Sociolinguistic Variation and Degrees of Embodiment
Penelope Eckert, Stanford University, Departments of Linguistics & Anthropology
eckert [at] stanford.edu
Progress towards an understanding of linguistic variation as a robust social semiotic system raises questions about the nature, the limits and the shape of the social meaning of variables, and about how variation fits into the broader meaning systems of language. Sociolinguistic variables always index the speaker’s perspective, but range from the relatively macro-social to affect and bodily states. In this talk, I will explore this range, focusing on sound symbolism and the embodied end of the range.
