Language in Sociolinguistics

Sociolinguistics

investigating the relationship between language and society with the goal of a better understanding of the structure of language and how languages function in communication.

Hudson - Sociolinguistics VS the sociology of language

a. Sociolinguistics is the study of language in relation to society’, b. Sociology of language: the study of society in relation to language

Sociology of language

to discover how social structure can be better understood through the study of language, e.g. how certain linguistic features serve to characterize particular social arrangement

The relationship between language and society

1. Social structure (age, varieties of languages), 2. Linguistic structure, 3. bi-directional influence (each other), 4. no relationship at all

Social factors

1. the participants (wife- husband, boss-worker), 2. the social setting (home, work, school), 3. the aim or purpose of the interaction (informative, social) 4. the topic

Noam Chomsky

•One of the most influential linguists of the 20th century. • Interested in grammaticality how humans use a finite set of structures and rules to produce an infinite number of grammatically correct sentences.

competence

the knowledge of language, linguistic focuses on it

performance

the use of language, pragmatic focuses on it

Can linguistics exist without pragmatics?

No chyba nie, przynajmniej mi nic nie wiadomo. xd

Dell Hymes

•Dissatisfied with Chomsky’s definition of ‘competence’: too narrow, too abstract, too sterile, and most importantly: too asocial

Ferdinand de Saussure

‘’the father of modern linguistics’’, • Language is organic, (not atomistic) and should be studied as such