Sociolinguistics and Its Scope

2.       In the linguistic analysis we observe that sentence 1 has used a contraction of “do”. In the sociolinguistic context ‘sentence 1’ appears to be more informal and colloquial (part of everyday speech).

3.       All modal verbs have a variety of meaning.

For example:

a)      Can I take you pen? (Request)

b)      Can you drive a car? (Ability)

c)       Scotland can be very cold in winter. (Possibility/Probability)

d)      Can I carry your bag (Offer)

This shows that “Can” has four different functions in four different sentences. In the sociolinguistic analysis we see that in ‘sentence 2’ there is a genuine desire to help on part of the speaker as compared to ‘sentence 1’. The two sentences are different from the cultural point of view. In more conservative societies people will prefer ‘sentence 2’ whereas in more liberal societies ‘sentence 1’ would be preferred.

Scope and Utility

From this data (sentence 1 and 2), the sociolinguist can begin to make certain guesses about such things as situations roles and possibly classes (Social classes – strata).

Sociolinguist might guess, for instance, that the ‘sentence 1’ has been uttered by a street vendor in what would quite normally be a very informal situation. He might also guess that the second sentence has been articulated by, for example, a sales assistant in a more formal shopping context such as a departmental store. He might also take his guessing a little further and say that the 2nd speaker is better educated than the first one.

A linguist studies all the systems within a language. For example: Within grammar there is a system of tenses, of pronouns, comparison of adjectives and so on. Moreover he (linguist) studies the Phonology and the Vocabulary of the language. This examination of the formal systems of a language may help us to produce grammatically correct sentences but it does not help us make choices of a kind exemplified above. However a foreigner learning Urdu language may be aware of the fact that the English pronoun “You” can be translated in Urdu as: Ap, Tu, Tum.

But grammar alone will not help him to make the appropriate choice. Imagine him greeting his boss with the word “Tu kaisa hai”. It would be considered disrespectful.

To sum up we can say that linguistics and sociology are complimentary and thus the teacher of any foreign language needs to have knowledge of the formal systems of that language i.e. Grammar, Vocabulary and Pronunciation as well as understanding of the social norms that govern the appropriate choices.

Usage and Use

Usage refers to the prescribed rules for the language use. This is of major interest to linguists. Use refers to the practical/oblique actual pronunciation of these prescribed rules. This is of major interest to sociolinguists.

When we talk about the use of language, it is basically the social use so we link up with sociology and sociology is the study of society.

In order to appreciate why a certain individual makes a particular language choice, the socio-linguist has to study his sociological background as well. This, in part is related to the social class and will vary considerably from one society to another.