Today Review of unclear terms Communication in Practice Quiz Eckert, “Symbols of Category Membership” ◦ Key terms ◦ Small group discussion ◦ Media example Bucholtz, “Word Up” ◦ Key terms ◦ Media example ◦ Small groups Recap and preview

Review of unclear terms Steps of becoming a social group What’s the difference between a speech community and a social group? Ad hoc Focused gathering Communication act Triangle of linguistic structure – the three components of language are meaning, form and function Difference between communication act and speech act? Unfocused interaction How to pick out social business

Communication in Pracice Quiz What is a category symbol? Give one example of a category symbol you use or encounter in your own life. What is language ideology? (Give it your best shot) What are some examples of slang you use?

ECKERT: SYMBOLS OF CATEGORY MEMBERSHIP

Category symbols: ◦ External expressions of group identity which display underlying values and strengthen group solidarity and differentiation from outsiders: e.g. clothing, music taste, ways of speaking, hangout locations, etc. Symbolic opposition (271): ◦ “The clear association of any piece of behavior with one category will lead to the adoption of opposing behavior by the other…[This] strengthens the hegemony of the category system and increasingly restricts individual perceptions and choice.” Hegemony: the social, cultural, ideological, or economic influence exerted by a dominant group or set of values

Social Categories What are the two main social categories in the article? What are some of the symbols students use to signify their membership in one or the other? “Many Jock and Burnout symbols stand above all for differences in economic means, perception of life stage and adult domination, and school and local orientation” (226). ◦ In other words: values

In Groups of 3 Describe the different categories of students as they were known in your high school: ◦ What were the names of the categories? ◦ Explain how they differed symbolically from one another in terms of:  Dress  Portable symbols  Demeanor  Activities  Substance use  Use of physical space (the school campus) ◦ What values did these symbols stand in for?

Media Example: Symbols of Whiteness Race and class are examples of social categories that get identified with certain types of symbols. 1. How many symbols of category membership can you find in the following video and lyrics? Look for: ◦ Clothing ◦ Portable symbols ◦ Demeanor ◦ Behaviors ◦ Territories 2. What is the purpose of these symbols in the song/video? Duece Poppi - My White FriendsMy White Friends

BUCHOLTZ: WORD UP

Language ideology (275) ◦ “Social meanings assigned to language and its users, often in ways that grant greater power to some sorts of language users and less to others” What does it mean to say that slang is a linguistic resource? ◦ Can we connect this to any of the past readings? What does slang do as a linguistic resource? ◦ Construct youth identity in opposition to adult identity ◦ Unite broad groups of people (“hella” for people from the Bay Area) ◦ Construct racial or subcultural boundaries and identities (Whites’ use of “patna” was contested and “blood” was off limits) ◦ Signal coolness and communicative competence

Transformation of Slang What happens when a slang term that’s specific to one group starts being used more widely? ◦ Does the meaning of the word stay the same? ◦ Does it do the same things socially as it did before? ◦ Does the way the original group uses it change? Can you think of any slang terms that you noticed a new group of people using? Can you think of any that you personally used to use but don’t anymore?

Twerking…A History Twerking…A History

The New Twerk Oxford English Dictionary: verb informal: dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving thrusting hip movements and a low, squatting stance

To Twerk or Not to Twerk How might this style of dance originally have been a linguistic resource or a category symbol? How might “twerking” as a slang term have been a linguistic resource or category symbol in the 90s? ◦ For whom? How has twerking changed? ◦ What identity does “twerk” convey now? ◦ What values does it suggest? ◦ What’s going on with power when a more privileged group adopts the terms/practices of a minority?

Small Group Activity In small groups, list the different slang words you use. Do you have any idea about the origins of these words? After reading Bucholtz, why do you think you use these particular words? What role does your use of slang have in creating your own identity? Expressing your values?

Recap People use all kinds of symbols to show their membership in social groups Often these groups can become oppositional, leaving people with fewer choices Slang is a resource for the production of identity, often connected to membership in certain groups Both category symbols and slang change in their meaning and purpose as they’re adopted by new groups

Preview Rachel Simmons: “Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in Girls” ◦ Pay attention to the specific code words she describes ◦ What are the boundaries placed around girls’ behavior? ◦ How do girls create and reinforce these borders through their communication? ◦ How does this reading compare to/explain Tannen? Koenraad Kuiper: “Sporting Formulae in New Zealand English: Two Models of Male Solidarity” ◦ Terms to learn: face-saving, face-threatening ◦ How do politeness phenomena in both groups establish solidarity? ◦ What are the implications of the “dark side” of politeness phenomena? (Besides having Darth Vader as a Dad.)