Chapter Seven
Language,Culture & Society
? Language & Culture
? Language & Society
?I Language is an essential and
important part of a given culture
and the impact of culture up a
given language is something
intrinsic and indispensable.
II Language and Culture
? Malinowski
? John P,Firth
? Franz Boas
? Edward Sapir
? Benjamin Lee Whorf
? Halliday
Malinowski
? Anthropologist
Social Cultural Context
Trobriand Islands off eastern New Guinea
“In its primitive uses,language functions
as a link in concerted human activity…”
John P,Firth,London School
Theory of Context of Situation
A,The relevant features of the participants,
persons,personalities
(i) The verbal action of the participants
(ii) The non-verbal action of the participants
B,The relevant objects
C,The effects of the verbal action
Sociological axiom in language use:
“Who speaks (or writes) what language (what
language variety) to whom and when and to
what end”
Sapir-Whorf Hypotheses
? Our language helps mould our way of thinking
and,consequently,different languages may
probably express our unique ways of
understanding the world.
? Language may determine our thinking patterns;
similarity between languages is relative,the
greater their structural differentiation is,the more
diverse their conceptualization of the world will be.
? Linguistic Determinism
Linguistic Relativity
Halliday
? Linguistic Potential
? Actual Linguistic Behavior
Social Semiotics
Meaning potential
III Language & Society
Gender
Age
Occupation
Social Status
Education
Regional
Factors
Social Factors