THE LANGUAGE

ANALYSIS
Presenter: Mrs. Schaaffe - McFarlane
What is the Language Analysis?
 The language analysis is an assessment of a piece
of communication for the use of language
conventions.
 For the purpose of your I.A. the specified pieces of
communication are:
 A short story
 A poem
 A drama piece/play
What is the Language Analysis?
 The specified pieces of communication which
will be written by you the candidate will be
assessed for:

 Language Registers
 Dialectal Variations
 Attitudes to Language
 Communicative Behaviours
Requirements

 The analysis should not exceed 350 words.

 The sample of work must be original.
 The analysis should address two (2) of the language
conventions.
 A second copy of the reflective piece should be
placed in the appendix of the portfolio. Additionally,
the sections used in the analysis should be colour
coded and a key provided at the bottom of the page.
Marking Criteria
 The language analysis is assessed by the examiner
for:
 Content: the analysis of the two elements selected.
(8 marks)
 Expression: clarity and fluency of the analysis with
control of grammar and syntax (5 marks)
 Organization: contains an introduction, proper
development, conclusion and coherence (5 marks)
The Language Conventions
Language Registers
Dialectal Variations
Attitudes to Language
Communicative Behaviours
Language Registers
 Refer to the kind of English appropriate to a
particular purpose or situation.
 They refer to the formality/informality and tone
that are correct for a specific context.
 The suitability of a register is dependent on:
 The audience
 The subject-matter
 The medium
 The writer’s attitude toward the content
Types of Registers
 Formal – used in formal social settings, almost
always involves the use of S.E.

 Casual – used in non-formal settings, usually

marked by slangs and ellipses.

 Intimate – used between people who are very

close, has minimal sentence structure, ellipsis, non-
verbal elements, specialized words and phrases.
Types of Registers
 Consultative – used in situations where the listener
is required to give some form of continuous
feedback based on info provided by the speaker.

 Frozen – for use in print and public speeches

where no direct response is expected from the
reader or listener.
Dialectal Variation
 This refers to the spoken and written differences in
the use of language within a speech community.

 Speech related variation within the Caribbean may

all be located on the Creole continuum.
Acrolec
Mesolect Basilect
t
Dialectal Variation
 In commenting on dialectal variation the student
needs to be aware of the different types of English
used and spoken in the Caribbean. These include:
 Foreign English
 Radio & Television English
 Erudite English
 Colloquial English
 Rasta English
 Profane English
Attitudes to Language
 Attitudes to the varieties of English spoken in the
Caribbean result from a number of factors
including historical and social ones.
 Crucial to the attitude one adopts are two
considerations:
 The association of Education
 Formality and good taste with Standard English and
the question as to whether Creole English is fitting and
appropriate for certain uses.
Attitudes to Language
 Positive Attitudes  Negative Attitudes
 Pride  Contempt
 Confidence  Shame
 Celebration  Ridicule
 Acceptance  Disgust
 Approval  Rejection
 Respect  Disdain
 Worth  Scorn
 Trustworthiness  Skepticism
Communicative Behaviours
 This refers to communicating impressions to others
without being aware of doing so (unconscious) and
without even wishing to do so (inevitable).
Communicative Behaviours
 The elements are:
 Vocalics
 Proxemix
 Artifacts
 Movement
 Chronemics
 Our Five Senses
Analyzing a Piece
A Short Story Extract
Tee took longer than usual to get dressed.
Her hand lingered around her puffy nipples
as she slipped on her raffia brassiere and
the tension in her G-string confirmed that her
delicate curves were now fuller. Weeks ago
she had began noticing that every time she
smelled the car fumes at the club she
wanted to puke. Now these changes. At
least Miss D had not noticed. The men who
frequented the “Plum Plum Night Club” in
Jones Town had only praise for her
increasing voluptuousness.
“A wha so? Browning you look sawsy!”
“Mi say di likkle gal bubbly yu see man… she can ride
my boat any time.”

The broke-pocket regulars would lust from a distance

or run the occasional rude joke with her. Other patrons
– the owners of Bimmers and Escalades – also came
to savour the sassy little number from St. Thomas.
Sometimes she would let them buy her drinks and
when she felt like it she would go with them;
sometimes to the back streets and back seats of their
cars, sometimes to their expensive homes in Cherry
Gardens. Conrad always insisted on taking her to a
hotel. At their second conversation when he asked her
why they called her Tee, she told him it was short for
Nefertiti.
“That’s a special name for an African Princess,” he told
her and from that time she was his special. In his
company, she relished his polished way of speaking to
her and the little gifts he often ‘surprised’ her with.
Once, after one of their Thursday ‘appointment’, he had
given her a genuine “Gucci timepiece”. He would never
force or rush her like some of the others. Now with
things as they were, she had to tell Conrad. She had
heard he was from a well to do family, had been to
university abroad and now worked with an investment
bank in New Kingston. She had tried to learn more
about him but such attempts always ended in the same
way.
“Connie, we’ve been together now for eight months…
and I hardly know anything about you… like where you
live… or where you work”.
“It’s not about me baby”, he remarked without looking at
her. “It’s all about you princess” he assured her as he
got dressed. Later in the Bimmer he told her he had to
travel. No, he did not know how long he would stay away
but sure he would call her as soon as he got back. After
all she knew she was his Thursday Night Special. Sure,
of course he would bring back something for her.

An extract from “The Dancing Princess”

From Stories my Father Told me and Other Tales
By H. N. McDermott © 2000
Pg. 490 – 493 CAPE Communication Studies
Writing the analysis
 Organize your essay by having

 An introduction: this can contain a synopsis of the

written piece as well as the two language conventions
to be analyzed.
 The body: this should be two paragraphs at least; one
for each convention
 The conclusion: this should say how the conventions
identified functioned in the overall piece.
Writing the Analysis
 When analyzing your piece of communication, you can
follow this simple three step process.
1. State the Convention and the specific element within it that
you will be analyzing E.g. Language Registers – Intimate
Register
2. Give an example of the element E.g. ‘Alright Pookie Poo’
3. Analyze the element, by looking at its function, the effect
it had, the information it gave etc. E.g. The use of the
specialized term ‘Pookie Poo’ serves to highlight the
closeness of the relationship between Ricardo and Sandy.
Analyzing Registers
 In the extract from “The Dancing Princess” the writer utilizes
a number of Language Registers. One such register is the
casual register. Evidence of this is seen when the patrons said
“A wha so? Browning you look sawsy!”
“Mi say di likkle gal bubbly yu see man… she can ride my
boat any time.” The patrons use Jamaican Creole and speak in
a casual tone to Tee because of the type of job she does.
Because she is an exotic dancer, the patrons did not feel that it
was necessary to speak to her in a formal or respectful
manner. Also, the fact that they are likely from the area,
which is an inner city community, means that they are more
likely to speak in Creole.
Analyzing Dialectal Variation
 Throughout the extract, different characters use a
variety of language forms. The acrolectal variety is
used by Conrad when he speaks to Tee. “It’s not
about me baby” and “It’s all about you princess”.
This variety is expected as Conrad is from a well to
do family and is educated. He uses the acrolect as he
is also trying to impress and assuage Tee and this
type of variation makes him seem more sincere. It is
also in stark contrast to the crude language of the
other men; hence, Tee is led to believe that she and
Conrad are in a relationship.
Analyzing Attitudes to Language
 A positive attitude towards Standard English is
shown by Tee. This is seen where Tee says about
Conrad’s language that she “relished his polished
way of speaking to her”. This shows that Tee
takes pleasure in hearing Conrad speak the
Standard English and prefers this type of language
which she associates with his superior status. This
is in contrast to the other patrons who speak creole
and who she refer to as “broke-pocket”.
Analyzing Communicative Behaviours
 The writer of the extract utilizes the Communicative
behaviours artifacts, movement and our five senses in
the piece. The use of artifacts is seen in Tee’s
description of the gifts given to her by Conrad as
well as the things he owns. He gives her a genuine
“Gucci timepiece” and he drives a ‘Bimmer’. He
can also afford to take her to a hotel whenever they
meet. These artifacts serve to strengthen the idea of
Conrad as a rich/well to do man who has some
amount of influence over Tee.