Examines the language games found in the 18th century Chinese novel "Xingshi Yinyuan Zhuan." Examination focuses on distinctly Chinese literary conventions and devices that have no equivalent in English, such as "xiehouyu" and "qiaopihua," as well as puns, character splitting, enigmatic expressions, and reification of…

Discusses an experiment to find the effects of "powerful" and "powerless" language on small computer-mediated groups. Explains that subjects were asked to communicate via computer in a decision-making context. Describes the three conditions. Finds that language style has significant impact on impression formation in computer…

This article discusses professional language and communication in real-life settings and provides a critical overview of research on language for specific purposes. Ideas for renewing this field of study are presented. (78 references) (MDM)

This article examines differences in conversational style between British English and Ecuadorian Spanish, which can be the source of communication conflict among speakers of these two languages in telephone conversations, and presumably other types of interaction. (30 references) (JL)

Presents an adaptation of a speech given by broadcaster and writer Robert MacNeil at the 1994 International Reading Association Convention. Discusses attitudes towards language, reading and learning to read, and pleasure. (SR)

A study of 240 TV viewers who watched or listened to and watched news stories showed highly significant differences in their recorded perceptions of the information. The spoken narrative was responsible for the perception of violence in the stories. Discussion of the results also touches on the subject of verbal violence. (14 references) (CP)

Discusses the prospect of the elimination of metaphors in writings done in E-Prime (a form of English that eliminates all forms of the verb "to be"). Considers the ontology and epistemology of language with respect to the implementation of E-Prime. Argues for the usefulness of E-Prime in writing instruction. (HB)

Defines poetry as a distinctive form of language. Argues that writing poetry in E-Prime (a form of English that eliminates all forms of the verb "to be") can be a very effective tool for locating the fragmentation of regular language. Claims that excellent poetry can be written in E-Prime. (HB)

Describes how a teacher revised his public speaking textbook by altering the style to "E-Prime" (a form of English that eliminates all forms of the verb "to be"). Summarizes the arguments against the use of E-Prime and provides responses that might come from E-Prime's supporters. (HB)

Discusses examination and cross-examination strategies used in the adversarial system of a U.S. criminal trial, arguing against the use of traditional discourse analysis to describe courtroom communication and demonstrating how counsel use semantic, syntactic, and pragmatic features to establish credibility and achieve calculated responses. (25…

Suggests the use of fairy tales in German foreign language instruction at the intermediate level. This suggestion is established using features of the Grimm genre and clarified using concrete examples. (Author/DMK)

Examines what happens to children's books that are translated. Suggests that greater attention to the translating, editing, and reviewing of children's books is still needed, and cites several examples where American and other international publishers have disregarded the integrity of the original when coming up with linguistic equivalents. (AEF)

Variationist account of how direct quotations are framed in spoken Spanish requires definition of variable and envelope of variation followed by investigation of linguistic, stylistic, and social constraints. Variable is defined as set of three strategies for directly quoting speech, gestures, and sound effects of people, animals, or things in…

Focuses on francophone nurses who were trained to write nursing care plans during their studies in francophone universities in Quebec and were then employed to work in an English-medium hospital in Montreal. Data was gathered through interviews, observation collection of documents, and a formal task. Care plans produced by the new nurses at the…

This study examines a corpus of conversations of Turkish preschool-age children with adults, with the goal of analyzing 2 types of extended discourse structures (i.e., lists and narratives). Lists and narratives are compared with respect to (a) their internal structures, and (b) their social functions in the participants' daily interactions. The…