Linguistics: The Cambridge Survey: Volume 4, Language: The Socio-Cultural Context

by Frederick J. Newmeyer

Overview

Linguistics: The Cambridge Survey is a comprehensive introduction to current research in all branches of the field of linguistics, from syntactic theory to ethnography of speaking, from signed language to the mental lexicon, from language acquisition to discourse analysis. Each chapter has been written by a specialist particularly distinguished in his or her field who has accepted the challenge of reviewing the current issues and future prospects in sufficient depth for the scholar and with sufficient clarity for the student. Each volume can be read independently and has a particular focus. Volume I covers the internal structure of the language faculty itself, while Volume II considers the evidence for, and the implications of, a generativist approach to language. Psycholinguistics and neurolinguistics are covered in Volume III, and Volume IV concentrates on sociolinguistics and the allied fields of anthropological linguistics and discourse and conversation analysis. Several of the chapters in the work concentrate on the interface between different aspects of linguistic theory or the boundaries between linguistic theory and other disciplines. Thus in both its scope and in its approach, the Survey is a unique and fundamental reference work. It undoubtedly fulfills the editor's aims of providing a wealth of information, insight, and ideas that will excite and challenge all readers with an interest in linguistics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521308342
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	04/21/1988
Series:	Cambridge Survey Ser. , #4
Pages:	308
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.25(h) x 0.91(d)

Table of Contents

Contributors; Preface; 1. The study of language in its socio-cultural context Beatriz R. Lavandera; 2. Language, culture, and world-view Jane H. Hill; 3. Language and social class Gregory R. Guy; 4. Language and race: some implications for linguistic science John Baugh; 5. Language and gender Sally McConnell-Ginet; 6. Bilingualism Bernard Spolsky; 7. Dialectology Keith Walters; 8. Sociolinguistics and syntactic variation David Sankoff; 9. Language birth: the processes of pidginization and creolization William A. Foley; 10. Language death Wolfgang U. Dressler; 11. Language planning: the view from linguistics Donna Christian; 12. Ethnography of speaking: towards a linguistics of the praxis Alessandro Duranti; 13. The organisation of discourse Diane Blakemore; 14. Conversation analysis Deborah Schiffrin; Index of names; Index of subjects.

Editorial Reviews

'The contributions are informed, up-to-date and lucid, and many of them make unusual - in fact, unprecedented - efforts to present opposing viewpoints fairly and to look at what they have in common rather than at what divides them. … The mixture of detached overviews and strongly argued positions works very well, in my view, and the editor is to be congratulated for the high standards that are maintained throughout. The tremendous intellectual energy and excitement of the field come through strongly, and I shan't hesitate to recommend many of the chapters to students.' The Times Higher Education Supplement

From the Publisher