Module Identifier EL10610  
Module Title LANGUAGE IN SOCIETY: AN INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLINGUISTICS  
Academic Year 2003/2004  
Co-ordinator Dr Winifred V Davies  
Semester Semester 1  
Other staff Mr Robert Morris Jones, Professor David A Trotter, Miss Melanie M Wagner  
Course delivery Lecture   10 Hours  
  Seminars / Tutorials   3 Hours  
Assessment
Assessment TypeAssessment Length/DetailsProportion
Semester Exam2 Hours (written exam)70%
Semester Assessment (1 essay of 1500 words)30%
Supplementary Exam2 Hours (If no continuous assessment has been submitted, the exam will be 3 hours)100%

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
If students are diligent and attend regularly they will be able to:
a) Demonstrate that they have gained insights into the social meaning of language by having acquired a knowledge of some of the main areas of contemporary sociolinguistics.
b) Assess critically theoretical and methodological aspects of the discipline.
c) Carry out independent research and analyze critically the material they have collected.
d) Express themselves clearly, coherently and cogently, both orally and in writing.
e) Demonstrate familiarity with and an ability to use appropriately the specialist terminology associated with the subject.

Brief description

This module will offer an introduction to sociolinguistics and will show how trends and developments in language are often related to developments in society. The main basis for any conclusions as to the nature of the relationship between language and society will be provided by an examination of linguistic variation. After a general introduction to the field of sociolinguistics and a discussion of different approaches to the study of language in society, students will consider the effect of social factors, such as socio-economic class, gender and situation, on language use.

Reading Lists

Books
Chambers, J K (1995) Sociolinguistic Theory Oxford: Blackwell
Chambers, J K & P Trudgill (1980) Dialectology Cambridge: CUP
Cheshire, J & P Trudgill (1997) The Sociolinguistics Reader
Coupland, N & A Jaworski (1997) Sociolinguistics: a reader and coursebook
Crystal, D (1987,1997) The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language Cambridge: CUP
Downes, W (1998) Language and Society Cambridge: CUP
Fasold, R (1984) The Sociolinguistcs of Society Oxford: Blackwell
Fasold, R (1990) The Sociolinguistics of Language Oxford: Blackwell
Honey, J (1991) Does Accent Matter? London: Faber & Faber
Hudson, R A (1980) Sociolinguistics Cambridge: CUP
Labov, W (1972) Sociolinguistic Patterns Oxford: Blackwell
Milroy, L (1987) Language and Social Networks 2nd. Oxford: Blackwell (1st edition, 1980)
Newmeyer, F J (1988) Linguistics: The Cambridge Survey. Vol. IV, Language: The Socio-cultural Context Cambridge: CUP
Radford, A et al (1999) Linguistics: An introduction Cambridge: CUP
Romaine, S (1994) Language in Society Oxford: OUP
Thomas, L & S Wareing (1999) Language, Society and Power New York: Routledge
Trudgill, P (ed) (1978) Sociolinguistic Patterns in British English London: Edward Arnold
Trudgill, P & Cheshire, J (1997) The Sociolinguistics Reader. Vol. 1: Variation and Multilingualism London: Arnold
Trudgill, P & Cheshire J (1999) The Sociolinguistics Reader. Vol. 2: Gender and Discourse London: Arnold

Notes

This module is at CQFW Level 4