Deck 4: Language

Question 1

Deborah Tannen's research into the ways that boys and girls speak demonstrates that

A) they are using a form of cross-cultural communication.
B) differences are primarily based on biology,not processes of socialization.
C) they have nearly identical communication strategies.
D) the best way to understand gender and language is through the "dominance" model.

Answer 1

they are using a form of cross-cultural communication.

Question 2

Archaeological evidence that offers clues to the origins of human language includes the

A) fossilized brain casts of Neanderthals that show the anatomical features for speech.
B) existence of the FOXP2 gene,which is also found in chimpanzees.
C) careful study of nonhuman primate sounds and gestures.
D) discovery of fossilized human remains that are almost 2.5 million years old.

Answer 2

fossilized brain casts of Neanderthals that show the anatomical features for speech.

Question 3

Words that have what we might consider an obvious meaning can often hold completely different meaning to others.The word dead,for example,might seem obvious to us,but signify an affliction to others,which demonstrates how language is

A) organized into recognizable archives.
B) connected to local stories and cultural values.
C) embedded into texts and stories that are universal in nature.
D) separate from the local folklore.

Answer 3

connected to local stories and cultural values.

Question 4

Terms like the "N-word," as the text suggests,carry a wide range of meaning.In a similar way,use of the term "queer" has taken on many different shades of meaning over the past decade.The use of such terms illustrates the ways in which

A) similar groups of people share the struggle to overcome derogatory meaning in language.
B) different social groups are able to control the use of specific terms.
C) language and power are distinct.
D) language and power intersect.

Question 5

The phrase "drop the ball," which is often used by men in sports situations,mirrors Robin Lakoff's work in gender and language and allows complex communication about human actions that is

A) applicable in a wide range of scenarios.
B) applicable in very limited scenarios.
C) so culturally specific as to be meaningless.
D) representative of the way men and women "think differently" about life.

Question 6

Anthropologists who emphasize how culture,society,and a person's social position are what shapes language are best described as engaged in the study of

A) cultural preservation.
B) sociolinguistics.
C) psychological anthropology.
D) social Darwinism.

Question 7

Anthropologist Laura Bohannan discovered in her attempt to translate a classic text from English literature that

A) an underlying universal grammar that all humans share facilitated her work.
B) it is straightforward to translate stories across different languages.
C) accurate translation of Shakespeare is best accomplished through sign language.
D) the meaning of the story became lost as the original meanings of the English words could not be easily translated.

Question 8

Whereas many animals,such as dolphins and great apes,communicate with each other through gestures and sounds,only human language utilizes both sounds and gestures as well as a complex system of

A) dance.
B) symbols.
C) warnings and alerts.
D) chemical information.

Question 9

Gender differences in communication often give rise to stereotypes.One common one in the United States suggests that women never seem to stop talking.This contradicts the research showing that men

A) are better able to use language to their advantage.
B) adopt linguistic strategies that help them maintain conversational dominance.
C) are often reluctant to speak up in mixed-gender settings.
D) adopt linguistic strategies that focus on letting women participate in conversation.

Question 10

To investigate the focal vocabulary of a language in a particular community,a linguistic anthropologist might

A) search for genetic evidence for the origin of syntax and grammar.
B) try to discover words that offer sophisticated ways to describe local cultural realities.
C) set up experiments that show how that community uses language differently.
D) focus on the dialects that are present within the group.

Question 11

Linguistic anthropologists would label new words that have emerged during the digital age,such as mouse,modem,download,and e-mail,as part of our generation's ________ vocabulary.

A) cultural
B) focal
C) emotional
D) tonal

Question 12

We sometimes "signal" interest in someone without the use of words,which is part of how we establish a relationship with another person,possibly a lasting one.How would an anthropologist describe our behavior?

A) displacement
B) morphology
C) kinesics
D) paralanguage

Question 13

In part because the Hopi language has verb tenses that differ from those of English,Benjamin Whorf's linguistic research suggested that the Hopi people of Arizona have

A) a worldview where past and present represent lived reality and the future is hypothetical.
B) been able to retain their cultural traditions.
C) a worldview that keeps past and present as entirely separate concepts.
D) the same conceptual idea of time as everyone else with a different worldview.

Question 14

Based on evidence from Benjamin Whorf's research with the Hopi,a Native American group in the southwestern United States,the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis suggests that

A) the human brain is hardwired for organizing language in a universal manner.
B) thought is rooted in language.
C) language occurs independently of thought.
D) thought occurs independently of language.

Question 15

Anthropologists refer to sounds that make a critical difference in meaning within a language as

A) paralanguage.
B) morphemes.
C) phonemes.
D) grammar.

Question 16

Part of how we establish intimate relationships with others stems from the words we use,but sometimes words cannot convey everything.At such a time,we may unknowingly resort to a system of body movements as well as a collection of noises and tone of voice in order to fully convey our

A) interest.
B) sadness.
C) emotions.
D) enthusiasm.

Question 17

The ________ of any language refers to names,ideas,and events that offer a kind of catalog of what is spoken and can be compiled into something accessible to others.

A) dialect
B) grammar
C) lexicon
D) syntax

Question 18

According to the text,studying the patterns and importance of sounds as spoken by a group of people helps linguistic anthropologists

A) decipher meaning.
B) identify how emotions are conveyed through nonverbal communication.
C) determine how long a specific language has existed.
D) understand the elements and rules of a particular language.

Question 19

Consider a used car salesperson.This individual must be highly skilled at using words to persuade people to part with a chunk of money.This illustrates the way that linguistic skills as a form of cultural capital

A) are not needed to make a good living.
B) are often used to cheat others out of their money.
C) can be converted into monetary gain.
D) are a useful tool for car sales but not for financial careers.

Question 20

The system of human communication based on a set of symbols and signs with learned and shared meanings is called

A) grammar.
B) paralanguage.
C) productivity.
D) language.

Question 21

Language continuum is defined as

A) a nonstandard variation of a language that is particular to a specific region.
B) the study of the development of language over time,including its changes and variations.
C) alternating back and forth between more than one linguistic variant,depending on the context.
D) the idea that variation in languages appears gradually over distance between places.

Question 22

The work of the Summer Institute of Linguistics presents a challenge to anthropology due to its work being

A) both a means of proselytizing and a means of translating bible texts at a low cost.
B) both a means of proselytizing and a means of capturing data that might otherwise be lost.
C) a means of embedding a specific religious belief into a digital format.
D) a means of maintaining secrecy about the institute's motives.

Question 23

According to the textbook,human languages are being

A) lost only outside the United States.
B) lost at a rate of three per day.
C) created at a rate faster than they are being lost.
D) lost at a rate of one every ten days.

Question 24

One major characteristic of language that is not easily conveyed in digital communications is emotion,and this is due largely to the absence of

A) a sufficient number of emoticons.
B) paralanguage.
C) a concise,universal lexicon of emoticons.
D) a system of symbols that describes body movement.

Question 25

In 2009,newly elected president Barack Obama visited a famous eatery in Washington,D.C. ;after paying his tab,he was asked by the cashier if he wanted his change.The president's reply was,"Nah,we straight." The president was using a form of

A) dialect.
B) cultural capital.
C) code switching.
D) English vernacular.

Question 26

A historical linguist would be most likely to study

A) a nonstandard variation of a language that is particular to a specific region.
B) the development of language over time,including its changes and variations.
C) the way that linguistic variants alternate back and forth depending on the context.
D) the way that variation in language appears gradually over distance between places.

Question 27

Words such as mouse,download,and e-mail are all a kind of

A) paralanguage.
B) digital grammar.
C) kinesics.
D) focal vocabulary.

Question 28

When individuals speak in a manner that does not conform to what is known as "Standard English," there is often an implicit association with

A) educational attainment.
B) status and prestige.
C) country of origin.
D) race or class.

Question 29

Dialect is defined as a nonstandard variation of a language that

A) is particular to a specific region.
B) varies over time.
C) depends on context.
D) depends on the distance between places.

Question 30

The recent turmoil in the Middle East,what some have termed the Arab Spring,was driven in part by the extensive use of social media and has led to the creation of a new kind of

A) sociolinguistics.
B) reality.
C) lexicon.
D) syntax.

Question 31

Sociolinguistics is defined as the study of

A) the intersection between language and systems of power such as race,class,and age.
B) the development of language over time,including its changes and variations.
C) how social behavior is created by language.
D) the variation in languages between places.

Question 32

In their study of "Spoken Soul," Rickford and Rickford concluded that

A) the English language has more than twenty known dialects.
B) all African Americans are very adept at code switching.
C) this linguistic variant is gradually fading from use.
D) this linguistic variant is in wide use by African Americans in a range of settings.

Question 33

A nonstandard variation of a language is referred to as a

A) prestige language.
B) type of displacement.
C) dialect.
D) morpheme.

Question 34

Just as information technology is helping to preserve some languages such as Lakota,it also can endanger a language.This might be because

A) of the refusal of global media to translate their content into many different languages.
B) of the declining power of colonialism.
C) the increasing cost of information technology means that smaller populations cannot access digital content.
D) of the increasing global connection brought on by information technology.

Question 35

"Digital native" might be understood by an anthropologist as

A) someone who supports social struggles for worker rights and democracy aided by social media,mobile phones,and electronic communication.
B) anyone born after 1980,who has spent his or her life using devices like smartphones and laptops.
C) the era defined by the proliferation of high-speed communication technologies,social networking,and personal computing.
D) any generation that uses technology,but in a process more akin to learning a new culture or language.

Question 36

The efforts to preserve the Native American Lakota language,spoken by about fifty thousand people in the United States,has led to

A) a well-updated language and cultural knowledge base.
B) the widespread adoption of Lakota terms in many parts of the country.
C) the integration of social media into the preservation effort.
D) the loss of Lakota cultural capital due to online piracy.

Question 37

Efforts to enforce the use of "Standard English" in a school setting frequently evoke major controversy,and the erosion of what many perceive as "national identity" is touted as one major reason why "Standard English" should be the norm.When "Ebonics" was introduced in Oakland Schools,it sought to

A) help African American children succeed in school.
B) introduce a new federal policy that allowed the teaching of nonstandard English.
C) replace Standard English with Black English in the school district.
D) certify teachers as proficient in Black English.

Question 38

How might an anthropologist refer to people born after 1980 regarding their abilities to navigate Web sites,wikis,and blogs,and to send text messages?

A) as digital natives
B) as digital entrepreneurs
C) as digital linguists
D) as digital anthropologists

Question 39

According to the textbook,the government of ________ has struggled to monitor and censor highly decentralized information that publicizes worker strikes,oppressive working conditions,and local government corruption.

A) Taiwan
B) China
C) Myanmar
D) the Philippines

Question 40

Chinese,spoken by about 1.2 million people,is the most common native language in the world.At the same time,many Chinese students are sent abroad to English-speaking countries to learn English.This may be in part because

A) the Chinese government seeks to develop more Chinese language universities and technology centers.
B) English is spoken by nearly 95 percent of the world's population.
C) English is the dominant spoken language worldwide and is central in education and technology.
D) global media like radio and television is extremely difficult to accomplish with written Chinese.

Question 41

According to your textbook,a particular language variation is associated with wealth,success,education,and power.These language variations with elevated status are known as prestige languages.Using the concepts of cultural capital and prestige language,discuss two examples of how nonstandard variations of languages can be linked to particular positions with a culture.How are linguistic standards established or reinforced? Explain why it has been said that a dialect is a language without a navy or an army.

Question 42

What types of evidence have anthropologists drawn on to approximate when humans first began to use language? Using examples,analyze how genetic and archaeological information have been used to determine when the human capacity for speech evolved.How did language enhance the ability of humans to survive and adapt to inhospitable environments?

Question 43

Linguistic anthropologists have discovered that the languages spoken in Europe such as Latin,English,German,and Greek are derived from an earlier language they call

A) Proto-Indo-European.
B) premodern European.
C) Pan Archaic European.
D) Proto-Germanic.

Question 44

Linguistic anthropologists have shown that languages are disappearing at an unprecedented rate.Many argue that efforts should be made to preserve these endangered languages by documenting their lexicon and grammar.Why are anthropologists interested in preserving languages? Do you agree with these efforts? Why or why not? Which types of knowledge are embedded in language that might make them worthwhile to preserve? What are some of the techniques or strategies that have been used to either preserve or revitalize less-prominent languages? Discuss two examples where anthropologists have been involved in preserving endangered languages,and reflect on how information technology may be used in language revitalization.

Question 45

Worldwide,the language most widely spoken by native speakers is

A) Hindi.
B) Chinese.
C) Arabic.
D) English.

Question 46

Changes in the immigration laws in Arizona have also given rise to changes in the way students are educated,often placing restrictions on the language that can be used in the classroom.This suggests that language,in addition to being a system of symbols,is also a

A) system where social behavior is monitored.
B) system where social norms are established and enforced.
C) collection of key rules that make language vibrant.
D) platform in which politicians are better able to help immigrants.

Question 47

Although analyzing what is spoken and written is very important for linguistic anthropologists,the way that people convey messages through gestures,facial expressions,and postures is equally crucial in understanding human communication.Discuss how anthropologists can decipher the meaning of communication through examining paralanguage and what is indicated through body language.Illustrate how body language is not universal but rather depends on cultural context,and use examples to show how emotional information is communicated.

Question 48

In 1996,the Oakland School District proposed

A) supporting Spanish or "Spanglish" speakers as if they were learning Standard English as a second language in school.
B) supporting Black English,or Ebonics,speakers as if they were learning Standard English as a second language in school.
C) teaching Ebonics as a second language alongside Spanish and French.
D) creating a bilingual curriculum in which Spanish and English would be mixed freely.

Question 49

Anthropologists have shown that chimpanzees and other nonhuman primates are able to communicate about things and events that are not in the present.This is on par with the human aspect of language that allows for

A) displacement.
B) productivity.
C) complexity.
D) innovation.

Question 50

According to the textbook,the development of social media technologies such as Facebook and YouTube and ubiquitous access to information networks through smartphones have transformed digital activism.Discuss how digital activism has taken place in recent years by comparing democratic protests that have taken place in China to the events of the Arab Spring or the Occupy movement in the United States.How have activists challenged authorities in government and corporations by using novel methods?

Question 51

The Summer Institute of Linguistics

A) is a secular institution with the mission of preserving indigenous religious practices.
B) sends missionaries into the field to create written versions of indigenous languages with the goal of disseminating the Christian Bible in those languages.
C) has attempted to wipe out indigenous languages and replace them with English.
D) is a religious institution with the mission of putting an English bible into the hands of native speakers.

Question 52

Laura Bohannon's work in West Africa among the Tiv led her to try and explain Shakespeare's Hamlet to members of a small village.The text tells us that her attempts were met with significant challenges due simply to the different meanings carried by words.The concept of the dead among the Tiv,for example,made no sense to them because they do not have any concept of a ghost.They interpreted this part of the play as Hamlet being beset by witchcraft.Consider that in the play,Hamlet first sees the ghost of his dead father,who relates the details of his death at the hands of Hamlet's father-in-law.Hamlet then feigns mental illness in his quest for revenge,something that might easily be considered being "beset by witchcraft." If language does shape our reality,explain how Bohannon's discovery,despite the similarity in meaning in these ways,is so confounding to the village elders.How does the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis relate to Bohannon's work in this context? Can you offer other examples of how the way people think may or may not be affected by their native languages?

Question 53

The effort to introduce Ebonics,which is a formalization of Black English,into the Oakland Unified School District in 1996 was met with considerable resistance.Critics predicted the erosion of Standard English and corresponding loss of national identity.As a nation of immigrants,the idea of a national identity has been part of how Americans cope with the influx of immigrants,and the willingness and ability to adopt the language of the United States has figured into this process.African American schoolchildren in the Oakland School District were struggling to succeed in school when Ebonics was introduced,which was one of the reasons for the Ebonics effort.Discuss why critics might have felt that Black English posed a threat to both identity and why it might or might not have contributed to changes in outcome for children,black and white.What is Ebonics,and why did it matter to speakers and critics alike? What role did identity play in this controversy? What were some of the other factors that drove both the controversy and the outcome?

Question 54

Noam Chomsky's research proposes that

A) all humans share a similar ability to learn language based on the way that our brains are hardwired.
B) human brains are genetically hardwired to learn specific languages.
C) different languages create different ways of thinking.
D) a language's grammar is derived from the culture in which it develops.

Question 55

Humpback whales have been shown to communicate with remarkable complexity and have distinctly different types of tunes and accents that differ across different pods.Akin to human musical abilities,this might suggest that whales may indeed include what in their communications?

A) symbols
B) paralanguage
C) body movements
D) grammar

Question 56

What can linguistic anthropologists learn from studying the focal vocabulary of a social group? Why would words that show a particular sophistication and that describe unique cultural realities of a group of people be useful to investigate? Discuss one example of how the focal vocabulary of a language has changed or may change in the future,and discuss how men and women may have different vocabularies on particular topics.

Question 57

American women are far more likely than men to distinguish between colors like teal and turquoise,or magenta and purple.This is an example of

A) a biological difference between men and women.
B) a focal vocabulary that exists within American culture.
C) a paralanguage that differentiates female culture from the dominant male culture.
D) linguistic productivity and displacement.

Question 58

While anthropologists have gone to lengths to show that languages are linguistically equal,languages often exist in a hierarchical manner within a given place.Compare how language and power intersect by discussing how nonprestige languages may be marginalized,such as in the case of Spanish speakers in the United States.How are boundaries between language policed,and what happens when speakers "code switch" in different cultural contexts?

Question 59

At present,almost 85 percent,or 5.5 billion people,lack meaningful access to a digital communication network.This reflects

A) increasing successes by computer hackers to shut down global media.
B) the efforts of foreign powers to prevent access to online materials.
C) the minimal investment in technological infrastructure made by the Chinese government.
D) the tendency of globalization to increase the effects of uneven development.

Question 60

Because few children grow up learning to speak the Lakota language,efforts have been made to preserve language samples and artifacts in tribal areas.These efforts include

A) a participatory social media platform built by LiveandTell.
B) replacing Standard English with the Lakota language in local schools.
C) translation of the Christian Bible into the Lakota language by the Summer Institute of Linguistics.
D) legislation making the Lakota language the official language in tribal areas.

Question 61

What do linguistic anthropologists think about how women and men use language in different ways? What are the two models that explain why language is used in gendered ways,and what are examples that illustrate their hypotheses? Which one of these two models is more compelling to you,and why?

Question 62

The text discusses code switching,an action in which the speaker uses different linguistic variations according to differing cultural contexts.The example in the text is a note from a student to the author of the text,and the example is deconstructed.Discuss how,in this example,the appearance of some of the linguistic properties has been changed by the use of technology.What are some of the ways that language variation can emerge as the result of different technology use? How do these "shifts," which often originate as the result of the properties of the tool itself (smartphone,laptop,and other digital devices)change not just language use and style but also the cultural context and,by extension,the opportunities for code switching?

Question 63

According to your textbook,preserving endangered languages is an important goal of linguistic anthropologists.Discuss the potentially ambiguous role that information technology and the digital divide may play in language preservation.Using examples from the text,assess the potential benefits that may accrue as members of less prominent languages gain access to community technology and cross over the "digital divide." Consider how the tendency of prominent languages to crowd out speakers of lesser-spoken languages may be accelerated with increased cultural contact and exposure to global languages.How is the digital divide related to issues of language extinction?