How are peoples' ideas about languages, ways of speaking and expressive styles shaped by their social positions and values? How is difference, in language and in social life, made - and unmade? How and why are some differences persuasive as the basis for action, while other differences are ignored or erased? Written by two recognised authorities on language and culture, this book argues that ideological work of all kinds is fundamentally communicative, and that social positions, projects and historical moments influence, and are influenced by, people's ideas about communicative practices. Neither true nor false, ideologies are positioned and partial visions of the world, relying on comparison and perspective; they exploit differences in expressive features - linguistic and otherwise - to construct convincing stereotypes of people, spaces and activities. Using detailed ethnographic, historical and contemporary examples, this outstanding book shows readers how to analyse ideological work semiotically.

An important study of how signs and sign relations create social and linguistic differences - and unities.

About the Author
Susan Gal is Distinguished Service Professor of Anthropology and Linguistics at the University of Chicago. She is author of Language Shift (1979) and The Politics of Language (in Hungarian, 2018), as well as co-author with Gail Kligman of Politics of Gender after Socialism (2000) and co-editor with Kathryn Woolard of Languages and Publics: The Making of Authority (2001). Judith T. Irvine is Edward Sapir Collegiate Professor of Linguistic Anthropology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Author of many articles and chapters in linguistic anthropology, she is co-editor with Jane H. Hill of Responsibility and Evidence in Oral Discourse (1993); co-editor with Regna Darnell et al. of the Collected Works of Edward Sapir (1999) and Associate Editor of the journal Language in Society.

Reviews
'Systematically mapping out new theoretical and empirical ground, this field-defining book richly develops the promise of Susan Gal and Judith T. Irvine's influential approach to understanding ideologies of linguistic and social difference. In crystal-clear analyses of ethnographic and historical material from Africa, Central Europe, and the United States, they make accessible the interlocking semiotic processes through which ordinary folks and experts alike create consequential contrasts between kinds of people. This landmark study will be essential reading for scholars of social relations well beyond the borders of linguistic anthropology.' Kathryn A. Woolard, University of California, San Diego
'Gal (Univ. of Chicago) and Irvine (Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor) gather in this volume an eclectic assortment of oral and literary texts to which they apply a semiotic analysis ... Recommended.' L. Lindstrom, Choice
'The book is readable and very well written, using vivid language with striking examples, metaphors and metonymies to illustrate and emphasize stances and angles. This makes Gal's and Irvine's volume not only important to academics and faculty of various linguistic subdisciplines, but also worthwhile for graduate and PhD students.' Katharina Klara Tyran, LINGUIST List
'... the book walks the reader through the semiotic experience of everyday life, making it possible to see meaning-making as it happens, a quality that makes it particularly valuable for students.' Cambridge University Press



Book Information
ISBN 9781108741293
Author Susan Gal
Format Paperback
Page Count 326
Imprint Cambridge University Press
Publisher Cambridge University Press
Weight(grams) 490g
Dimensions(mm) 228mm * 153mm * 20mm