V55.0616 MAP: Foundations of Contemporary Culture
Societies and the Social Sciences

Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Sociolinguistics:
The Language of America's Ethnic Minorities

Prof. John Singler

Fall 2004
Lecture, MW 12:30PM - 1:45PM
206 Silver

Instructor:

John Singler
719 Broadway, Rm. 422
Phone: 998-7959
e-mail: john.singler @ nyu.edu
Office hours: Mon 2-3, Wed 2:30-4, and by appointment

Preceptors:

Bill Haddican
719 Broadway, Rm. 419
e-mail: bill.haddican @ nyu.edu
Office hours: Wed 2-3 and by appointment

Karen Kirke
719 Broadway, Rm. 417
e-mail: kdk214 @ nyu.edu
Office hours: Th 11-12 and by appointment

Recitations:

How speakers see themselves and how they are seen by others are often linked to the language that they speak and the linguistic choices that they make.

In the present course, we will consider the interaction of language and ethnicity.  We will look at the role of language in the construction of identity, particularly ethnic and racial identity.  Further, we will consider in-group and out-group uses of language alike.  In particular, we will look at three sets of minorities:  African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latinos.

Language, language attitudes, language use--none of these are neutral.  We will examine American language ideology, not only those aspects of it that are widely held among Americans generally but also facets that differ from group to group and may be contested between groups.  We will consider the politics of language in America, including the ongoing school-centered controversies over bilingual education and the status of "Ebonics.”  Still with regard to formal education, we will look at its role in language socialization, particularly in the language socialization of minority children.  

Course Requirements

Students are responsible for the both the readings and the lectures, for materials presented formally in class and in the recitations.  Every student is expected to come to class and to the recitations prepared to discuss the scheduled readings.  There will be a midterm examination and a final.  In addition, there will be three short papers on assigned topics, each due at the beginning of class on the assigned date.  (Handwritten papers will not be accepted.)  The topics will be handed out a few days in advance.  The exams and papers will be based on the readings and the lectures.

Note that late papers will not be accepted. 

The midterm examination will take place on Monday, October 25, in class.

The final examination will take place on Monday, December 20, from 12 noon to 1:50 p.m.

Note that examinations must be taken at the scheduled time.  

Examinations that are missed will not be excused unless a student provides notification immediately as well as appropriate documentation; the documentation will then be verified.

Grading

The basis for grading is as follows:

Performance and Participation in the Recitation (assigned by the preceptors) 15%
Midterm examination 25%
Final examination 30%
First short paper 5%
Second short paper 10%
Third short paper 15%
Total: 100%

Readings

Book

This book, required reading for the course, is available at the NYU Book Center.

Zentella, Ana Celia.  1997.  Growing Up Bilingual.  Malden, MA:  Blackwell.

Articles

The assigned articles for the course are available in a packet from New University Copy, 11 Waverly Place.

Syllabus

9/8:     Introduction

9/13, 9/15, 9/20, 9/22:     Overview

Glazer, Nathan.  1994.  "The Emergence of an American Ethnic Pattern."  in Ronald Takaki, ed., From Different Shores:  Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity in America, 11-23.  New York:  Oxford University Press. 

Fishman, Joshua A.  1989.  "Language and Ethnicity."  In Language and Ethnicity in Minority Sociolinguistic Perspective, 23-65.  Philadelphia:  Clevedon.

García, Ofelia.  1997.  “New York’s Multilingualism:  World languages and their role in a U.S. city.”  in Ofelia García and Joshua A. Fishman, eds. The Multilingual Apple:  Languages in New York City, 3-50.  Berlin:  Mouton de Gruyter.

Pierpont, Claudia Roth.  2004.  “The Measure of America.”  New Yorker March 8 48-58, 60-63.

Takaki, Ronald.  1994.  "Reflections on Racial Patterns in America."  in Ronald Takaki, ed., From Different Shores:  Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity in America, 24-35.  New York:  Oxford University Press.

9/27, 9/29, 10/4/ 10/6:     Language Attitudes and Language Ideology

NB:  no recitations on 9/29 or 10/1

Nunberg, Geoffrey.  1989.  "Linguists and the Official Language Movement."  Language 65.579-87.

Molesky, Jean.  1988.  "Understanding the American Linguistic Mosaic:  A historical overview of language maintenance and language shift."  in Sandra Lee McKay and Sau-ling Cynthia Wong, Eds., Language Diversity:  Problem or resource?, 29-68.  Cambridge, MA:  Newbury House Publishers.

Milroy, James, and Lesley Milroy.  1991.  “Prescription and Standardisation.”  Chapter 1 of Authority in Language:  Investigating language prescription and standarisation, 1-28. London:  Routledge.

10/11 First paper due

10/11, 10/13, 10/18, 10/20:     Asian American Language and Culture

Articles in Sandra Lee McKay and Sau-ling Cynthia Wong, Eds.  1988.  Language Diversity:  Problem or resource?  Cambridge, MA:  Newbury House Publishers:

Wong, Sau-ling Cynthia.  "The Language Situation of Chinese Americans," 193-228.

Galang, Rosita.  "The Language Situation of Filipino Americans," 229-51.

Kim, Bok-Lim.  "The Language Situation of Korean Americans," 252-75.

Lippi-Green, Rosina.  1994.  “Accent, Standard Language Ideology, and Discriminatory Pretext in the Courts.”  Language and Society 23.163-98.

10/25:     Midterm

10/27-11/15:     African American Language and Culture

10/27 

Rickford, John Russell, & Rickford, Russell John.  2000.   “What’s Going On?”  and “Vocabulary and Pronunciation.”  Chapters 1 and 6 of Spoken Soul:  The story of Black English, 3-10 and 91-108.  New York:  John Wiley & Sons.

Green, Lisa J.  2002.  “Lexicons and Meaning.”  Chapter 1 of African American English:  A linguistic introduction, 12-33.  Cambridge University Press.

11/1, 11/3     

Rickford & Rickford, “Grammar”, Chapter 7, 109-28.

11/8

Green, “Speech Events and Rules of Interaction in AAE,” Chapter 5, 134-63.

Basso, Keith H.  1972.  "'To Give up on Words':  Silence in Western Apache culture."  in Pier Paolo Giglioli, ed., Language and Social Context, 67-86.  Harmondsworth, Middlesex, England:  Penguin Books

11/10:     Second paper due

11/10

Rickford & Rickford, “History,” Chapter 8, 129-60.

Rickford & Rickford, “Education,” Chapter 9, 163-80.

Baugh, John. 1998.  “Linguistics, Education, and the Law:  Educational reform for African-American language minority students.”  in Salikoko S. Mufwene, John R. Rickford, Guy Bailey, & John Baugh, eds., African-American English:  Structure, history and use, 282-301.  London:  Routledge.

11/15, 11/17

Rickford & Rickford, “The Crucible of Identity,” Chapter 12, 221-9.

11/24, 11/29, 12/1, 12/6, 12/8:     Latino Language and Culture

no recitations on 11/25 or 11/26

Zentella, Ana Celia.  1997.  Growing Up Bilingual, Chaps 1-4, 7-12.  Malden, MA:  Blackwell.

12/6:     Third paper due

12/13:    Conclusion

12/20:    FINAL EXAM, 12 noon–1:50 p.m., 206 Silver

Last Modified: September 6, 2004