Introduction to Sociolinguistics LSA 113
Penny Eckert
[email protected]
http://www.stanford.edu/~eckert/
Course Website:
http://www.stanford.edu/~eckert/Institute2015/
Laconic
Laconic
Oxford: “(of a person,
speech, or style of
writing) using very few
words: his laconic reply
suggested a lack of
interest in the topic.”
Miriam Webster: “using
or involving the use of a
minimum of words.
Concise to the point of
seeming rude or
mysterious.”
My undergraduates
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Slow, lazy, relaxed?
Annoying???
Laid-back and disinterested as if due to existential doubt
Lazy (best guess)
Quiet
Laidback, low energy, chill in speaking. Concise and to the
point. dispassionate.
Boring, slow?
Judgmental (wild guess)
Not speaking much or speaking slowly?
Dry, dull?
!  ... after church their laconic, slow-paced Sunday afternoon
began with her grandparents’ table laden with foods they
raised, caught or canned. !  Rather, the adjacent bar/cafe was often empty, unevenly
stocked, and staffed with laconic, slow-moving folks that may
or may not have had a bottled beer or panini to offer you.
!  Lloyd Ruby, a laconic Texan whose slow speech belied his
fast and hard driving style, amassed over 150 recorded
victories. !  Few moviegoers would have guessed from his laconic
and occasionally blissed-out performances !  A collection of laconic and beautiful sentiments, culled from
ancient and modern poetry
Gato is a laconic, slow-moving cat who tags along
on adventures in hope of finding lunch.
http://www.primalscreen.com/project/
Australia’s Victorian Bar
News and Views/ A Bit About Words
“It is difficult to pin down the current, received
meaning of laconic. A statistically meaningless straw poll
suggests that in Australia at present it means something
like “laid back, relaxed”. I confess to having thought that
was its proper meaning, but I lack a classical education.
In 1989, in Pacific Dunlop Ltd v Hogan, Sheppard J
described Crocodile Dundee as being portrayed in the film
of the same name: “... in a laconic, laid-back style and yet
[the feats of the character in the film] are all pervaded
with a certain cockiness and insolence.”
The 2014 Gucci fall
collection “... proved once
again that a truly beautiful
lady doesn’t have to wear
thousands of accessories.
The collection is very
laconic yet super stylish
and cool.”
Collins
Terse
Short
Brief
VisualSynonyms.com
Crisp
Curt
Terse
Thesauraus.com
Brusque
Pithy
Terse
Synonyms
?
!  ... after church their terse, slow-paced Sunday afternoon began
with her grandparents’ table laden with foods they raised,
caught or canned. !  Rather, the adjacent bar/cafe was often empty, unevenly
stocked, and staffed with terse, slow-moving folks that may or
may not have had a bottled beer or panini to offer you.
!  Lloyd Ruby, a terse Texan whose slow speech belied his fast
and hard driving style, amassed over 150 recorded victories. !  Few moviegoers would have guessed from his terse
and occasionally blissed-out performances !  A collection of terse and beautiful sentiments, culled from
ancient and modern poetry
What kind of thing is language?
!  A system for communicating propositional
meaning? !  A system acquired completely in childhood
and then just used throughout life? !  A system taken off the cognitive shelf and
returned unscathed after each use?
Un système où tout se tient?
Were a language ever completely
"grammatical" it would be a perfect
engine of conceptual expression.
Unfortunately, or luckily, no language
is tyrannically consistent. All
grammars leak. (Sapir 1921, p. 39)
Purpose of the Course
Get you to think about language:
!  as a social practice
–  Enabled by, and reproducing, structure
–  Not something that we “acquire” and then “use”
!  as an indexical system.
–  Not just a system for communicating propositional meaning
–  As constructing, not just reflecting, the social
!  as designed for change.
–  Not something we take off the shelf and replace unscathed
–  Not a system that “just happens” to change
The First Wave: Some Urban Studies
!  CEDERGREN, HENRIETTA. 1973. The interplay of social and linguistic
factors in Panama, Linguistics, Cornell University: PhD.
!  LABOV, WILLIAM. 1966. The social stratification of English in New
York City. Washington, DC: Center for Applied Linguistics.
!  MACAULAY, RONALD K.S. 1977. Language, social class and
education: a Glasgow study. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Press.
!  MODARESSI, YAHYAH. 1978. A sociolinguistic analysis of modern
Persian, University of Kansas: PhD.
!  TRUDGILL, P. 1974. The social differentiation of English in Norwich.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
!  SHUY, ROGER W., WOLFRAM, WALTER A. and RILEY, WILLIAM
K. 1967. Linguistic correlates of social stratification in Detroit speech:
Final Report, Research Project No. MH 15048-01, National Institute of
Mental Health.
!  WOLFRAM, WALT. 1969. A sociolinguistic description of Detroit Negro
speech. Washington DC: Center for Applied Linguistics.
The big picture: a Stable Variable
90
80
70
60
Lower
50
Working
Lower Middle
40
Upper Middle
30
20
10
0
Casual
Careful
Reading
% apical -ing in New York
LABOV W. (1966) The social stratification of English in New York City.
Washington DC: Center for Applied Linguistics
(ING) in Great Britain
100
90
80
70
60
MMC
LMC
50
UWC
MWC
40
LWC
30
20
10
0
Casual
Formal
Reading
List
TRUDGILL, P. 1974. The social differentiation of English
in Norwich. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Another Stable Variable
90!
80!
70!
60!
(dh) index!
Lower Class (0-2)!
50!
Working Class (3-5)!
Middle Class (6-9)!
40!
30!
20!
10!
0!
Casual Style!
Interview Style!
Reading style!
dh-stopping in New York City
A Change in Progress
New York City (aeh)
15
20
25
LOWER
WORKING
MIDDLE
30
35
40
casual
formal
reading
word list
Labov, W. (1966). The social stratification of English in New York City.
Washington, DC, Center for Applied Linguistics.