19. Tom McArthur, Chinese, English, Spanish - and the Rest
20. Edwin L. Battistella, Bad Language: Bad Citizens
*21. Y. Suleiman, Language Education Policy-Arabic Speaking Countries
*22. Anthea Fraser Gupta, The Language Ecology of Singapore
Individual Multilingualism
23. Ana Celia Zentella, Bilingualism en casa
*24. Inmaculada M. Garcia-Sanchez, Serious Games: Code-Switching and Gendered Identities in Moroccan Immigrant Girls' Pretend Play
Language Endangerment and Revitalization
25. John H. McWhorter, Most of the World's Languages Went Extinct
*26. Donna Patrick, Indigenous Language Endangerment and the Unfinished Business of Nation States
*27. Annette Boudreau and Lise Dubois, Francais, Acadien, Acadjonne: Competing Discourses on Language Preservation along the Shores of the Baie Sainte-Marie
*28. Ghil'ad Zuckermann and Michael Walsh, Stop, Revive, Survive : Lessons from the Hebrew Revival Applicable to the Reclamation, Maintenance and Empowerment of Aboriginal Languages and Cultures
Unit 7 Language and Identity
Region and Class
29. William Labov, The Social Stratification of (r) in New York City Department Stores
30. Deborah Tannen, New York Jewish Conversational Style
*31. William A. Kretzschmar, Jr. Regional Dialects
"Race" and Ethnicity
32. John R. Rickford, Suite for Ebony and Phonics
*33. H. Samy Alim, Hip Hop Nation Language
*34. Richard Rodriguez, Aria
Gender
35. William M. O'Barr and Bowman K. Atkins,
PART I THE NATURE OF LANGUAGE
Unit 1 What Is Language?
1. Robbins Burling, Smiles, Winks, and Words.
2. Ferdinand de Saussure, Nature of the Linguistic Sign
Unit 2 Language Origins
3. Charles Hockett, The Origin of Speech
4. William C. Stokoe, Signing and Speaking: Competitors, Alternatives, or Incompatibles?
*5. Derek Bickerton, Symbol and Structure: A Comprehensive Framework for Language Evolution
Unit 3 Language and Thought
6. Benjamin Lee Whorf, The Relation of Habitual Thought and Behavior to Language
7. George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, Metaphors We Live By
8. Stephen C. Levinson, Language and Mind: Let's Get the Issues Straight!
Unit 4 Language Socialization
*9. Elinor Ochs and Bambi B. Schieffelin, Language Acquisition and Socialization: Three Developmental Stories and Their Implications
*10. Shirley Brice Heath, What No Bedtime Story Means: Narrative Skills at Home and at School
*11. Patricia Baquedano-Lopez, The Pragmatics of Reading Prayers: Learning the Act of Contrition in Spanish-based Religious Education Classes (Doctrina)
Unit 5 (New) Media
*12. John DeFrancis, What Is Writing?
*13. Maryanne Wolf, How the Brain Adapted Itself to Read and The Birth of an Alphabet and Socrates' Protests
*14. Neil Postman, The Peek-a-Boo World
*15. John Durham Peters, The Quest for Authentic Connection
*16. David Crystal, Why All the Fuss?
*17. Jabari Mahiri, Literacies in the Lives of Urban Youth
*18. Marshall T. Poe, Homo Somnians: Humanity in the Age of the Internet
PART II LANGUAGE AND SOCIETY
Unit 6 Multilingualism
Societal Multilingualism
19. Tom McArthur, Chinese, English, Spanish - and the Rest
20. Edwin L. Battistella, Bad Language: Bad Citizens
*21. Y. Suleiman, Language Education Policy-Arabic Speaking Countries
*22. Anthea Fraser Gupta, The Language Ecology of Singapore
Individual Multilingualism
23. Ana Celia Zentella, Bilingualism en casa
*24. Inmaculada M. Garcia-Sanchez, Serious Games: Code-Switching and Gendered Identities in Moroccan Immigrant Girls' Pretend Play
Language Endangerment and Revitalization
25. John H. McWhorter, Most of the World's Languages Went Extinct
*26. Donna Patrick, Indigenous Language Endangerment and the Unfinished Business of Nation States
*27. Annette Boudreau and Lise Dubois, Francais, Acadien, Acadjonne: Competing Discourses on Language Preservation along the Shores of the Baie Sainte-Marie
*28. Ghil'ad Zuckermann and Michael Walsh, Stop, Revive, Survive : Lessons from the Hebrew Revival Applicable to the Reclamation, Maintenance and Empowerment of Aboriginal Languages and Cultures
Unit 7 Language and Identity
Region and Class
29. William Labov, The Social Stratification of (r) in New York City Department Stores
30. Deborah Tannen, New York Jewish Conversational Style
*31. William A. Kretzschmar, Jr. Regional Dialects
"Race" and Ethnicity
32. John R. Rickford, Suite for Ebony and Phonics
*33. H. Samy Alim, Hip Hop Nation Language
*34. Richard Rodriguez, Aria
Gender
35. William M. O'Barr and Bowman K. Atkins,