Full Description
This Element documents the evolution of a research program that began in the early 1960s with the author's first investigation of language change on Martha's Vineyard. It traces the development of what has become the basic framework for studying language variation and change. Interviews with strangers are the backbone of this research: the ten American English speakers appearing here were all strangers to the interviewer at the time. They were selected as among the most memorable, from thousands of interviews across six decades. The speakers express their ideas and concerns in the language of everyday life, dealing with their way of earning a living, getting along with neighbors, raising a family - all matters in which their language serves them well. These people speak for themselves. And you will hear their voices. What they have to say is a monument to the richness and variety of the American vernacular, offering a tour of the studies that have built the field of sociolinguistics.
Contents
1. Prologue: What this Element is about; 2. Growing up in New Jersey; 3. Martha's Vineyard: Donald Poole, Fisherman; 4. New York City: Rose Barisse, Garment Worker; 5. New York City: Michael Duffy, Fireman; 6. Rural Pennsylvania: Bill Peters, Farmer; 7. Rural Utah: Brad Anders, Dairy Farmer; 8. Hillsborough, North Carolina: Adolphus Hester, Farmer; 9. Knoxville, Tennessee: Louise Atkins, Domestic Worker; 10. East Atlanta: Henry Guyton, Railway Foreman; 11. Philadelphia Pennsylvania: Celeste Sweeney, Saleswoman; 12. Philadelphia Pennsylvania: Gloria Stein, Postal clerk; 13. Final Words; References.
