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Language Systems

Language Systems. COM 370—Psychology of Language John R. Baldwin. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0I7PCoy-nk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_l7ty_MH_Y http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nlw4NJdnNE. A Model of Language.

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Language Systems

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  1. Language Systems COM 370—Psychology of Language John R. Baldwin

  2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0I7PCoy-nk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_l7ty_MH_Y http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nlw4NJdnNE

  3. A Model of Language http://video.search.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=1289153507&vw=g&b=0&pos=15&p=slim+shady&fr=yfp-t-501 Y'all act like you never seen a white person beforeJaws all on the floor like Pam, like Tommy just burst in the door … I'm like a head trip to listen to, cause I'm only givin youthings you joke about with your friends inside your living roomThe only difference is I got the balls to say itin front of y'all and I don't gotta be false or sugarcoated at allI just get on the mic and spit it…

  4. Applying the model • Syntax: • Sentence structure • Parts of speech • Morphemes • Locate different types of morphemes: • Bound, unbound • Derivational, inflectional • Phonemes • Semantics • Context

  5. Language Systems Elements of Language: Once over Lightly… • Phonetics: the sounds of a language • Phonology: how sounds are put together • Morphology: • the breaking up of sounds into words: • Ihavetogohomeearlytoday. • I have to go home early today • Rhaidimifyndadre’ngynnarheddiw • Rhaid I mi fyndadre’ngynnarheddiw • the parts of sounds that have meaning, can work together: “coffeelike”; “bookly” “incentivate”

  6. Language Systems (continued) • Syntax: the arrangement of sounds into grammatical sentences • You up pick at o’clock will eight • I will picks you up at eight o’clock • I will pick you up at eight o’clock • At eight o’clock, I will pick you up • Grammaticality(is it correct?) versus semantic acceptability (does it make sense?)

  7. Language Systems (continued) Semantics: the meaning of utterances • Ambiguity (more than one possible meaning) • I like chocolate cakes and pies. • I’ll meet you at the bank. • Visiting relatives can be dreadful • I saw her duck • Semantic “equivalence”? • John is an unmarried male = John is a bachelor? • The car bumped the truck = The truck was bumped by the car? • Spanish: “Las llaves se me perdieron.”

  8. Language Systems (continued) • Pragmatics: the relation of language to context; social conventions, etc. • How (when, to whom) would you… • ask a favor? • point out something potentially embarrassing? • Tell a joke • Styles of Speech: Registers, dialects • Discourse? Social ideas (ideologies) embedded within the other elements of speech

  9. Language Elements 2 • Phonemic: the sounds • Phonology: the relation of sounds to sounds • Morphemic: the relation of sounds to meaning • Syntax: the relation of words to each other • Semantics: the relation of words to what they represent • Pragmatics: the relation of utterances to social settings • Discourse: the relation of utterances to ideas

  10. An exercise… www.engrish.com Thought questions • What does/can language do? • How is human language different from what other animals do?

  11. Language in a System: Communication Sending Meaning All of These Receiving Interpreting Conceptual Pragmatic

  12. ALL COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS HAVE • A MODE OF TRANSMISSION • SIGNS • SIGNALS

  13. ALL COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS HAVE PRAGMATIC FUNCTION

  14. TRUE LANGUAGE-BASED COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS HAVE • CONCEPTUAL FUNCTION • INTERCHANGEABILITY • CULTURAL TRANSMISSION • ARBITRARINESS • DISCRETENESS • DISPLACEMENT • PRODUCTIVITY

  15. Language productivity (continued) • EMERGENT • EVOLVES • BUT ALWAYS RULE GUIDED (set by language and culture) • Phonetic • Semantic • Syntactic • Pragmatic

  16. A thought question:

  17. Language

  18. Now…in more detail: Phonetics • What are the phonemes in the following words? • “wash” • “strength” • “milieu” • “foyer” • “limber” • Explain how you produce these sounds? • What are some phoneme types in other languages that English does not have? What are some phonetic confusions with other languages?

  19. Phonemes and the mouth… http://www.ich.ucl.ac.uk/factsheets/families/F000368/images/diagram.gif

  20. (phonetics) • http://www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/phonetics/ • What are some types of phonemes? (how would you label them)? Useful terms in describing them? • Consonants / vowels / semi-vowels • The Phonetic Alphabet • What are some phonemes that do not go together in English? • Why is this information useful?

  21. Morphology • Morphemes in word structure • Conjugation • Declension • Prefixes and suffixes • Rules on prefixes and suffixes • Stems with a given affix usually combine to form the same part of speech: -able, -un, -dis • Words joined with an affix usually result in the same part of speech: -usable, disuse, abuse

  22. Conjugation English English Greek [yo] conosco [tu] conoces [él/ella/Ud.] conoce [nosotros] conocemos [vosotros] conocéis [ellos/ellas/Uds] conocen • ginosko • ginoskeis • ginoskei • ginoskomen • ginoskete • ginoskousin • I know • He/she/it knows • You know • We know • Y’all know • They know

  23. Declension The boy German Greek Subj:DerJunge/ die jungen Gen: Des Jungen/derjungen Dat: Dem Jungen/den Jungen Acc: Den Jungen/Die Jungen • Nom:logos • Gen:logou • Abl:logou • Loc: logo • Inst:logo • Dat: logo • Acc: logon • Voc: loge • Subj: The boy(s) • Poss: Of the boy(s)/the boy’s(s’) • IO: (to) the boy(s) • DO: the boy(s) • (Vocative): Oh boy!

  24. Morphology Categorizing Morphemes • Bound: Needs to be attached to a word • Affixes • Prefix • Suffix • Inflectional • Conjugation : verbs • Declension: nouns • Free: Can exist by itself

  25. Morphology • Categorizing Morphemes • Derivational: Change the meaning of the word or the part of speech • Ex: happy (ADJ) + un = unhappy (ADJ) • Ex: happy (ADJ) + ness =happiness (N) • Inflectional: Root meaning of word stays the same, as does part of speech • Conjugation: Ex: She runs; he walked • Declension: Megan’s; Megans • [A bad joke]

  26. An exercise Find the Morpheme

  27. Syntax Lexical Categories: clusters or groups of words according to function Nouns (N) Verbs (V) Adjectives (ADJ) Adverbs (ADV) Determiners (DET) Auxiliary Verbs (AV) Prepositions (P): (P + NP = PP!) Pronouns (PRO)

  28. Content and Function Words Content words (contentives): “Carry the principal meaning of the sentence” —”name the objects, events, and characteristics that lie at the heart of the message the sentence is meant to convey” (Clark & Clark, 1977, p. 21) Function words: The “glue” that holds the content words together, “to indicate what goes with what and how.”

  29. Content or Function??? Pronoun Determiner (e.g., articles) Adjectives Prepositions Nouns Conjunctions Adverbs and conjunctive adverbs Verbs, regular, linking, and auxiliary Relative pronouns

  30. Syntax Ways to Organize Sentences Linear Order Hierarchical Structure: Propositions and Constituents: “Semantically coherent groups” Ex: Most executives eat at really fancy restaurants Ex: Enraged Cow Injures Farmer with Ax

  31. Clark & Clark Ch. 1 exercises • Sentence: Wellington’s fresh, young troops defeated Napoleon’s well-trained army.” • Find the “propositions” (p. 10-11) • Diagram the sentence (p. 12) • Main phrases (NP & VP, or “subject” and “predicate” • Adjectives, articles, and so on • Adjective and Adverb clauses • Different ways to say the same thing? • Why is this useful!?

  32. Give me Ambiguity, or… • Defining Ambiguity: • Types of Ambiguity: • Structural: when constituents can be grouped in more than one way • Lexical: when a word can be a member of more than one lexical category • Semantic: when a word or phrase (or gesture) can mean more than one thing. [Also frequently called lexical!] http://www.gally.net/leavings/01/0137.html

  33. Examples: Ambiguity Larry raises miniature badgers and racoons. We need more intelligent leaders. Iraq Bombs Gut Factory (headline) Free Wales Wet Paint The little girl hit the child with the toy Squad Helps Dog Bite Victim (headline) Teacher Strikes Idle Kids (headline)

  34. Student Quotes “She said she was having problems with her job [at a school]. She said it was because of a bad principle.” There was a high degree of gender differentiation within her family, with her father resting on the top. Where I work if a person comes in by them self to eat the customers sometimes expect me to sit down and converse with them.

  35. The only information given about the college was that it was a liberal arts college off the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. “Stella was flapping and fighting the currants in the river…” “In our findings, a variety of beauty definitions arouse.” Barthes felt this was the problem with mythic shits. The sample could have screwed our data.

  36. Applications • Learning structure and clearer speaking: • PP = preposition + object of preposition • “This is important for both Susan or myself” • “This is important for both Susan and I” • “This is important for both Susan and me” • VT versus VI: “It’s good to be able to critique” • Adjective or Noun?: “lots of positives,” “prejudice,” “the dominate characteristic” • Help! I need an AV: “I would of been there…” • http://www.englishforums.com/English/FunnySentences/vqlc/post.htm

  37. Dude! http://duderific.tripod.com/dude.html

  38. Productivity: Old Words http://www.lssu.edu/banished/current.php http://www.lssu.edu/banished/complete_list.php http://www.banbuilder.com/ http://www.owlnet.rice.edu/~ling215/NewWords/page1.html http://www.urbandictionary.com/

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