The Politics of Linguistics

The Politics of Linguistics PDF Author: Frederick J. Newmeyer
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226577228
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 179

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Book Description
Linguists in the past two centuries have, for the most part, approached language as an autonomous entity; their practice has been to study languages without considering the culture, society, or beliefs of the speakers. "Autonomous linguistics" has been attacked from both the left and the right. Critics on the left (in particular Marxists) argue that the separation of language from its societal context reinforces the status quo by downplaying the role of language as an instrument of ideology and social control. Critics on the right object to the value-free analyses of individual languages required by the autonomous approach and to the idea that all languages merit equal attention. The Politics of Linguistics surveys two centuries of debate over autonomy. The discussion includes the political implications of the birth of the modern field of linguistics in the Romantic movement, the views of Marx and Engels on language, the attack on structural linguistics by both Hitler and Stalin, the role of Christian missionary groups and the military in building the field in the United States, and the relation between Noam Chomsky's linguistic theories and his political views. Frederick J. Newmeyer demonstrates that external political demonstrates that external political currents have often influenced the relative popularity of the autonomous approach to language. He argues that autonomous linguistics, far from being inconsistent with progressive political goals, can be creatively applied to the fulfillment of such goals.

The Politics of Linguistics

The Politics of Linguistics PDF Author: Frederick J. Newmeyer
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226577228
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 179

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Book Description
Linguists in the past two centuries have, for the most part, approached language as an autonomous entity; their practice has been to study languages without considering the culture, society, or beliefs of the speakers. "Autonomous linguistics" has been attacked from both the left and the right. Critics on the left (in particular Marxists) argue that the separation of language from its societal context reinforces the status quo by downplaying the role of language as an instrument of ideology and social control. Critics on the right object to the value-free analyses of individual languages required by the autonomous approach and to the idea that all languages merit equal attention. The Politics of Linguistics surveys two centuries of debate over autonomy. The discussion includes the political implications of the birth of the modern field of linguistics in the Romantic movement, the views of Marx and Engels on language, the attack on structural linguistics by both Hitler and Stalin, the role of Christian missionary groups and the military in building the field in the United States, and the relation between Noam Chomsky's linguistic theories and his political views. Frederick J. Newmeyer demonstrates that external political demonstrates that external political currents have often influenced the relative popularity of the autonomous approach to language. He argues that autonomous linguistics, far from being inconsistent with progressive political goals, can be creatively applied to the fulfillment of such goals.

Language and Politics

Language and Politics PDF Author: Noam Chomsky
Publisher: AK Press
ISBN: 9781902593821
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 838

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Book Description
An indispensable guide through the work of the world's most influential living intellectual.

The Politics of Language Contact in the Himalaya

The Politics of Language Contact in the Himalaya PDF Author: Selma K. Sonntag
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781783747047
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description
This highly original and timely collection brings together case studies from salient areas of the Himalayan region to explore the politics of language contact. Promoting a linguistically and historically grounded perspective, The Politics of Language Contact in the Himalaya offers nuanced insights into language and its relation to power in this geopolitically complex region. Edited by respected scholars in the field, the collection comprises five new research contributions by established and early-career researchers who have been significantly engaged in the Himalayan region. Grounded in a commitment to theoretically informed area studies, and covering Tibet (China), Assam (India), and Nepal, each case study is situated within contemporary debates in sociolinguistics, political science, and language policy and planning. Bridging disciplines and transcending nation-states, the volume offers a unique contribution to the study of language contact and its political implications. The Politics of Language Contact in the Himalaya is essential reading for researchers in the fields of language policy and planning, applied linguistics, and language and literary education. The detailed introduction and concluding commentary make the collection accessible to all social scientists concerned with questions of language, and the volume as a whole will be of interest to scholars in anthropology, sociolinguistics, political science and Asian studies.

The Politics of Language in Puerto Rico

The Politics of Language in Puerto Rico PDF Author: Amílcar Antonio Barreto
Publisher: University Press of Florida
ISBN: 0813063825
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 237

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Book Description
"A [book] rich in detail and analysis, which anyone wanting to understand the language debate in Puerto Rico will find essential."--Arlene Davila, Syracuse University This is the first book in English to analyze the controversial language policies passed by the Puerto Rican government in the 1990s. It is also the first to explore the connections between language and cultural identity and politics on the Caribbean island. Shortly after the U.S. invasion of Puerto Rico in 1898, both English and Spanish became official languages of the territory. In 1991, the Puerto Rican government abolished bilingualism, claiming that "Spanish only" was necessary to protect the culture from North American influences. A few years later bilingualism was restored and English was promoted in public schools, with supporters asserting that the dual languages symbolized the island’s commitment to live in harmony with the United States. While the islanders’ sense of ethnic pride was growing, economic dependency enticed them to maintain close ties to the United States. This book shows that officials in both San Juan and Washington, along with English-first groups, used the language laws as weapons in the battle over U.S.-Puerto Rican relations and the volatile debate over statehood. It will be of interest to linguists, political scientists, students of contemporary cultural politics, and political activists in discussions of nationalism in multilingual communities.

Language and Politics

Language and Politics PDF Author: John E. Joseph
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
ISBN: 0748626972
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 176

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Book Description
Language, this book argues, is political from top to bottom, whether considered at the level of an individual speaker's choice of language or style of discourse with others (where interpersonal politics are performed), or at the level of political rhetoric, or indeed all the way up to the formation of national languages. By bringing together this set of topics and highlighting how they are interrelated, the book will function well as a textbook on any applied or sociolinguistic course in which some or all of these various aspects of the politics of language are covered.

Language is Politics

Language is Politics PDF Author: Frank van Splunder
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1000754391
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 201

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Book Description
Language is Politics discusses power relations between languages in the world, with a particular focus on English. Even though English is the most widely spoken and the most powerful language worldwide, it is not the lingua franca it is often supposed to be. The basic tenet of this book is that languages do not exist in the natural world; they are artefacts made by humans. The book debunks some common myths about language and it suggests that we should be more modest in our assumptions, for instance concerning the linguistic uniqueness of our own species. The author argues in favour of an ecological or balanced approach to language. This approach sees humans and other animals as part of the larger ecosystems that life depends on. As in nature, diversity is crucial to the survival of languages. The current linguistic ecosystem is out of balance, and this book shows that education can help to restore the balance and cope with the challenges of a multilingual and multicultural world. With an ecological approach to language and a focus on narratives and personal language histories, this will be key reading for researchers and academics, as well as students of English language and linguistics.

The Politics of Language and Nationalism in Modern Central Europe

The Politics of Language and Nationalism in Modern Central Europe PDF Author: T. Kamusella
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 0230583474
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 1140

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Book Description
This work focuses on the ideological intertwining between Czech, Magyar, Polish and Slovak, and the corresponding nationalisms steeped in these languages. The analysis is set against the earlier political and ideological history of these languages, and the panorama of the emergence and political uses of other languages of the region.

Political Linguistics

Political Linguistics PDF Author: Jan Blommaert
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing Company
ISBN: 9789027226716
Category : Language and languages
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
As of Volume 9 (1994/95) John Benjamins Publishing Company is the official publisher of the Belgian Journal of Linguistics, the annual publication of the Linguistic Society of Belgium. Each volume is topical and includes selected papers from the international meetings organised by the LSB. After a programmatic introduction by Jan Blommaert, three sections can be discerned in this volume. The first section, with papers by van Dijk, Cushing, Wilson, Fairclough & Mauranen, Jucker and Gruber, concerns itself with the definition of political discourse, with particular linguistic aspects such as non-modal meaning, persuasive tactics or metalinguistic negation, and with recent trends of political discourse such as conversationalisation. The paper by Gruber on media coverage of right-wing extremism leads the way to the second section in which the media and political discourse on foreigners such as migrants and refugees is analysed (Kuusisto & Östman; Horvat, Verschueren & Zagar). Finally, the third section could be broadly labelled as concerned with 'self- and other-representation', with papers on intercultural discouse, gender, institutional discourse, varieties of English and political correctness (resp. Shi-xu, Rojo, Slembrouck & Sarangi, Begum & Kandiah, Janicki).

Language and Identity Politics

Language and Identity Politics PDF Author: Christina Späti
Publisher: Berghahn Books
ISBN: 1782389431
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 228

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Book Description
In an increasingly multicultural world, the relationship between language and identity remains a complicated and often fraught subject for most societies. The growing political salience of questions relating to language is evident not only in the expanded implementation of new policies and legislation, but also in heated public debates about national unity, collective identities, and the rights of linguistic minorities. By taking a comprehensive approach that considers both the inclusive and exclusive dimensions of linguistic identity across Europe and North America, the studies assembled here provide a sophisticated look at one of the global era’s defining political dynamics.

The Language(s) of Politics

The Language(s) of Politics PDF Author: Nils Ringe
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472902733
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 278

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Book Description
Multilingualism is an ever-present feature in political contexts around the world, including multilingual states and international organizations. Increasingly, consequential political decisions are negotiated between politicians who do not share a common native language. Nils Ringe uses the European Union to investigate how politicians’ reliance on shared foreign languages and translation services affects politics and policy-making. Ringe's research illustrates how multilingualism is an inherent and consequential feature of EU politics—that it depoliticizes policy-making by reducing its political nature and potential for conflict. An atmosphere with both foreign language use and a reliance on translation leads to communication that is simple, utilitarian, neutralized, and involves commonly shared phrases and expressions. Policymakers tend to disregard politically charged language and they are constrained in their ability to use vague or ambiguous language to gloss over disagreements by the need for consistency across languages.