Phonetics, Phonology and Social Meaning

What is language? Give examples for its multimodal nature.

Language is a reflection of the individual characteristics of an individual along with the belief and the practices of the community to which they belong (Robins). Language of the tendency to affect the different aspects of human culture including the religious social political and economic. The impact of language can be analysed with the fact of the various situations in which the banning of a certain type of language has led to the production of anxiety and tension and even lead to the allegations of discrimination and racism among the individuals. Language basically the mode of communication which allows people to connect and interact with each other with the use of various gestures signs and visual representations. Multimodality is basically the phenomena of communicating with the combination of modes of expression and representation within the text design (Rowsell and R. Collier). The various multiple modes of language that can be utilised with this phenomenon include visual (e.g., painting, drawing, video), print (e.g., newspaper, books, environmental print), dramatic (e.g., improvisation, formal acting, roleplaying), oral (e.g., public speaking, informal talk).

What are the basic parts of the language that linguists' study? Give an example of meaning-carrying elements for each part.

The basic parts of languages that linguistics study is phonemes, syntax, morphemes and context (Syarif). A phoneme is the most basic unit of phonology. It is considered to be the minute unit of the sound which can cause a change in the overall meaning within a language but it is also considered that the phoneme does not have a meaning by their own. One such example is the word bake and break, there is the only one which has been altered, /r/, in these two words but the meaning is entirely different when the appears or disappears in the word. On the other hand, morphemes are the basic unit of morphology and are considered as the smallest but the meaningful unit of a language. If morpheme is changed or alteration is made, it will change the entire meaning of the given word. Some of them even individual words such as water or eat. The syntax is referred to a set of rows which is constructing a full sentence with the help of words and phrases. For example, the sentence, “the baby ate the carrot” and “the carrot ate the baby” do not have the same meaning although they have the same words used in the sentence. Context is the process through which various words and phrases work together in order to convey a definite meaning. It includes body language tone of voice and the words which have been used. For example, when we use the word “beautiful” with a smile that suggests the person appreciate the particular thing or a person but if the word beautiful has been said with rolled eyes and sarcastic tone that suggests jealousy.

How do languages of the world differ from one another structurally and otherwise? Give examples for each difference.

The language of the world differ from each other is structurally and in many other ways as well. They may be using a different sound or different use of the word in the particular sentence to make it a group of words which is entirely different from the other languages (Asoulin). Phonetics and phonology which provide for the pattern of the sound system of a language are one such way which can make a difference in the language in an effective manner (Eckert and Labov). Primary the consonants and vowels and the way the sound of the word has been pitched makes a great difference for the overall impact of language. This has led to words such as hot, had, hard, head, hide, etc. The sound and the language is also an important trigger to make it different from other language and it has been termed as phonotactics. It can you be better understood with the example of a word called Singh which may occur at the beginning of a word but not at the end in English sentences and language but there can be any language where the use of the word “sing” at the beginning will make a sentence. The use of such words is prevalent in Australia with different languages

What is culture? Give examples of different approaches to the understanding of culture.

The culture in the word which is having different approaches and is basically originated from the word culture which is a derivative of the word "colo" meaning to tend to cultivate and to till (Johnson). In the field of anthropology for example the definition and range of the culture different from simple to very complex. There is the complex definition proposed including the transmission and creation of the content and patterns of ideas, values and another similar meaningful system which are the factors in the shaping of human behaviour is termed as a culture. On the other hand, there is the very simple and narrow definition of culture available as well. One such definition is about the collection of programming of the mind which distinguishes the member of one group or category e of individuals from the another. One another popular approach regarding the concept of culture is the onion metaphor (Richter). It is that like an onion culture can be considered as having different layers in which some of them are visible and others are invisible. Apart from these approaches, the culture can be viewed also as an implication of potentially related and relatively consistent societal characteristics that ultimately provides the definition and description of identifiable human population considerably the nation or the ethnic group.

Describe 3 theories of culture and explain how they relate to language.

The theories of the culture are functionalism, symbolic interactionism and conflict theory (OpenStax). Functionalism theory is a theory in which the functionalist views society as a system where all the parts function or work together in order to create a society as a complete one. This suggests the need for the culture for the existence of society. As this theory considered the existence of society based on culture, the importance of language is very relevant as language is something which is intervened with the culture The other theory is the conflict theory in which the theorist considered the social structure as inequal by inheritance and based on the power differential which is related to different issues like gender, race, class and age. In this particular theory, culture is observed as a reinforcing issue of privilege for a certain group of people which are based upon race, sex, class and others. In this particular theory, the role of language is something different from others as if the society has been based on unequal inheritance with different issues then language will be acting as one more factor of differentiation within a group of people as there are various language and every group of people have some deviation and different language as per their ow origin. Ultimately the third theory is termed as symbolic interactionism which is actually a sociological perspective concerned with the face-to-face interaction between the different members of the society (Redmond). This theory considers culture as created and maintained by the different ways in which people interact and hear the role of the language is prevalent as the people interact and interpret each other's action.

What is the Whorf Hypothesis (The double principle)? Evaluate its accuracy, in your opinion.

This theory is also termed as linguistic relativity hypothesis refers to a proposal in which particular language influences the way and individual think about the reality of their life and surroundings. This theory has double principles of determination and linguistic relativity (Neuliep). Considering the principle of determination by the language, the principal says the lack of what is directly relevant to the lack of thinking. The other principle is of linguistic relativity which says that all the languages in the world are different from each other. This theory raises the basic concern over the cross-cultural communication suggesting the reflection of language to the thinking of an individual. This theory is in close relation with semantic level concerned with the generalization of language and thought and also in relation with disposal level concern over the patterns of language which may influence the thought process of the individual in a culture. This theory has its root in the emphasis of the hierarchical formulation characteristics of the earliest efforts made with respect to the languages. In furtherance of this thought, the work of Whorf and Sapir mark this earlier tradition and shown influence in the contemporary period with their theory.

The basic argument over the theory is regarding the relationship between culture and language in the thought process of the individual. It can be considered to be accurate to some extent as the existence of culture and languages a close relationship. The thought process gets saved with the culture and expressed as a language by the individuals as a member of the society which is different from the other individual of the society. Although it is not toddler correct to restrict the thought process to the relation of language and culture only as it can be implemented by various other factors of the society.

How did approaches to the study of language change over time, from the early 1900s to the mid and late 21^st century? What are language documentation and description?

The approach that was applicable in the study of language in the 19th century which was appreciated the most to is the development of comparative method (McLelland). This method was a composition of a set of principles where the languages can be systematically compared in regards to their grammatical structure sound system and vocabulary shown to genealogically related. One of the striking developments at the end of the eighteenth century which ultimately led to the birth of comparative philology was the discovery of the fact that Sanskrit has several striking resemblances with different languages such as Latin and Greek. With the passing of the initial phase of the study of language, the study of language no relies on structuralism which was basically a slogan used by the different school of linguistics. The change in approaches has been witnessed with the growing years from the comparative method which was relying on the comparison of different languages to the structuralism as an approach of studying the language. The structuralism was focused more on the structure and the impact of changing the positions of the words in the sentences leading to the different meanings for the overall language and providing a distinction to other languages studies by the linguistics.

Describe techniques of data collection in ethnographic fieldwork as well as their limitations.

Various techniques are employed in the data collection process ethnographic fieldwork. These tools include field notes, participant observation, surveys and interviews (Morgan-Trimmer and Wood ). Concerning interview as a tool to collect the data, the data obtained is taped and related transcribed which allows the interview to continue without impairment of note-taking and availability of all the information for full analysis in the later stage. The other tool is document analysis and secondary research which provide an in-depth analysis of the research topic. To ensure the transparency of data collection and interpretation, the attempt of the researches in creating ethnographies are often considered as reflexive. The limitation associated with interviews is with respect to the genuineness of the data and information provided by the participants if the comfort is not provided by the researcher. On the other hand, with respect to secondary sources and document analysis, there is the possibility of having error since with the change in the time and lapse of time period many new things can evolve which may have changed the whole landscape of the theories and the concept provided through these secondary sources and document analysis. It is relevantly true with respect to the limitations associated with the surveys as the data collected can be fake and not provided by the expected participants.

How does the social identity of a researcher impact their fieldwork in an intercultural setting? List some challenges and potential solutions.

The social identity of a researcher does impact the fieldwork in the intercultural setting as the Assurance of tigers and trustworthiness in any study is a mandate to ensure the credibility and meaningful application of the findings of the researchers. Without in-depth analysis and understanding of the social culture and the political dynamics of a particular research setting, the trust and ruggedness with respect to the qualitative study investigation with an issue of having a cross-cultural dimension is not possible to achieve and adapt and apply the same in the research method in a meaningful way (Pelzang and Hutchinson). Some of the challenges in this regard are with respect to the situation and position of the researches in their research setting without including the influence of their own culture. The self-representation or the intersection of identities and personalities of the researcher is a potential issue which can significantly affect the overall information provided by the different participants of the particular research. Other challenges with respect to the understanding and speaking of the different local language as it will inherently develop a sense of credibility for the researchers for obtaining the data from the participants (Chen and Boore). The various authors have argued that it has occurred as a challenge for the researchers who are lacking cultural competence to capture and portrait the response of the participants in an accurate manner as without the appropriate knowledge of the culture there is a risk of Miss interpretation or misrepresentation of the data by the researches (Arriaza, Nedjat-Haiem and Lee)

Is it important to study linguistic and cultural diversity? Why?

The linguistic and cultural diversity is an inherent part of the society around the world and despite its importance, this diversity is usually neglected (Galante). Significance of this linguistic and cultural diversity is very relevant for the functioning of society. Since the culture and linguistic diversity is focused on the identification of a learner would differ from the mainstream culture with terms like social, class, ethnicity or language. This is a basis for the conclusion of the fact that linguistic diversity is a subset of cultural diversity. The significance of this diversity can be traced from the social and economic benefits which are derived from this diversity straight from the economic innovation which are associated with the immigrant and journalism and extend to the exposure of local people to new practices values foods Institution worldviews and languages. This diversity can be seen as a comparative opportunity and advantage which can be used for the betterment of the functioning of the society.

References for Conceptual Culture Model for Design Science Research

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Asoulin, Eran. Language as an instrument of thought. n.d. Online. 28 September 2020.

Chen, Hsiao-Yu and Jennifer Rp Boore. "Translation and back-translation in qualitative nursing research: Methodological review." Journal of Clinical Nursing (2010): 234–239. Print.

Eckert, Penelope and William Labov. "Phonetics, phonology and social meaning." J Sociolinguistics (2017): 476-496. Print.

Galante, Angelica. "Linguistic and Cultural Diversity in Language Education Through Plurilingualism: Linking the Theory into Practice." Springer International Handbooks of Education (2016). online.

Johnson, Matthew. "What Is Culture? What Does It Do? What Should It Do?" (2018): 97-119. Online.

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Redmond, Mark V. "Symbolic Interactionism." English Technical Reports and White Paper (2015). Online.

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