Linguistics (20015)
Degree/study: Degree in Humanities
Year: 2nd
Term:1st
Number of ECTS credits: 4 credits
Hours of studi dedication: 100 hours
Teaching language or languages: Catalan. Student texts will be in Catalan and Spanish; extra readings will be in Catalan, Spanish and English.
Teaching Staff: Josep M. Castellà Lidon. You may speak to him at his office (20.2E50), or through e-mail ([email protected]).
1. Presentation of the subject
This course relates language and human communication to the rest of humanistic fields that deal with language (such as literature, philosophy and art theory, among others). It is intended to be a modest contribution to the great questions of human nature. The concepts and basic dilemmas that are presented in this subject are related to linguistic history, discourse analysis, pragmatics, the relation between language, mind and society, first language or second language acquisition, the relation between metaphors and cognition, linguistic change and diversity, and the death and life of languages.
In the context of the Degree of Humanities, this subject has the specific role to evaluate the instrumental command that students have of their own language, either Catalan or Spanish; the one in which they choose to write the exam, the work and the exercises of the course. Since this is an important aspect in the evaluation, students are advised to familiarise themselves with academic prose and general language rules and conventions (Catalan or Spanish).
2. Competences to be attained
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General Competences |
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1. Understanding texts at academic level and being able to provide well-reasoned interpretations of them. 2. Developing ideas and being able to justify them with sound arguments both in written and in oral contexts. 3. Being able to communicate properly in oral and written contexts in any of the two official languages in Catalonia, that is, in Catalan and Spanish, both for specialist and non-specialist audiences. 4. Mastering the informatics tools and the main applications which are required in daily academic activities. 5. Developing autonomous reasoning skills which necessarily include being able to judge controversial issues objectively. 6. Accepting the diversity of points of view as a fundamental ingredient of academic life, as well as inherent in today's society, and being capable to express one's opinion while respecting others'. 7. Having a good attitude towards the subject and the academic work that it involves, that is, being self-disciplined, self-demanding, rigorous, organised and punctual. . |
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Specific Competences |
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1. Identifying the main periods, topics and authors of contemporary linguistics. 2. Connecting the study of language with those of literature, history, art and thought. 3. Analysing and reflecting on some of the main linguistics texts and discourse analysis. 4. Using terminology related to basic concepts that have been dealt with in linguistics and discourse analysis, both in oral and in written contexts. 5. Becoming aware of the interdisciplinary nature of language studies and being able to go beyond the boundaries of academic fields, particularly those that are sometimes referred to as "two cultures", Humanities and Science. 6. Knowing and using the main rhetorical and linguistic resources in at least one of the two official languages in Catalonia (Catalan or Spanish) |
3. Contents
• Unit 1: Language Sciences
1.1- Linguistic theories in the 20th and 21st centuries.
1.1.1- Traditional grammar.
1.1.2- Structural linguistics.
1.1.3- Generative linguistics.
1.1.4- Discourse analysis.
1.2- Linguistic theories and language and literature teaching: tradition, conductism, input theory and communicative focus.
• Unit 2: Orality and Literacy
2.1- The anthropological perspective.
2.2- The linguistic study of orality and literacy.
2.3- Register variation.
2.4- Prototypical linguistic features in spoken and written language, and the question of complexity.
• Unit 3: The nature of meaning
3.1- Word, sentence, discourse, text and context.
3.2- Sign arbitrariness. Meaning and sense.
3.3- Language as representation: art, logics and language.
3.4- The psychological construction of discursive sense.
3.5- The cognitive process of meaning.
• Unit 4: Discourse diversity
4.1- Language and society: the study of linguistic variation.
4.2- Linguistic varieties.
4.2.1- Geographical, historical and social varieties.
4.2.2- Linguistic change.
4.2.3- Standard variety and definition of language.
4.3- Death and life of languages: normalisation and substitution.
4.4- Functional diversity in language: registers, discourse genres and types of text.
*The full version with the sections 4. Assessment, 5. Bibliography and teaching resources, 6. Methodology and 7. Planning of activities is available in the original version.
4. Assessment
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5. Bibliography and teaching resources
5.1. Basic bibliography
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5.2. Complementary bibliography
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5.3. Teaching resources
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6. Metodology
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7. Planning of activities
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