Welcome!Welcome! ASL 3 Lecture Day

From last year’s classifier PPT

CL:3 “surface pass under vehicle” – signed at eye level indicates “I saw the car go by” Valli p.91

Perspectives- ASL 3 Classifier predicates are not limited to one location. For example (Valli p.90):

ASL 3 Classifiers are bound morphemes- they have no meaning on their own, but must be used in conjunction with their noun ASL 3: locatives- “lock” in place Classifier movement can show several types of meaning Eg. Two ways of showing cars in a row: cl cl cl, or sweeping (concept of more than one)

Test Question: 12.Classifiers are: A. bound morphemes B. free morphemes 13.True or false: Perspective is important in ASL classifier predicates, and can show whether the signer is viewing the predicate or not.

Classifiers- examples s-signs/c/classifiers.htmhttp:// s-signs/c/classifiers.htm

Misc. Grammar: Noun verb pairs- reduplication Minimal Pairs- ASL vs. English Language acquisition vs. learning (acquisition naturally occurs, learning is in a class setting, trying to present real-world opportunities but limited Socialize and find real-world opportunities

Blocking Environmental Interference = Tuning out sounds around you The trick: learning when to ignore sound vs. pay attention to it Difference in a conversation vs. interpreting

Time Lag The amount of time from when the person spoke to when you interpret their signs The greater the time lag in ASL interpreting, the more accurate the interpretation- to a point Issues: the longer the time lag, the more likely you are to forget information Skilled interpreters develop this over time

Types of Registers:

Frozen: Printed unchanging language. Examples: Biblical quotes, Pledge of Allegiance, wedding vows, and other "static" speeches recited. The wording is exactly the same every time it is spoken. Formal: One-way participation, no interruption. Technical vocabulary or exact definitions are important. Includes presentations or introductions between strangers. Consultative: Two-way participation. Background information is provided — prior knowledge is not assumed. "Behavior such as "uh huh", "I see", etc. is common. Interruptions are allowed. Examples include teacher/student, doctor/patient, expert/apprentice, etc. Casual: In-group friends and acquaintances. No background information provided. Ellipsis and slang common. Interruptions common. This is common among friends in a social setting.Ellipsisslang Intimate: Non-public. Intonation more important than wording or grammar. Private vocabulary. Also includes non-verbal messages. This is most common among family members and close friends.

Advanced ASL Levels of Discourse in Linguistics and ASL examples

Sociolinguistics, Narration Semantics, Pragmatics, Prosody S y n t a x Morphology Phonology Levels of Meaning

Phonology (this slide only- not on test) Phonology: Organization of speech sounds in a particular language (same sounds, different sound inventories); organization of parts of signs in signed languages Phonetics: The study of speech sounds or parts of signs –Articulatory (production) –Acoustic (transmission) –Auditory (perception)

Phonology The study of how languages organize the smallest parts of words or signs A phoneme represents the distinctive unit that if changed will create a minimal pair (ASL minimal pair e.g.- HOME vs. DEAF) Phonetics is the study of how the signs (or sounds) are realized during communication (ASL e.g.-STUDENT)

Phonology vs. Morphology Phonology studies the smallest contrastive parts of language (e.g. in ASL: holds, movements). The parts of language studied in phonology do not have meaning in isolation. English e.g. letters: s-i-t-s; ASL e.g. handshape (flat:o) Morphology is the study of the smallest meaningful units in language, and how language uses these units to build signs (or words). Morpheme: the smallest meaningful unit in a language

Morphology Morpheme: the smallest unit of meaning in a language E.g. happily- English: = happy + ly (often “happily” =NMS attached to sign) E.g. ASL= HAPPY + NMS ASL: “careless” from NMS (tongue) English: present progressive -ing

Morphemes Free Morphemes Bound Morphemes

Free Morphemes Morphemes that can occur as independent units, that can occur by themselves English e.g. cat, sit ASL e.g. CAT, LOUSY

Bound Morphemes Morphemes that must occur with other morphemes, that cannot occur as independent units English e.g. plural -s- ‘cats’ and third person -s- ‘sits’ ASL e.g. the 3 handshape: THREE- WEEKS and THREE-MONTHS

Syntax Syntax: rules for making sentences, based on grammar- word order, etc. Note on Language Assessment/Usage: Competence: what you know about a language, including its syntax Performance: how you use the language (errors, etc.)

Sentences Sentences in language are infinite Finite (limited) set of rules for making sentences Language users know these rules, whether conscious or unconscious

Semantics The literal meaning of a sign/word A chair is a chair is a chair… or is it? Perception influences semantics

Chair Dog Semantics: The sense of a word… its literal meaning

Pragmatics Communicating more than what is literally stated or signed Adds to the semantic meaning Depends on the speaker/signer, addressee, and context Many L2 learners struggle with this; details are often not taught in classes