main language frameworks

main language frameworks

1. discourse

   • the way language is organised
     • in written discourse it may have sections: an opening section, theme/argument/conclusion
       • in spoken discourse the structure can be less organised. are usually unpredictable and speakers often digress(go off sub.) because convos are spontaneous
         • even spontaneous convo has some structure, there will often be an opening sequence, turntaking and a closing sequence
           • also look at how the discourse fits together - cohesion
             • grammatical cohesion eg using adverbs at the beginning of a sentence/para to link to previous
               • lexical cohesion is when the words in the discourse relate to eachother throughout

2. lexis

   • vocabulary - its divided into word classes
     • also be divided into lexical phrases - well-known groups of words
       • lexis has different levels of formality
         • informal lexis is relaxed, familiar and conversational, colloquial/non-standard-will contain dialect words+slang. tends to be smaller than formal lexis and contain more monosyllabic words. contains lots of abbreviations. informal lexis for ordinary things often has old english roots
           • formal lexis is more serious and impersonal. tends to be made up with standard english words, unlikely to contain dialect+slang. bigger and more complex than informal lexis so there are more polysyllabic words. words are less likely to be abbreviated. formal lexis has latinate roots
             • written language is more formal than spoken. most informal language is found in speech between friends+family. the most formal is found in writing between people who dont know eachother. main reason: speech is spontaneous so the lexis is smaller+ lots of self correction. speech contains abbreviations even the case wiith planned speech. speech can be more formal than writing eg when planned: politicans speech. there are situations where written language is informal eg email between friends

3. semantics

   • study of meaning
     • looks at how the meanings of words are constructed and interpreted
       • denotation: the definition of a word: the literal meaning//connotation: refers to associations a word has//implication: this is when the meaning is suggested//ambiguity: where a word,phases,argument can be understood in more than one way
         • semantic fields (lexical fields): a group of words that are connected in meaning. the lexis (words) that make up the semantic field are know nas field-specific lexis
           • synonyms are words that have similar meanings, they can have different connotations, so their meaning isnt identical. you can use different synonyms depending on the situation
             • antonyms are words with opposite meanings
               • a hypernym is a general word. a hyponym is specific word with a meaning thats linked to the hypernym. words can be hypernyms in one contect and hyponyms in another
                 • figurative langauge isnt literal. jargon is the specific language people use at work. rhetorical language is designed to persuade

4. phonology

   • is the study of the sound systems of languages, in particular the patterns of sound. it focuses on units of sound: phonemes
     • the smallest units of sounds are called phonemes, the combinations of them make up all the possible words and sounds in the language
       • phonemes is divided into vowel and consonant sounds
         • words are made up of syllables. monosyllabic words have one syllable, polysylabic words have more than one syllable
           • words sound different when they are connected. words are often pronounced differently than youd expect when you see them written down. this is because spoken language combines and runs sounds together
             • Elision: is when sounds are left out- happens in rapid speech, with words that have clusters of consonants or syllables.//assimilation: when sounds that are next to eachother become more alike. this happens especially in rapid speech because it makes the words easier to say quickly.// liaison is when a souns is inserted between words or syllables to help them run together more smoothly.this is to avoid a gap between the words, known as hiatus.sometimes its easier to link words with 'r' even if its not in the spelling
               • phonological frameworks are used to analyse sound patterns. part of phonology involves looking at how sounds can convey meaning and association
                 • rhythm, rhyme, alliteration, assonance, onomatopoeia

5. phonetics

   • the study of how speech sounds are made and recieved. it covers all possible sounds that the human vocal apparatus (coval chords, tongue, lips, teeth, etc.) can make. it focuses on differences in articulation, eg: using accents

6. pragmatics

   • about how language is used in social situations. the meaning of what people say isnt always as clear-cut as it might seem. pragmatics looks at how people get their meaning across within different social contexts, people oftem have to imply meanings rather than state them directly, so it concentrates on the meaning behind what is being said (subtext)
     • prosodic features are the non-verbal aspects of speech. prosody is about how you say things rather than what you say. these non-verbal aspects of speech help communicate attitudes and meaning
       • pitch, volume, pace, pauses, intonation, stress, rhythm
         • prosody can change the meaning
           • politeness strategies ensure speakers dont cause offence eg: definite with a negative word-rude//definite without negative word-used for humor or if you didnt care about being offensive// excuse: to justify why the answer is no//evasive: used to avoid having to say no// apologetic: when theyre saying no to soften their negative response// inarticulate: usually shows the person feels awkward and is trying to think of an excuse or a way to say no politely

7. morphology

   • how words are formed.
     • describes the construction of individual words

8. syntax

   • is the set of rules that control where each word class can appear in a sentence
     • system of rules about how these types of words function in relation to each other

9. grammar

   • grammar controls how language is constructed, is the set of structural roles that controls the way language works. there are three aspects: word classes, syntax and morphology
     • eight main word classes: nouns: naming words//adjectives: describe nouns// verbs: doing words// adverbs: describe verbs//pronouns:take the place of nouns// conjunctions: connecting words//prepositions: define relationships between worrds in terms of time, space and direction// determiners: give specific kinds of information about a noun (quantity or possession)
       • word classes are controlled by rules
         • grammatical rules affect word formation
           • grammar cgoices can influence the reader/listener. tense, plurals, adjectives