Linguistic Society of America | Advancing the Scientific ...
African American English, #350Monday/Thursday: 11:10 AM – 12:35 PMJohn Baugh: Edward Sapir Professor for the 2019 LSA Summer InstituteOrientation:This course examines the linguistic consequences of the African slave trade internationally, with primary emphasis on the United States. Linguistic analyses will be paramount, but educational and legal policies will also be included in this class. Please see: organization:Due to the fourth of July holiday we are confined to seven class meetings. This will create a combination of challenges and opportunities in light of the fact that the content related to studies of slave descendant language usage are substantial, including some research that represents major milestones in the advancement of quantitative sociolinguistic research. Generally speaking, the course will follow a chronological path, beginning with foundational studies. Historical controversies and dialect properties will ensue, prior to an exposition of the 1979 Black English trial in Ann Arbor, Michigan. That trail preceded another research milestone, related to hypotheses regarding the divergence of Black and White speech which occurred in 1987. We will review that research, and some of the findings that served to reinforce efforts to develop educational programs for Black children that took their linguistic and cultural background into account. All of these events, and the research that supported them, occurred before the debate about Ebonics, which was brought to global attention by the Oakland, California school board. In 1996 they passed a resolution declaring that Ebonics was the native language of the 28,000 African American students who were enrolled in that district.The Ebonics episode, in my opinion, was a mixed blessing as far as the study of African American linguistic behavior is concerned. On one hand, the events thrust the linguistic legacy of African slavery into public awareness in a way that had not ever been witnessed previously, On the other hand, the political backlash and hostile reactions to the Oakland school board proclamation were so severe that most school districts were loath to broach the topic, and once again the specific educational needs of African American students were largely overlooked.While these public, political, and educational events were unfolding, the Sugarhill Gang wrote and produced an iconic song, Rapper’s Delight, in 1979 where the term Hip Hop was first introduced. That song was significant for many reasons; occurring at a turning point between Disco and Rap, the song contains three of the themes that embody a substantial amount of Hip Hop content; namely, love, misogyny, and social commentary. Shortly thereafter Grand Master Flash produced The Message, which we will see/hear during class. It is perhaps one of the moist pertinent and poignant rap songs ever produced. We will complete an informal discourse analysis of its content, and this will coincide with readings and lectures that pertain to the birth and evolution of Rap and Hip Hop.The course will conclude with discussion of other significant research on African American language usage, as well as some of the promising research trends for the future. On July 6 I will be giving a lecture in association with a small conference that has been organized by Professor Anne Charity-Hudley, and that lecture (for which your attendance is optional) will contain discussion of my own early longitudinal research from my doctoral dissertation titled, Linguistic Style Shifting in Black English, which was revised and published as my first book, Black Street Speech: Its History, Structure, and Survival.Assignment Menu:Assignments for this class will be more flexible than might otherwise be the case for a class that would be given during a normal quarter or semester. A “menu” of assignments is provided, and you are free to choose any two of four options, including the possibility of selecting a similar assignment twice. A schedule for both assignments appears within the syllabus, where you will initially declare your intention regarding completion of each assignment prior to its due date. This is not a contract, and you are free to change your mind should you choose to do so. Rather, by identifying your intentions for assignment completion in advance, I will have a better sense of the range of assignments. In addition, because of the nature of these assignments, they will be distributed to all who are enrolled in this class, thereby providing a repository of information about African American language that you can keep as a future resource.Assignment options:Each option should be limited to 3-to-5 single-spaced typed pages, with font no smaller than 12 points; figures and references can be included optionally as additional pages. Again, these assignments will be distributed, and each should be submitted electronically as a .doc or .pdf file.Option 1:Annotated reviews of five publications related to African American language usage. These publications can be book chapters, articles, or entire books. The common constraint will be that each annotated review should fill approximately a single page; this assignment can therefore not be completed within three pages.Option2:A survey of significant research contributions by a single scholar. African American language studies have been graced by a plethora of older-to-younger scholars who have made several significant contributions to this topic. Indeed, there are so many prominent scholars who have participated in this enterprise that I will not list them here. However, we will discuss prospective options during class. In this instance, you would briefly mention some of the significant contributions that have been produced, typically represented by publications, that are attributed to a single author/scholar.Option 3:A survey of a significant research topic related to African American linguistic research. Copula analyses would be an example of a research topic that has been evaluated extensively by different scholars. The difference/deficit debate would be another relevant topic, as would alternative theories regarding the history of African American vernacular English. In this instance your paper would identify the topic, and then describe a combination of some of the most relevant research and publications that pertain to the topic within 3-to-5 pages.Option 4:You are free to create your own assignment, related to African American language research, which you would discuss in 3-to-5 pages. Teacher education would be an ideal topic, as would The Ebonics Controversy, or The Black English trial, among other issues. In this instance you would identify and propose the topic in advance, and then submit a brief (single paragraph) description of the proposed assignment to me at least 2 class meetings prior to its due date for my approval. I will either approve the assignment, or propose a modification to your proposal, at which point you should then feel free to complete a 3-to-5 paged assignment.You are free to mix, match or repeat assignments as you choose. One assignment will be due half way through the course, and the other will be due by July 18, which is our last class meeting.Textbooks: Green, Lisa. (2002). African American English: A Linguistic Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Rickford, John and Russell Rickford. (2000). Spoken Soul: The Story of Black English. New York: Wiley and Sons.Electronic version: Readings: The assigned readings should be read by each of you. In addition, depending upon your interests, some additional readings may be suggested or assigned. These additional readings will be tailored to each student. In many instances links to articles are embedded within this syllabus, or pdf documents of the reading will be distributed by email to each of you. Relevant readings may be assigned based on a theme, such as “education” or “pidgins and creoles,” or “Ebonics,” etc. Alternatively, some readings may be associated with one or more major figures in the field, such as John Rickford, Geneva Smitherman, Walt Wolfram, or William Labov, among others. The goal will be to offer a combination of assigned readings, and additional readings that are specific to your needs and/or assignments.SYLLABUSJune 24: Foundations: Terminology, preliminary features, the difference vs. deficit debate, and early major figuresPrior to describing the foundations of linguistic research pertaining to African slave descendants, we will conduct brief introductions, thereby allowing us to meet each other and to identify some of the preliminary goals that you may have for this class. Once completed, I will have a better sense of the information you may already know about this topic. We will begin with the iconic reading that first captured my attention in 1970; namely, “The Logic of Nonstandard English” (Labov 1969a). However, prior to describing that reading, which will be distributed to all of you prior to the first day of class, we will review the evolution of terminology associated with African slave descendant speech in North America and South America. That terminological survey will set the stage for our concentrated foci on the United States. However, for reasons that will become immediately evident, we will consider the linguistic legacy of the African slave trade in international terms.Reading:1a.Labov, William. (1969a). “The Logic of Nonstandard English.”1b.Labov, William. (1969b). “Contraction, Deletion, and Inherent Variability of the English Copula.1c.Fasold, Ralph. (1972). Tense Marking in Black English. (Selected reading TBD)., Joan and Shuy, Roger (eds). (1969). Teaching Black children to Read. Washington, D.C.: Center for Applied Linguistics. Pages 92-137 (i.e., Chapters by Joan Baratz and Roger Shuy)., Arthur. (1969). “How much can we boost IQ?” 27: Historical Issues and Debates: Dialectologists vs. Creolists, and pertinent AAVE featuresAn obvious question arises regarding the history of vernacular speech patterns of African slaves and their descendants. Scholars have differences of opinion in this regard, and our second class will be devoted to a survey of the diverse research that has spawned these different opinions. Many factors, including and exceeding the relevant linguistic evidence, have influenced how scholars have interpreted similar findings. In some cases we find scholars who tend to emphasize the English origins of vernacular African American speech; this position is frequently referred to as the “dialectologist hypothesis.” Alternatively, others concentrate on African retentions in the speech of slaves and their descendants, and these proponents are said to be advocates of the “Creole hypothesis,” or “Creolist hypothesis.” Some scholars, myself included, seek to find middle ground, recognizing that both hypotheses are not mutually exclusive. In addition, it is important to appreciate that the historical record is not ideal. Communication among African captives was not the object of scholarly inquiry during the most active periods of enslavement, and we will consider some alternative historical hypotheses, including Independent Parallel Development, the relexification theory, and bi-pidginization. Derek Bickerton’s formulation of the Bioprogram will also be discussed.In addition to the assigned readings, lectures will make reference to scholarship that has not been assigned, but which is relevant to this historical debate. Depending upon your goals, some of these readings may be quite significant to your interests and the assignments you choose to complete.2a.Rickford, J. and Rickford, R. (2000) Spoken Soul: Chapter 8, “History.” Pp. 129-162 . 2b.Dillard,J.L. (1972). Black English, Chapter 3. “A sketch of the history of Black English.”2c.William A. Stewart. (1967). Sociolinguistic factors, John. (1998). “The Creole Origins of African American English.”2e.Poplack 2006. How English became African American English, John. (1983). Black Street Speech: “ Preface, Introduction, and The Birth of Black Street Speech.” Pp. 1-23.July 1: Linguistic Features and selection of your first assignment:Prior lectures have set the stage for considering some of the established and iconic linguistic features and elements that are associated with African American vernacular English (AAVE). Most of the assigned reading for this lecture is contained in Lisa Green’s book, African American English: A Linguistic Introduction, which is supplemented by other readings that are intended to provide an overview of phonological, morphophonemic, grammatical, and syntactic components of AAVE. While other considerations, such as semantics and pragmatics are clearly relevant, time constraints are such that our major foci will be devoted to basic linguistic elements. However, should you find it necessary or beneficial to consider some of these other details, I will gladly provide you with some additional reading. This lecture will also contain some discussion of specific discoveries or research that stands out, such as Arthur Spear’s formulation of “camouflaged forms,” based on his analysis of AAVE semi-auxiliary come. Baugh’s evaluation of the aspectual marker, steady, will also be presented, along with Rickford’s synchronic analysis of BIN. Collectively, this lecture will introduce a wide array of linguistic features. It will be possible, depending upon selections you make for your individual assignments, to delve more deeply into any combination of these elements. This linguistic foundation will be central to the remainder of the course, because most of the ensuing lectures will make reference in one way or another to one or more dimensions of AAVE. Please identify your choice for your first assignment. Once identified, please send an email confirming your decision to jbaugh@wustl.edu on or before July 1.3.Green, Lisa. (2002) African American English: A linguistic introduction. Chapters 1-53a.Lexicons and meaning3b.Syntax part 1: verbal markers in AAE3c.Syntax part 2: syntactic and morphophonemic properties in AAE3d.Phonology of AAE3e.Speech events and rules of interaction in AAERickford, J. “Carrying the New Wave into Syntax: The case of Black English BIN.”3f. 6: (Optional: Advancing African American Linguistics Symposium)Due to the July 4 holiday our class will not meet on that day. By coincidence, Professor Anne Charity-Hudley has organized a one-day conference on the topic of African American language. I will be making a presentation during that gathering which is relevant to this class; however, this event conflicts with other LSA Institute activities, and is therefore optional. Other presentations for that event are mentioned through the following links: 8: Your first assignment is due on this date; please send it by email on or before July 8, 2019.Educational and Social relevance: The Black English Trial of 1979 and the case for and against linguistic divergence during the 1980’s is reviewed. Additionally, the ensuing role of Ebonics in educational and social terms are discussed, along with California’s SEP, LDPAAS, PEP, and AEMP programs, including their (in)direct connection to Oakland’s Ebonics proclamation. The Bridge Program and Judge Joiner’s Ruling in Ann Arbor will be presented, time permitting, including legal relevance to Lau v. Nichols (1976).Reading:Rickford, J. and Rickford, R. (2000). Spoken Soul:5a.Chapter 9, Education.5b.Chapter 10, The Media5c.Chapter 11, The Ebonics FirestormGreen, Lisa. (2002). 5d.Chapter 8, Approaches, Attitudes, and Education.Williams, Robert. (1975). Ebonics: The True Language of Black Folks,5e.Introduction, pp. I-XII.July 11:Are Black and White Vernaculars Diverging? Please survey some of the articles contained in the special edition of American Speech that was devoted to this topic.Please identify your choice for your last assignment for this course, and send a paragraph describing your selection to jbaugh@wustl.edu no later than July 11, 2019. 15: John Rickford: Guest Lecture, and other AAVE perturbationsJohn Rickford has agreed to be a guest speaker on this day. Although he is free to discuss anything he would like, he indicated that he might discuss some of the legal work that he has been doing recently. Depending upon the amount of time that remains after his lecture, students should take advantage of the opportunity to ask questions of him regarding his substantial research on African American English. During that discussion we are likely to mention other issues that have crept into discussions about African American English, broadly construed, as well as some of the corresponding policy, educational, and legal issues pertaining to the topic.The assigned reading for July 11 is disjoined from Professor Rickford’s lecture; however, he was actively engaged in seeking to resolve the divergence debate. More precisely, the assigned reading for last week, which should be perused and not evaluated closely, pertains to “the divergence debate;” that is, did evidence exist at that time to suggest that Black and White dialects of American English were becoming more dissimilar and therefore diverging from each other? As you will see, there are differences of scholarly opinion on this subject.July 18: Your last assignment is due on this date. Please send it by email to jbaugh@wustl.eduRap, Hip Hop, Spoken Word. Other prominent researchers and Future Directions.Due to our tight schedule readings associated with the birth and evolution of Rap and Hip Hop will be limited. However, the primary reason that Rap and Hip Hop are included within this course is due to their substantial linguistic, cultural, and global influence, which began with African American musicians who maintained an oral tradition that has existed among African people prior to the inception of slavery, but which was influenced by exposure to Christianity, and the importance of spirituals and gospel music in the Black church. Students may choose to focus some personal assignments on these topics, and additional readings can be identified in support of anyone who would like to pursue these issues in greater detail.8a.Alim, H. Samy. (2003). In Black Linguistics: Language, society and politics in Africa and the Americas. “We are the streets:” African American Language and the strategic construction of a street conscious identity. Pp. 40-598b.Baugh, John. (2003). In Black Linguistics: Language, society and politics in Africa and the Americas. “Linguistic Profiling.” Pp. 155-168.8c.Rickford, J. and King, S. (2016). “Language and linguistics on trial: Hearing Rachel Jeantel (and other vernacular speakers) in the courtroom and beyond.” Language, 92:948-988. Gang: Rappers Delight (1979) Master Flash, The Message (1982) this course concludes, your goals will help me guide you toward some additional reading that is relevant to your specific interests. Please feel free to identify one or more of the following topics, and I will tailor an additional reading list to focus on your specific needs.Additional Linguistic ResearchAfrican American women’s languageCamouflaged formsCulturally sustaining pedagogyEbonics in international perspectiveEmerging Research Trends in LinguisticsForensic LinguisticsLinguistic Attitudes toward African American DialectsLiteracy developmentMiddle class African American language usagePerceptions of politenessRaciolinguisticsRap and Hip Hop (Nation Language)Teaching African American StudentsTeacher EducationNB: Please bring laptop computers to each class meeting; we may use them for in-class internet searches.Office hours and appointments: Meetings will be arranged on a case-by-case basis and should be requested by email. Please send a request to meet to jbaugh@wustl.edu. please mention the topic(s) that you would like to discuss, and, if possible, an estimate of the amount of time you think might be needed to confer about your agenda. ................
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