It is proposed that middle- and upper-middle-class slang used among white young people in modern America shows age-related themes. For youngsters between the ages of eight and early adolescence, the major theme in slang use is to establish in-group and out-group membership, with standards of judgment based on clothes, manners, and physical appeal.…

Discusses the meaning and origins of the word "argot," its cryptic character, and its function in a closed social group, focusing on a comparative description of the French and Anglo-American vocabulary of the underworld and the police. Comments on shared traits and provides an insight into the differences. (MES)

Views the Dutch language as analogous to the polder typical of the Netherlands, an area of low-lying land reclaimed from a body of water and protected by dikes. Phonological, morphological, syntactic, semantic, and stylistic analyses are presented. (MSE)

A study examined interactional patterns in interviews that characterize elicitation of one text type, description, including type/mixture of questions asked by the fieldworker and the speaker's response. Subjects (n=137) were of three ethnic groups and three socioeconomic levels. Results suggest questioning strategy can have strong, predictable…

An approach to writing instruction in a second language begins with a look at the different functions of oral and written language and proceeds to an analysis of stylistic differences. A number of examples are offered from French textbooks, letters, and excerpts from speech used on television. (MSE)

A study tested responses of 201 upper division business students to 8 graduate business school recruitment ads with similar content but written in different styles. Results suggest that certain styles, independently and in combination, do affect perceptions on lower-order dimensions (ad interest, appeal, believability, clarity) but not broader…

This paper compares respect forms used in Bhojpuri, standard Hindi, and suddh Hindi. The role and use of each dialect are described, and a comparison of respect forms used in each is presented, considering phonemic, grammatical, syntactical, suprasegmental, paralinguistic, and kinesic features. The differences noted appear in a continuum among the…

This article explains the linguistic situation in Greece and the condition of diglossia that has arisen there through the use of common Modern Greek, developing from the Athenian dialect into a medium of communication used by all Greeks, and the use of Katharevusa, the "pure" or "purifying" language which is supposedly an imitation of Ancient…

A study of question and response patterns in middle and secondary schools in Indonesia is presented. The study examines questioning from the point of view of several previous studies. Interactions in 12 classes in English and in Bahasa Indonesian were videotaped in three middle schools and three secondary schools. Analysis of the data revealed…

Two basic issues underlie problems associated with the teaching of Bahasa Indonesia in the Indonesian primary schools. The first involves language standardization and deciding what form of the language will be taught. The criteria of understanding and communication are involved and such features as pronunciation, vocabulary, spelling, punctuation,…