A study explored the reliability of methods for analyzing the thematic organization of texts. Five linguists, two of whom were native speakers of Swedish and three of whom were native speakers of Finnish, analyzed the thematic organization of a Swedish popular scientific article, using an analysis that focused on coherence reflected in the…

The first part of this paper reviews previous literature on speech acts, compliments, and compliment responses. Previous research shows that the same speech act is very likely to be realized quite differently across cultures. The second part of the paper examines the compliment responses of Korean females in English interactions and in Korean…

Suggestions are made for introducing students, especially those at the college level, to American short stories. An anthology of stories, chronologically presented, is noted as a useful text. Three approaches for presentation include historical sequencing, grouping according to salient elements of fiction, and grouping by theme. Pre-reading…

This introduction to second language learning is intended to provide language teachers with basic information on relevant principles and processes. After an introductory chapter, the second chapter looks at traditional beliefs about language learning, including those concerning transfer of first-language knowledge to the second language, the role…

Although a growing body of research points to the potential benefits of bilingual education, there are a number of commonly held beliefs that run counter to research findings. Based on current research, this digest clarifies some of the myths and misconceptions surrounding language use and bilingual education in the United States. The fallacies…

Comparative statistical data are presented on speech dynamic (as contrasted with lexical and rhetorical) aspects of major speech styles. Representative samples of story retelling, lectures, speeches, sermons, interviews, and panel discussions serve to determine posited differences between casual and careful speech. Data are drawn from 15,393…

This book examines how the brain enables people to speak creatively and build up an understanding of language. The discussion looks at the linguistic and neuro-anatomical underpinnings of language and considers how language skills can systematically break down in individuals with different types of brain damage. By studying children with language…

A study investigated translation problems arising in physician-patient interviews conducted in two languages with the help of an interpreter. Subjects were four adult native speakers of Gujarati, aged 42-70, whose physician interviews were videotape-recorded and translated, and the discourse was analyzed. Patients spoke in Gujarati, and the…

This paper focuses on the issue of whether pedagogical mediation will facilitate the acquisition of conversational skills. It argues that it is possible to describe casual conversation, that it has a grammatical structure, and that it is of benefit to English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) learners for the structure of conversation to be explicitly…

One of a series of semi-annual reports, this publication contains 25 articles which report the status and progress of studies on the nature of speech, instruments for its investigation, and practical applications. Articles are as follows: "Acoustic Shards, Perceptual Glue" (Robert E. Remez and Philip E. Rubin); "F0 Gives Voicing…

A discussion of the role of sociolinguistics in the treatment of communication disorders focuses on issues related to dialect and language variation. It begins with an examination of linguistic diversity and dynamic description of language, reporting on a study of speech and language pathologists' judgments of sentences in African American…

This paper discusses the development and content of a third-year Italian course entitled "Italian for Business and Communication," taught at Bentley College in Waltham, Massachusetts. Since there are few texts that focus on business Italian, the instructor conducted on-site research at three Italian companies in Milan. Observations and…

The study of language acquisition requires that the analyst identify the learner's target and have available a grammatical description of the target. In the case of the Caribbean Creole environment, special caution is required in identifying the learner's target because substantial variation is intrinsic to the input and ambient language. Existing…

This collection of working papers in linguistics includes four works. "Autour de la racine indo-europeenne 'pet-' ('voler') (pour servir a l'histoire des faits latins)" ("Concerning the Indo-European Root 'Pet-' ('To Fly') (To Serve as an Example of Latin Facts)" by Claude Sandoz looks at the Latin manifestations of the root and illustrates the…

The working papers by students and professors of linguistics on research in progress include the following: "Are Cariban Languages Moving Away From or Towards Ergative Systems?" (Desmond D. Derbyshire); "A Double-Verb Construction in Mbya Guarani" (Robert A. Dooley); "Semantically Ergative Languages in Typological…