Description
This book discusses performance in communities of practice, social criticism through song, and how folk song and language interact.
About the Author
Richard J. Watts is emeritus professor of Modern English Linguistics, retired from the Chair in that discipline at the University of Bern since 2008. He is one of the world's leading experts in linguistic politeness research and is author of five books including Politeness (2003) and Language Myths and the History of English (2011). Franz Andres Morrissey is a lecturer in Modern English Linguistics at the University of Bern, Switzerland. He has a background in TEFL, and has published language text books and several papers on teaching materials and language practice through games, music and creative writing, and sociolinguistics and the sociology of language.
Reviews
'Language, the Singer and the Song offers a thorough and convincing sociolinguistic exploration of folk songs. The book refreshes and enlarges our understanding of language and music as communication systems.' Massimo Sturiale, University of Catania-Ragusa, Italy
'Graduate students, undergraduates and sociolinguists who are conducting research or who are interested in relations between language and music will find this work appealing and unique in how it approaches both modes ... The chapters could also be adapted to a variety of graduate or undergraduate courses in sociolinguistics ... I found this book very timely in how Watts and Morrissey utilize concepts from third wave approaches to sociolinguistic variation (Eckert, 2012) to handle folk song performance. The year 2020 has given us a lot to think about and this work offers us a means through which we can all 'answer back'.' Andrew Jocuns, LINGUIST List
'It is an impressive resource for folk musicians, cultural theorists, and sociolinguists alike, and provides a welcome exploration into historical and current aspects of folk song performance and transmission, the timeless stories that folk songs tell, and the communities they build.' Andy Gibson, Language in Society
Book Information
ISBN 9781107112711
Author Richard J. Watts
Format Hardback
Page Count 390
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 750g
Dimensions(mm) 235mm * 157mm * 23mm