Pragmatics of Accents

Pragmatics of Accents
Author: Gaëlle Planchenault
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
Total Pages: 276
Release: 2021-10-15
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9027258864

What impact do accents have on our lives as we interact with one another? Are accents more than simple sets of phonetic features that allow us to differentiate from one dialect, variety or style, to the other? What power relationships are at work when we speak with what those around us perceive as an 'accent'? In the 12 chapters of this volume, an international group of sociolinguists, applied linguists, anthropologists, and scholars in media studies, develop an innovative approach that we describe as the ‘pragmatics of accents’. In this volume, we present a variety of languages and go beyond the traditional structural description of accents. From ideologies in national contexts, to L2 education, to accent discrimination in the media and the workplace, this volume embraces a new perspective that focuses on the use of accents as symbolic resources, and emphasizes the importance of context in the human experience of accents.

The Meaning of Topic and Focus

The Meaning of Topic and Focus
Author: Daniel Büring
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2012-08-21
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 113470206X

This study provides an illuminating and ground-breaking account of the complex interaction of intonational phenomena, semantics and pragmatics. Based on examples from German and English, and centred on an analysis of the fall-rise intonation contour, a semantic interpretation for two different pitch accents - Focus and Topic - is developed. The cross-sentence, as well as the sentence internal semantic effects of these accents, follow from the given treatment. The account is based on Montogovian possible world semantics and Chomskian generative syntax.

Social Dynamics in Second Language Accent

Social Dynamics in Second Language Accent
Author: John M. Levis
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 304
Release: 2014-04-01
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1614511764

This volume offers a definitive source for understanding social influences in L2 pronunciation, demonstrating the importance of empirical findings from a number of research perspectives, and outlining the directions that future work can take. The aim is to present a coherent argument for the significance of social factors and how they contribute to phonological acquisition.

Issues in Accents of English

Issues in Accents of English
Author: Ewa Waniek-Klimczak
Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing
Total Pages: 370
Release: 2020-10-27
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1527561178

Adopting a central theme of variability, the book explores different aspects of native and non-native accents of English. The dominating perspective is that of a non-native speaker, although – as argued by some contributors – the very distinction between native and non-native English may need to be redefined. As the debate on the pronunciation of English as a lingua franca continues, this volume presents well-focused studies investigating the acquisition and use of the sound system by native and non-native speakers, problems with the choice and variability in pronunciation models and pedagogical aspects of pronunciation instruction. The issue of accents calls for a comprehensive approach; this book aims to provide such a broad perspective, based on expertise and experience of the contributors, who are specialist in linguitics, applied linguitics, phonetics, phonology and ESL. The book is divided into three parts. Part one discusses complex conditioning of production and perception of native and non-native accents. It contains acoustic and auditory studies investigating the effect of such independent variables as identity, L1 or contextual factors on the elements of the sound system. Part two links the accent variability studies to the pedagogical context by presenting problems with the pronunciation model, its choice and variability. The main focus of part three is on pronunciation teaching: papers presented in this section report on the methods and results of phonetic instruction in different settings.

Accents of English: Volume 2

Accents of English: Volume 2
Author: John C. Wells
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 216
Release: 1982-04-08
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9780521285407

Accents of English is about the way English is pronounced by different people in different places. Volume 1 provides a synthesizing introduction, which shows how accents vary not only geographically, but also with social class, formality, sex and age; and in volumes 2 and 3 the author examines in greater depth the various accents used by people who speak English as their mother tongue: the accents of the regions of England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland (volume 2), and of the USA, Canada, the West Indies, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Black Africa and the Far East (volume 3). Each volume can be read independently, and together they form a major scholarly survey, of considerable originality, which not only includes descriptions of hitherto neglected accents, but also examines the implications for phonological theory. Readers will find the answers to many questions: Who makes 'good' rhyme with 'mood'? Which accents have no voiced sibilants? How is a Canadian accent different from an American one, a New Zealand one from an Australian one, a Jamaican one from a Barbadian one? What are the historical reasons for British-American pronunciation differences? What sound changes are currently in progress in New York, in London, in Edinburgh? Dr Wells his written principally for students of linguistics, phonetics and English language, but the motivated general reader will also find the study both fascinating and rewarding.

The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Pragmatics

The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Pragmatics
Author: Naoko Taguchi
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 522
Release: 2019-01-30
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1351164066

The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Pragmatics is a comprehensive critical survey of the field of L2 pragmatics, collecting a number of chapters that highlight the key theories, methods, pedagogies, and research findings throughout its development over the last four decades. Demonstrating the ways in which pragmatics has long served as a lens through which to examine patterns of L2 development, the volume is divided into six parts which reflect the field’s structure and evolution: • Constructs and units of analysis • Theoretical approaches • Methodological approaches • Pedagogical approaches • Contexts and individual considerations • L2 pragmatics in the global era The handbook has a particular focus on covering not only traditional topics in the field, such as constructs of pragmatic competence (e.g., speech acts, implicature), teaching and assessment, and pragmatics learning in a study abroad program, but also emerging areas of study, including interactional pragmatics, intercultural pragmatics, usage-based approaches, corpus linguistics, and psycholinguistic experimentation. Each chapter introduces the topic and follows with a description of its theoretical underpinnings, an overview of existing literature, appraisal of current practice, concluding with a discussion of future directions for research and key readings. The Routledge Handbook of Second Language Acquisition and Pragmatics is an essential resource for those with an interest in second language acquisition, pragmatics, and language teaching.

Accents of English: Volume 1

Accents of English: Volume 1
Author: John C. Wells
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Total Pages: 308
Release: 1982-04-08
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 9780521297196

The first comprehensive study of how English is pronounced by different people in different places. It provides an integrated and unified framework for existing scholarly treatments of regional forms of speech and makes many original contributions to the field.

The Pragmatics of Catalan

The Pragmatics of Catalan
Author: Lluís Payrató
Publisher: Walter de Gruyter
Total Pages: 401
Release: 2011-11-30
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 3110238691

This book aims to disseminate at an international level a set of innovative studies whose descriptive and applied point of reference is the Catalan language. The volume constitutes a significant contribution to the field of intercultural pragmatics and also to a broad range of grammatical and cognitive issues which have been approached from the pragmatic perspective.