Lecture 1 Language and linguistics Keywords

Self-control questions:
Speak about the qualities of good language learners?
What is risk-taking?
What do you understand by to be well organized?
What is the role of the effective revision in learning the languages?
What do you understand by learning independently from teacher?
What types of intelligences do you know?
What is verbal-linguistic intelligence?
What is bodily kinesthetic intelligence?
What is natural intelligence?
What is logical mathematical intelligence?
What is interpersonal intelligence?
What is intrapersonal intelligence?
What is visual intelligence?
What is musical intelligence?
What is the role of types of intelligences in learning and teaching process?
LECTURE № 9.
Sociolinguistics
Keywords: sociolinguistics, language and society, key concept, social groupings and networks, dialect and variety, accent, pronunciation, research, a sociolect, an idiolect, outside influences, gender.
We're going to begin the topic of sociolinguistics. So, Firstly, let's define sociolinguistics. Well, sociolinguistics examines the link between language and society. Sociolinguists analyze the ways in which language use varies according to different situations. You might now be wondering, 'What's the point in studying sociolinguistics?'
Sociolinguistics demonstrates how human language reflects the reality of the world in which we speakers live. Sociolinguistics is important because it helps us to understand how and why language is used by people in different circumstances. By the way, I’ll use dialect and variety to mean the same thing. A dialect or variety means the form of language used by different groups of people. This includes vocabulary as well as grammar and pronunciation.
The film My Fair Lady, which shows sociolinguistics in practice, starring Audrey Herburn and Rex Harrison, came out in 1964. It is based on an earlier stage musical, which in turn was based on a play by George Bernard Shaw, Pygmalion (1913). In the film, Professor Higgins, a professor of phonetics, attempts to train a poor flower-seller to speak and behave like an upper-class lady.
Of course, My Fair Lady is just a story. How do real sociolinguists collect the necessary data? Well, in some cases, it’s actually not so different from the work of Professor Higgins in the film. Like Professor Higgins, sociolinguists obviously rely on research, fieldwork and analysis. There are several ways to categorize linguistic research. One way is to distinguish between primary and secondary research. Another important distinction is between qualitative and quantitative research.
Essentially, sociolinguistics explores the connection between society and language use. I suppose you could say that sociolinguists are looking to see how our speech is influenced by who we are and what we are doing. Arguably, this connection is most noticeably demonstrated in regional varieties. So, what is a regional variety?
Well, a regional variety is a dialect of a language used in a specific geographical area of a country. Some regional dialects are so distinct from standard varieties that they are known by particular names. It is likely that some of you have heard of British dialects of English such as Brummie' from the Birmingham area, 'Geordie' from Newcastle upon Tyne and ‘Scouse' from Liverpool. And why are there so many regional dialects in Britain? That's a very good question. English has been used in this country for more than 1,500 years, and over time, the English used in different areas of Britain has changed. People's language use has adapted as a result of their own needs, and outside influences.
So, let's move on. The variety of language we use is also affected by our social groupings or networks. The type of language used by a particular social group or subculture is often referred to as a sociolect. The roles played by an individual, in identifying with social networks and showing membership, can have an impact on language and therefore the use of lexis and grammar. At any given time, a person's language can vary according to which role they are playing and the particular situation they are in. A good way of explaining this is to think of the different roles that you play in your own life. I bet that the way you speak to your parents is quite different to the way that you speak to your boyfriend or girlfriend. No doubt, interacting with a bank clerk is not the same as chatting to your niece or nephew. Talking on the phone to colleagues at work differs greatly from speaking to your friends on the phone at home. Of course, no two people have the same set of circumstances, so it follows that no two people use language in exactly the same way. An individual's unique use of language is called an idiolect.
Sources from research show that an individual's language usage is influenced by gender. This means that there are some noticeable differences in the way in which men and women speak. Differences caused by a person's sex can include areas such as word choice and pronunciation. Studies have shown that male speakers of any regional dialect tend to use the most pronounced regional accents.