Iconicity in Language and Speech

Die vorliegende Arbeit befasst sich mit dem großen Oberthema der Ikonizität und ihrer Verbreitung auf verschiedenen linguistischen Ebenen. Ikonizität bezeichnet die Ähnlichkeit zwischen der sprachlichen Form und ihrer Bedeutung (vgl. Perniss und Vigliocco, 2014). So wie eine Skulptur einem Objekt oder einer Person ähnelt, kann auch der Klang oder die Form von Wörtern der Sache ähneln, auf die sie verweisen. Frühere theoretische Ansätze betonen, dass die Arbitrarität von sprachlichen Zeichen und deren Bedeutung ein Hauptmerkmal menschlicher Sprache ist und Ikonizität für die Sprachevolution eine Rolle gespielt haben mag, jedoch in der heutigen Sprache zu vernachlässigen ist. Im Gegensatz dazu ist das Hauptanliegen dieser Arbeit, das Potenzial und die Bedeutung von Ikonizität in der heutigen Sprache zu untersuchen. Die einzelnen Kapitel der Dissertation können als separate Teile betrachtet werden, die in ihrer Gesamtheit das umfassende Spektrum der Ikonizität sichtbar machen. Von der sprachevolutionären Debatte ausgehend wird in den einzelnen Kapiteln auf die unterschiedlichen Ebenen der Ikonizität eingegangen. Es werden experimentelle Untersuchungen zur Lautsymbolik, am Beispiel der deutschen Pokémon-Namen, zur ikonischen Prosodie und zu ikonischen Wörtern, den sogenannten Ideophonen, vorgestellt. Die Ergebnisse der einzelnen Untersuchungen deuten auf die weite Verbreitung der Ikonizität im heutigen Deutsch hin. Darüber hinaus entschlüsselt diese Dissertation das kommunikative Potenzial der Ikonizität als eine Kraft, die nicht nur die Entstehung der Sprache ermöglichte, sondern auch nach Jahrtausenden bestehen bleibt, sich immer wieder neu entfaltet und uns tagtäglich in mündlicher, schriftlicher Form und in Gesten begegnet.This dissertation is concerned with the major theme of iconicity and its prevalence on different linguistic levels. Iconicity refers to a resemblance between the linguistic form and the meaning of a referent (cf. Perniss and Vigliocco, 2014). Just like a sculpture resembles an object or a model, so can the sound or shape of words resemble the thing they refer to. Previous theoretical approaches emphasize that arbitrariness of the linguistic sign is one of the main features of human language; iconicity, however, may have played a role for language evolution, but is negligible in contemporary language. In contrast, the main point of this thesis is to explore the potential and the importance of iconicity in the language nowadays. The individual chapters of the dissertation can be viewed as separate parts that, taken together, reveal the comprehensive spectrum of iconicity. Starting from the language evolutionary debate, the individual chapters address iconicity on different linguistic levels. I present experimental evidence on sound symbolism, using the example of German Pokémon names, on iconic prosody, and on iconic words, the so-called ideophones. The results of the individual investigations point to the widespread use of iconicity in contemporary German. Moreover, this dissertation deciphers the communicative potential of iconicity as a force that not only enabled the emergence of language, but also persists after millennia, unfolding again and again and encountering us every day in speech, writing, and gestures

The sound effect: a study in radical sound design

This research project combines a theoretical intervention into sound ontology, with an empirical investigation into listening experience, in parallel with two technologically focused, research-led creative practice projects. The design follows an iterative cycle of research and creative practice that integrates theory, practice and empirical approaches. The research makes an initial contribution to the field of sound studies by re-appraising the work of pioneers in the field—Pierre Schaeffer and R. Murray Schafer—in light of the concept of the sonic effect. This concept is developed as an effective tool for both sound studies and sound design. This theoretical work attempts to critically and creatively examine the ontology or mode of existence of sonic phenomena and is informed by the post-structural theory of the effect. The theory of the sonic effect is empirically investigated by examining verbal accounts of listening experience elicited by semi-structured interview. Finally, having deconstructed sonic phenomena in terms of their potential to be actualised in diverse contexts, sonic effects are interrogated as a creative strategy in the field of sound design for performance and installed sonic art. Two projects are documented. One is a hybrid live performance installation utilising a novel software design for sound composition and projection. The other is a sound installation work demonstrating a novel loudspeaker design for the creation of very dense sound fields. In this context, design occurs as an effect at the intersection of new technologies of sound production and the production of audible sense. This approach enacts a radical pragmatism that underlies the radical sound design strategy outlined in the thesis

(Dis)connections between specific language impairment and dyslexia in Chinese

Poster Session: no. 26P.40Specific language impairment (SLI) and dyslexia describe language-learning impairments that occur in the absence of a sensory, cognitive, or psychosocial impairment. SLI is primarily defined by an impairment in oral language, and dyslexia by a deficit in the reading of written words. SLI and dyslexia co-occur in school-age children learning English, with rates ranging from 17% to 75%. For children learning Chinese, SLI and dyslexia also co-occur. Wong et al. (2010) first reported on the presence of dyslexia in a clinical sample of 6- to 11-year-old school-age children with SLI. The study compared the reading-related cognitive skills of children with SLI and dyslexia (SLI-D) with 2 groups of children …postprin

Uncovering the myth of learning to read Chinese characters: phonetic, semantic, and orthographic strategies used by Chinese as foreign language learners

Oral Session - 6A: Lexical modeling: no. 6A.3Chinese is considered to be one of the most challenging orthographies to be learned by non-native speakers, in particular, the character. Chinese character is the basic reading unit that converges sound, form and meaning. The predominant type of Chinese character is semantic-phonetic compound that is composed of phonetic and semantic radicals, giving the clues of the sound and meaning, respectively. Over the last two decades, psycholinguistic research has made significant progress in specifying the roles of phonetic and semantic radicals in character processing among native Chinese speakers …postprin

Sunken II Chords and Inwardness: A Correspondence Complex in Robert Schumann’s \u3ci\u3eLiederjahr\u3c/i\u3e Songs

This dissertation advances a new approach to text-music relationships with a view to identifying and exploring a specific, recurring text-music relationship in Schuman’s Liederjahr songs. Chapter 1 proposes to update and restructure the taxonomy of possible text-music relationships. I argue that there are four categories of text-music relationships: two conjunctions, viz., correspondences and Widersprüche; and two disjunctions, viz., Gleichgültigkeiten and Eigenständigkeiten. I am principally interested in exploring how structures and tonal archetypes native to Schenkerian theory may function as musical metaphors for themes, ideas, and imagery in the text; a survey of extant literature reveals that Schenkerian analysts typically assert such correspondences using the linguistic formulations of metaphor (some variation on “M in the music IS T in the text”) or analogy (some variation on “m1 IS TO m2 in the music AS t1 IS TO t2 in the text”). A novel feature of my approach is that text-music relationships are formally expressed using a special symbolic notation. Symbolic definitions often collapse the distinction between metaphorical and analogical prose definitions, allowing analysts to compare seemingly disparate relationships on a level playing field. In response to Agawu’s criticism that musico-poetic analyses of Lieder are usually ad hoc and one-off (1999), I argue for the possibility of families of recurring text-music relationships, which I call text-music complexes (we may further distinguish between correspondence and Widerspruch complexes). Text-music complexes are archetypes for how some element in the text is mapped onto some element in the music for the creation of musico-poetic meaning in song; text-music relationships are their individual instantiations. As text-music relationships are to individual songs, text-music complexes are to sets of songs whose membership is circumscribed in some predetermined manner (e.g., the songs in a collection or cycle, songs by a specific composer, songs written during a specific historical era, etc.). Chapter 2 investigates the hermeneutical implications of passages where major V is followed, and prolonged, by minor II. The seeming breach of tonal syntax creates a perceived ebb in the tonal flow and gives the impression that V has somehow turned inward. By analogy to origami, I call this family of V prolongations a dominant sink fold; the Oberquintteiler here is called a sunken II chord. Because of their special voice-leading properties and inward affect, sunken IIs possess unique potential for creating text-music correspondences. The central claim of this dissertation is for the existence of a correspondence complex in Schumann’s Liederjahr songs that is bound up with a sense of inwardness. This correspondence complex (ℂ) takes sunken II as its musical element (), and any form of involution in the semantic dimension of the text as its textual element (); in symbolic notation, it is formally defined by the expression ℂInwardness = Sunken II ⚭ Inwardness. As evidence for an inwardness correspondence complex, Chapters 3–5 present analyses of three Schumann Lieder in which a sunken II in the music is meaningfully coordinated with some form of inward turn, introspection, or heightened subjectivity in the text. The three songs are “Der Nussbaum” (op. 25, no. 3), “Ich hab’ in mich gesogen” (op. 37, no. 5), and “Berg’ und Burgen schau’n herunter” (op. 24, no. 7)

Fortunato Depero and Depero futurista 1913–1927

This thesis examines Depero futurista 1913–1927, the so-called ‘bolted book’ created in 1927 by Futurist artist Fortunato Depero (1892-1960). Although Depero and his book have already been the subject of artistic re-evaluation, the literature relating to this work neglects a number of key aspects pertaining to the figure of the artist, still failing to provide a detailed account of Depero futurista 1913–1927. In order to address these gaps, this study is divided into two distinct parts: the first, composed of chapters 2, 3 and 4, takes an analytical approach intended to give a detailed description of the book and its context. Chapter 2 examines the graphic and artistic context in order to understand the circumstances in which Depero futurista 1913–1927 was published. Chapter 3 analyses Depero’s correspondence with the publisher Azari and the professional relationship between Depero and the Mercurio printing works, in order to understand the design methodologies adopted by Depero during the process of creating the book. In chapter 4, the analysis moves onto the book as an object, focusing on its content and formal features – its structure, layout and typefaces. The second part of this research, comprising chapters 5, 6 and 7, uses Depero futurista 1913–1927 as an index from which to extrapolate areas of research related to Fortunato Depero, highlighting pages that refer to certain themes and presenting critical discussion of them. Chapter 5 analyses the political context in which the book was created and how it is inextricably linked with the institutions of the Italian Fascist regime. Given Depero futurista 1913–1927’s function as a self-promotional tool, chapter 6 examines Fortunato Depero’s interest in the field of advertising. Finally, chapter 7 reflects on Depero futurista 1913–1927 as a particular kind of book object and the extent to which it can be considered a work of art in terms of the discourse on artists’ books

Are abstract concepts like dinosaur feathers?

Ewolucja ludzkiego układu nerwowego pozwoliła nam na wykonywanie niezwykle skomplikowanych czynności takich jak obliczenia matematyczne, analizy gospodarcze czy choćby napisanie tej książki. Mimo to wciąż nie jesteśmy pewni jak i dlaczego człowiek nabył zdolność abstrakcyjnego myślenia. Jedna z teorii sugeruje, że myślenie abstrakcyjne i konkretne opierają się na tym samym mechanizmie: doświadczeniu. Według tej teorii, nazwanej teorią ucieleśnionego poznania, świat rozumiemy dzięki doświadczeniom fizycznym. Kiedy opisujemy jakiś argument jako "chwiejny" albo pogląd jako "bezpodstawny" to korzystamy z doświadczeń, które zdobyliśmy bawiąc się kolckami jako dzieci. W tej książce zadaję postawione przez psychologa Daniela Casasanto pytanie: „czy pojęcia abstrakcyjne są jak pióra dinozaurów”. Jakie procesy ewolucyjne doprowadziły do tego, że jesteśmy w stanie opisać nawet bardzo abstrakcyjne zagadnienia w odniesieniu do konkretnych zjawisk? Przedstawiając wyniki badań nad mową i gestem osób widzących, słabowidzących oraz niewidomych, staram się pokazać, że podstawy zrozumienia wielu pojęć abstrakcyjnych szukać można w geście

Tides of voice : nation language as political resistance in the work of Kamau Brathwaite and Bill Griffiths

This thesis connects two poets, Barbadian Kamau Brathwaite (1930–2020) and Englishman Bill Griffiths (1948–2007), both noted for use of subaltern speech. Brathwaite is a celebrated practitioner and theorist of ‘nation language’, his term for Caribbean speech-forms. Griffiths’ poetry and research explore numerous marginalised communities’ voices, but particularly North East English dialect. Both poets employ nation language or dialect to subvert centralised, metropolitan politics associated with standard English, and both experiment with performance techniques, visual layout, and community formation. However, there was virtually no contact between the two during their lifetimes, and little between their respective milieus as poets. By bringing these bodies of work into conversation, new routes can open for English dialect poetry to learn from Caribbean innovations. ‘Tidalectics’, Brathwaite’s theory of cultural interchange that allows communities to share ideas without colonialist hierarchies emerging, offers a framework for such learning. Indeed, Caribbean nation language’s historical development was a tidalectic process. Brathwaite himself identifies tidalectic features in North East England’s history and culture, licensing a view of North East dialect as nation language, with the subversive politics that this entails. Griffiths’ work is well-suited to be read in this light, given his own interest in Black and Caribbean cultures. I survey and compare the two poets’ experiments with nation language: live performance, alternative lexicons and syntax, innovative wordplay, richly visual text formats, documentary poetics, and responses to new technologies. Throughout, Brathwaite’s example helps to identify underappreciated innovations in Griffiths, and to suggest new directions for English nation language writing. Through increased awareness of each other’s shared difference from standard English and the political orthodoxy that it furthers, Caribbean and English nation language communities (poetic and otherwise), as well as similar groups worldwide, will be better able to support one another’s political and aesthetic struggles

Dialogues with the written world(s): Plurilingual TEAL pedagogy and content learning of Japanese young learners in multilingual landscapes

This ethnographic study aims to describe the literacy development of young Japanese children learning English at an international school in Tokyo (Japan). The research participants, who were recruited from Kindergarten to 4th grade (5 to 10 years old), also participated in summer programs in British Columbia (Canada) for periods ranging from 2 weeks to 2 months. The school adopts a Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL) approach (Coyle, Hood & Marsh, 2010), within a Hundred Languages of Children of Reggio Emilia educational approach (Edwards, Gandini & Forman, 1998) and Miyazakian dialogic pedagogy (Miyazaki, 2013). The school also adopts a plurilingual approach to teaching (Lau & Van Viegen, 2020) and used linguistic landscapes as a pedagogical tool (Dagenais, Moore, Sabatier, Lamarre & Armand, 2009) to promote children’s English and content learning through a series of critical inquiries. Methodological tools include classroom ethnography (Heath & Heath, 1983; Frank, Dixon & Green, 1999; Egan-Robertson & Bloome, 1998), Action Research (Wallace, 1998), as well as visual (Pink, 2009) and walking ethnography (Ingold & Vergunst, 2008) to explore the linguistic landscapes with the participants. The analyses are anchored within the theoretical concepts interconnecting plurilingualism (Marshall & Moore, 2018), multiliteracies (Cope & Kalantzis, 2009, New London Group, 1996) and language learning in an asset-oriented perspective on education that views language competence as holistic and plurilingual and intercultural awareness conducive to critical thinking (Coste, Moore & Zarate, 2009). The purpose of the thesis is to build upon the current discussion on plurilingual pedagogies, curriculum design and language instruction for K-12 children, in the context of English teaching and learning in elementary schools in Japan. It has wider implications for teacher education in English as an Additional Language (TEAL) situations