LING 8

LANGUAGES AND CULTURES OF THE UNITED STATES

This course will examine the linguistic and cultural diversity of the United States in historical and cultural perspectives.

The course satisfies the Muir College cultural diversity requirement and the Revelle College American Culture requirement.

Time: Tuesday and Thursday, 9:35-10:55 am
Place: HSS 1330

Instructor: Professor Maria Polinsky
polinsky@ling.ucsd.edu
Office: McGill Hall 5330
Office hours: Monday 2-4pm
Thursday 1-3 pm
And by appointment

Teaching assistant: Elena Dapremont
dapremon@ling.ucsd.edu
Office:McGill Hall, 3338
Office hours:Tuesday 11:30 am-12:30 pm
Wednesday 11:30 am-12:30 pm
And by appointment
Goals of the course: to introduce the students to the variety of languages and cultures in the United States; to address and dispel common stereotypes concerning language and speech (e.g., that certain languages are more sophisticated than others, that people who don’t speak right don’t think right); to discuss the interaction of linguistic, cultural, social, and political issues.

Course requirements:
 1) Regular class attendance and participation
2) Readings
3) Home assignments (3 sets) (20%). Assignments given out in week n are due on Tue of week n+1; the assignments are returned after the Tuesday class of week n+2 and will be discussed in the exercise section. Exercise sections will consist of the analysis of home assignments and preparation for the midterm and final exam.
4) Midterm (30% of grade). Date: February 9, 1999, in class
5) Final (50% of grade). Date: March 18, 1999, 8-11 am.

Exams
Exams are multiple-choice and short-answer. There will be no curve for the midterm, and the midterm will give you an idea of your progress. The final will be graded on a modified curve.
A study guide is handed out before each exam to direct students' study efforts to the most important topics.
The professor holds review sessions before each exam.

Class format
Classes have a mixed lecture-discussion format.

NOTE: Not all the material covered in lectures is included in the assigned readings, so please take your lecture notes seriously.

Videos are used throughout the course.
One feature-length film is shown (outside of class) as part of the course.
There will be several guest lectures by leading researchers on individual languages.

Home assignments and exercise sessions
There will be three assignments
Exercise sessions with the TAs will go over these exercises and over the questions likely to appear on the exams. Thus, attendance at exercise sessions will help prepare you for the exams.
Exercise sessions will be held on Thursdays, 5-6pm. See the syllabus for the weeks in which exercise sections meet.

Textbook
Charles Ferguson and Shirley Brice Heath, eds. Language in the USA. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996 (paperback available in bookstore; copies of the relevant chapters are also available at Soft Reserves).

Packet of readings available at Soft Reserves. The packet also includes the three home assignments.

Problem Sessions: Weeks 4, 5, 6, 7, 10
Tuesdays Center 109, 5:45 to 6:35
Make-up sessions will be held on Thursdays of the same week in Warren 2207, 4 to 4:50. As this is a much smaller room, these sessions are meant only for those who absolutely cannot make the Tuesday sessions. Please make every effort to attend the Tuesday meetings.

Week 1
1.1 Overall structure of the course. Language, dialect, other "lects", language variation

1.2 Language structure: sounds, words, sentences. The study of language in a social context
Video "American Tongues"

Reading (both articles in the Packet): Comrie (required: section 1; section 2.5, section 3); Ervin-Tripp (required: pp. 230-250, starting with the section "Socialization"; pp. 218-230 are recommended, not required).

Week 2
2.1 They were here first: Native American languages in the pre-colonial times—geographical distribution and genetic affiliation

2.2 The influence of Native American languages on each other and on American English

Reading: Language in the USA, ch. 6 and 7
Map of Native American languages on the web:
http://aal.ucsd.edu/reserves/ling8

Assignment 1.

 Week 3
3.1 "The soul would have no rainbow if the eye had no tears" (Navajo): Main characteristics of Native American cultures as reflected in their linguistic heritage
[Guest lecture by Professor Margaret Langdon]

Assignment 1 due

 3.2 The early colonizers: Spanish in the New World [Guest lecture by Professor John Moore]

Readings: Language in the USA, ch. 9

Week 4
4.1 Spanish in the US

4.2 Spanish-English continuum in Southern California

Assignment 2.

4.3. Exercise Section 1—discussion of Assignment 1, Thursday 5-6pm

Readings: Silva-Corvalan (Packet)

Week 5
5.1. French in North America

Lousiana French

Assignment 2 due

5.2 Michif—a unique mixed language.

Beginning the review for the midterm.

Readings: Language in the USA, ch. 12 (concentrating on the French component) and parts of ch. 4 (pp. 69-73, and 77-81—skip Gullah);
Bakker & Muysken (Packet), sections 4.1, 4.3, 4.7, 4.8 only

5.3 Exercise Section 2—Review for the midterm--Thursday 5-6pm.

Week 6
6.1. Midterm. In-class, closed-book exam. There will be several multiple-choice questions and several short-answer questions.

6.2. German in America

6.3 Exercise Section 3—discussion of Assignment 2, Thursday 5-6pm.

Readings: Language in the USA, ch. 12 (concentrating on the German component) and parts of ch. 16 (pp. 339-341 and p. 350, starting with "The immigrant languages", through 363, stopping at "Slavic languages").

Week 7
7.1 English dialects in the United States—an overview

7.2 Case studies: Ocracoke; Gullah. Video in class (Hoi Toide)

7.3. Exercise Section 4—review of the midterm, Thursday 5-6pm.

Readings: Language in the USA, ch. 3 and ch. 4, pp. 73-77 (Gullah).

Week 8
8.1 Socio-economic factors in language variation

8.2 Chicano English. AAVE and the Ebonics debate

Video "Black on White" (out of class)

Readings: Language in the USA, ch. 5 (required); ch. 19 (recommended).

Assignment 3.

Week 9

9.1. Immigrant languages in the US—geographical distribution, acculturation, mixing, code-switching

Assignment 3 due

9.2 A case study—Swedish as an immigrant language in the USA.

Readings: Hasselmo (Packet)

Week 10
10.1 English and literacy

10.2 Language and education. Language policy.

10.3 Analysis of assignment 3 and review for the final with TA.

Readings: Language in the USA, ch. 20 and ch. 23.

Week 11: Review sessions and final

March 16, 9:30-11: Review session with professor and TA

March 18, 1999, 8-11 am: Final exam