Idea Transcript
LING/ANTH 203 Week 7 The features of language •Suprasegmental features: -Paralanguage -Nonverbal communication: kinesics, proxemics •Design features of language
Paralanguage
Suprasegmental features • Features that span more than one “segment” of language (not linked to a particular sound or word) • (Later we will talk about how language is made of segments, and about segmental features)
Kinesics
• Vocal cues that are not directly part of language (not “language within the circle”)
• body movement and facial expression
• Includes: tone, pitch, speed, loudness, breathiness, whining, whispering
• Includes: eye contact, eyebrow position, mouth position, whether or not teeth are showing, walking style
Proxemics
Suprasegmental vs. Linguistic Meanings
• how people perceive and use space • US proxemics: Intimate (0-1.5’)/personal(1.5-4’)/social (4-12’)/public (12’+)
• Control of space & social power • Cross-cultural variation
* When your words and your kinesics and/or paralanguage are contradictory—the nonverbal signals tend to override the verbal ones.
1
What are linguistic “segments”? • sounds (phonemes), which are the building blocks of words • words, which are the building blocks of sentences • This brings us to… The DESIGN FEATURES of LANGUAGE
Design feature of language #1:
Discreteness • Sounds differentiated into segments, “chunks” -categorical disntinction • Variation not continuous, not just variation on a scale. • Examples: --3 vervet monkey calls --differences between phonemes a, e, i, o, u, etc. • It is possible to shift between saying these vowels without a break, but mentally there is a clear division between them (demonstrate)
Non-discrete, continuous variation • Examples of continuous (non-discrete) variation: loudness, intensity, frequency • bee dance is based on variation on a continuum --richness of food source is denoted by the liveliness of the dance --direction denoted by angle of diagonal dance path
2