Evaluate The Idea That Language Is Used By Individual People Together

Evaluate The Idea That Language Is Used By Individual People To Society Together

Firstly, a sociolect is a social dialect used by a particular group within a wider society, and is used for a number of different reasons, however the main intention is to bind these groups together. Examples of such groups include ethnic group, social class, and age group. The change in sociolect is clear in in the transcript, as the way that person B speaks to person C is different to person A, as although they are in the same family, they are in different social groups due to age. For example, person B describes a TV show as “soo gooooood’, however when discussing the same show with person A, it is described as “brilliant”. This can improve relations within

The Communication Accommodation Theory looks at how when people converse, the speaker will subconsciously change the style of speech towards the style used by the listener. This can affect elements such as accent, rate of speech and types of words used. This can include both upshifting and downshifting, which is where the speaker makes their language more or less formal in order to show or gain respect. For instance, when person B asks in capitals “HOW ARE YOU”, B responds with “IM GOOD”. This replication of style implies that B likes C, and so potentially wishes to be liked back, and so is subconsciously using speech to appear similar. This can also be seen in a slightly different way between persons A and B, as A is continually using ‘x’s throughout the conversation, whereas B is not, until the end of the conversation, which ends with B saying “xxxxxxxxxx”. This convergence shows B’s affection for A by replicating the speech patterns used, and so could help to bring them closer. However, the opposite of convergence is divergence, which is where the speaker responds negatively to the other party, and so attempts to make their speech as different as possible. This could then be picked up on by the listener, and so cause divisions between the two, and therefore would not help create bonds within society as convergence

The formality spectrum is a way to almost measure how formal or informal a speaker’s language is, as this will change depending on the context. Joos’ model describes five styles used in spoken language, ranging from frozen to intimate. This can be seen between persons A, B and C. In the conversation between B and C, their language can be described as intimate, as they are using private vocabulary, and clearly know each other well. For instance, B refers to “nlcs”, which may not have been understood by someone unfamiliar with B’s speech or interests. However, it was not questioned, and clearly accepted by person C. However, the conversation between A and B is somewhat more formal than that of B and C, and so lies somewhere between casual and intimate. This is seen through the increase in background information, and lack of private vocabulary. For instance, in the first transcript, B describes things as “sick” or “spicy”, while changing their meaning to something different. Instead, when speaking to person A, B’ refers to things as “brill” or “dodgy”, and more commonly understood. This upshift in person B’s language could be to show respect, as person A could be considered a higher authority. Showing respect could be an example of how society is bound together, as it generally accepted that those of higher status deserve respect in our