Aims

By the end of the course, students will adopt a critical approach to sociolinguistics, its evolution, its place in linguistics and its methodology. The students will be familiar with the traditional sociolinguistic trends and research paradigms (W.Labov in the States and P.Trudgill in England, etc.) as well as the more recent developments about 'sociolects', 'ethnolects' and 'genderlects' (linguistic variations based respectively on social class, ethnic origin and gender). Students should also be able to carry out personal linguistic research in the field.

Main themes

Familiarize students with research issues in the anglo-saxon sociolinguistic field by reading scientific articles in the domain and analyzing the various interactions between society and language.

Content and teaching methods

Content :
Analysis of the English language in relation to its social context. The following social factors will be analyzed : social class, ethnic origin, age and gender. The role of sociolinguistics in justifying language change and evolution will also be addressed. Special attention will be devoted to recent developments in 'genderlect' analysis (Deborah Tannen).
Part of the course will also be devoted to critical discourse analysis : language, power and ideology, language change, critical language awareness and educational/teaching applications.
Method:
Seminar-like course ; reading list ; classroom discussions ; paper presentations

Other information (prerequisite, evaluation (assessment methods), course materials recommended readings, ...)

Assessment :
1. paper
2. participation in classroom discussions, group work

Course materials

Peter Trudgill (1995) Sociolinguistics. An Introduction to language and Society. London: Penguin.
Deborah Tannen (2001) You Just Don't Understand: Women and Men in Conversation. Harper Collins.
Norman Fairclough (2001) Critical Discourse Analysis: The Critical Study of Language (Language in Social Life), Longman.

Other credits in programs