Language, Culture, And Communication: The Meaning Of Messages

Written in accessible, non-technical language, this book explores the many interconnections among language, culture, and communicative meaning--using data from cultures and languages throughout the world. It examines the multi-faceted meanings and uses of language, emphasizes the ways that language encapsulates speakers' meanings and intentions, and highlights both similarities and differences in human languages. Features short, chapter-opening vignettes. The Form of the Message. Language and Cultural Meaning. Contextual Components: Outline of an Ethnography of Communication. Communicative Interactions. Societal Segmentation and Linguistic Variation: Class and Race. Language and Gender: English and English-Speakers. Cross-Cultural Studies of Language and Gender. Learning Language. Acquisition of Communicative Competence. Multilingual Nations. Bilingual Communities. Language and Institutional Encounters. Highlights topics of current concern and controversy: e.g., interactional and symbolic uses of African American Vernacular English; endangered languages and language maintenance efforts; U.S. state and federal legislation concerning language and bilingual education; the Ebonics controversy; the international dominance of English and the growth of "New Englishes." For anyone interested in Language and Culture, Anthropological Linguistics, and Language and Communication.