1,720,962 research outputs found
Analysing speech acts in politically related Facebook communication
No full textInternet-mediated communication has revolutionized the world at large, attracting millions of people from similar and different sociolinguistic backgrounds to communicate and express their thoughts, feelings and needs. On the other hand, multilingualism in Congo-Brazzaville is a real issue with over sixty living languages spoken across the country. The aim of the present study is to examine speech acts in politically orientated Facebook interactions. In applying Weigand's taxonomy to a dataset of over 265,147 words, Facebook interaction as a whole is regarded as a set of speech acts purposely performed by users. As such, every Facebook update is taken as a speech act performed by users, and Facebook communication in its entirety is a dialogically organized interaction, entailing that Facebook updates appear as communicative actions, and comments stand for reactions to those initiative actions. The findings suggest that any utterance is a goal-orientated speech act, and no illocutionary force could exist per se without its perlocutionary counterpart effect. Every speech act is complete as long as both forces – illocutionary force and perlocutionary effect – are considered indispensable parts of the utterance. The findings, furthermore, indicate that both Facebook updates and comments are important components of a complete dialogic speech act.Sin financiación1.476 JCR (2020) Q2, 79/193 Lingüistics0.942 SJR (2020) Q1, 73/911 Language and LingüisticsNo data IDR 2020UE
Alternancia de lenguas en la comunicación mediada por ordenador entre las personas del Congo
Full text linkTesis de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Facultad de Filología, leída el 12/11/2018Language research in Computer-mediated communication (hereafter CMC) is a relatively new and dynamically evolving field (Herring et al. 2013). Unlike offline (or face-to-face) communication, CMC is, according to Herring (1996), a communication that takes place between human beings via the instrumentality of computers or other devices (e.g. Smartphones, tablets, etc.) that allow users to connect to the Internet. CMC implies the use of the Web 2.0 as a medium of communication. Understood as an umbrella term covering different phenomena – e.g. social networking communication, netspeak and so on – CMC includes different channels such as instant messaging, email, chatrooms, online forums, social networking services, and so on. CMC is characterised by two fundamental and opposing modes (Crystal 2001, 2003). The synchronous mode (or real-time conversation) takes place as all participants (senders and receivers) are simultaneously online during text message exchange (i.e. chat rooms). The asynchronous mode, on the other hand, requires the messages to be stored in the addressees’ inbox until they can be read (e.g. email). Nevertheless, Facebook, on which the present thesis is based, is a CMC channel that involves both synchronous and asynchronous modes (Pérez- Sabater 2012; Maíz-Arévalo 2015). While the literature on CMC is fast-growing, much evidence from many other languages and cultures is still needed (Herring 2010; Thurlow & Puff 2013). Hundreds of languages notably used in CMC remain under-investigated around the world. In the particular case of Congo- Brazzaville, no attempt to investigate the nature of the impact which CMC is making on language(s) has been undertaken so far, though online materials have increasingly penetrated the country...El cambio de código o alternancia de lenguas (Codeswitching), el préstamo, la transferencia cultural y lingüística, la convergencia y el calco lingüístico, generalmente conocidos como fenómenos lingüísticos, son los resultados inherentes del contacto de lenguas. Según los datos, estos fenómenos se producen tanto en la comunicación presencial (o frente a frente) como en la comunicación online (Blom and Gumperz 1972; Poplack, 2001; Gumperz 1961; 1982a; Myers-Scotton 1992, 1993a, 1993b, 2006; Cardenas-Chloros 2009; Bullock & Toribio 2009). Por ello, el presente estudio se centra en el análisis de algunos de estos resultados en un contexto muy específico de la comunicación online (o comunicación mediada por ordenador; CMC en inglés), que es la comunicación mediante la red social Facebook. A pesar de todos los intentos de investigar lenguas en la comunicación online, existe un gran número de idiomas que sigue estando insuficientemente investigado en el contexto de la comunicación mediada por ordenador. En el caso particular del Congo-Brazzaville, no se ha llevado a cabo hasta la fecha ningún intento de investigar la naturaleza de la incidencia que la CMC está teniendo en los usos lingüísticos, aunque la comunicación online en estas lenguas es diaria. La presente tesis tiene la intención de corregir este desequilibrio mediante el análisis del cambio de código (o alternancia de lenguas) en la comunicación online en Congo-Brazzaville. Según los datos, en 2017 el número de usuarios activos de internet es de 400.000 personas son usuarios activos de Internet en la actualidad, y unos sesenta idiomas se hablan dentro de las fronteras nacionales. Por ello, el estudio del cambio de código entre los usuarios de Facebook en Congo es obviamente importante no sólo para investigar el fenómeno como tal, sino también para proveer datos sobre el impacto de CMC (sobre todo Facebook) sobre los idiomas en Congo-Brazzaville. Así pues, el objetivo del presente estudio es doble: (1) evaluar los diferentes idiomas involucrados en el discurso en Facebook de los congoleños y (2) examinar las motivaciones sociolingüísticas del cambio de código, así como la estructura sintáctica en la que se produce...Fac. de FilologíaTRUEunpu
Impoliteness among multilingual Facebook users in Congo Brazzaville
No full textThis paper analyses a 265,147-word corpus of multilingual Facebook comments discussing political news in Congo-Brazzaville, collected between 2015 and 2016. The commenters use French, Lingala, Kituba, as well as ethnic languages such as Laary, to provide evaluations of the news and engage in impolite exchanges with each other. It is now widely evidenced that digital discourse is increasingly attracting (im)politeness research, going from Western-centric grounds into exploring other societies and cultures such as Asia and Africa. Despite this, (im)politeness research in multilingual contexts – such as Congo-Brazzaville – remains neglected. The paper aims to redress this imbalance by analysing impoliteness in Facebook interactions among Congolese users. Thus, the paper provides insights into how the notion of impoliteness plays out in a context that is polarized politically and sociolinguistically. The findings suggest that what triggers impoliteness is not just the desire to either claim own grounds, or the fact that the target of the impolite comment is a user with an opposing view, but also the desire to control what others should and should not say (or do). Furthermore, the interpretation of impoliteness in this context lies in the users’ abilities to understand the role of language alternation as it is framed in the comments.Sin financiación1.0 Q3 JCR 20220.791 Q1 SJR 2022No data IDR 2022UE
English as an International Language: English/French Language Alternation in Politically Motivated CMC in Congo-Brazzaville
No full textThe world is witnessing an unprecedented growth of the English language worldwide. Now more than at any time in linguistic history people are powerlessly assisting the expansion of one global language, English, dominating other languages even in countries, such as Congo-Brazzaville, where its presence was not long ago barely observed. There has been a growing interest in studying the sociolinguistic change brought about by the lingua franca nature of English. English is increasingly used along other languages in Facebook communication. It is therefore important to thoroughly examine the main pragmatic functions of English/French alternation in a politically motivated Facebook interaction among Congolese users. In this study, a corpus of 265,147 words, including 9,330 comments were collected from October 2015 to July 2016, the time period highlighted by two major national political events, mainly the constitutional referendum (October 25, 2015) and the presidential election (March 20, 2016). The analysis revealed seven communicative functions (e.g., offering advice, astonishment, criticism, anger/cursing/insult, appraisal, hope boost and motivation, jocular mockery) trigger the use of English in politically motivated Facebook communication. The lingua franca function of the English language worldwide is on the top of the factors influencing and motivating Congolese Facebook users to resource to this language in Facebook interaction. The users tend to be driven by the mere idea that in order to put the communication on international scale, a global language is needed regardless of whether all fellow users understand it.Sin financiaciónNo data JCR 20190.130 SJR (2019) Q3, 456/912 Language and LinguisticsNo data IDR 2019UE
An examination of metapragmatic comments on Facebook
No full textDespite the increasing interest in studying (im)politeness on Facebook, both in Anglo-centered societies and across cultures, very little explicit scholarly consideration has been given to the (im)politeness implications in Coronavirus pandemic-relate discussions. The aim of this paper is to (1) explore the basis on which metapragmatic comments are produced in Covid-related interaction on Facebook and (2) determine the perspectives (i.e., instigator or target) from which Facebook users express metapragmatic comments. The findings show that metapragmatic comments are expressed in order to react to negative attitudes (such as laughs and disregard) targeting Giuliani, indicating the commentators’ awareness of the appropriate conduct in a situation of despair such as dealing with COVID-19.Sin financiaciónNo data 2022UE
Facework in teacher-student email interactions
No full textTwo trends have become prominent in higher education worldwide. On the one hand, globalization has favored the expansion and influence of the English language. On the other hand, email has become one of the main forms of communication in academic settings, especially in teacher-student out-of-class correspondence. While these facts have increasingly attracted scholarship attention, studies in education seem to focus more on the students’ display of face(work) alone, while neglecting the teacher’s counterpart. To redress this imbalance, the present study aims to examine face(work) as displayed in students’ email requests for consideration (e.g., on late assignments submission and class attendance) and teachers’ responses. A qualitative analysis of 20 sets of teacher-student interactions reveals different strategies opted for by the students and the teacher in face(work) management. Drawing on face-constituting theory, the findings show that whilst the students are concerned with their own face alone, the teacher is concerned with how to avoid classroom conflicts in the way that attends to one’s own face, the students’ face and the classroom harmony. In this way, the management of face(work) operates in a complex and dynamic way that allows the co-construction and reaffirmation of their respective identities. For example, whilst the students’ actions overlook the relevance of the interdependence relation between them, their peers and the teacher, which is critical for the harmony of the classroom, the teacher’s actions privilege connectedness over separateness. Furthermore, the findings suggest that cultural specificities governing the backgrounds of both the teacher and the students are not always influential in the management of face in email interactions.2024-4510.9 Q* JCR 20220.595 Q1 2023 SJRNo data IDR 2023UE
Language Policy in Congo-Brazzaville
No full textThe richness of linguistic diversity in Congo-Brazzaville deserves an empirical examination so as to determine the extent to which language policy affects negatively or positively the development process of the country. This chapter overviews the status of language policy in the country. The aim of the chapter is to draw a picture of the different stages of language policy throughout history as well as examine the strengths and weaknesses of the current state of language policy. Accordingly, and although the status of language policy remains unchanged both during and after the colonial era, with French enjoying all high-status and transactional privileges among elites, there is a growing awareness among scholars (especially academics) that having French as the sole official language in Congo-Brazzaville is inadequate. Voices are now being heard in Congress urging and encouraging the use of local languages. This inadequacy is also the reason why on the scale of the most and the least valued languages in Congo-Brazzaville, French and ethnic languages tend to be associated with the two extremes of the same spectrum, where, on the one hand, French is overly the most valued, and, on the other hand, ethnic languages are the least valued. On the practical level, however, the linguistic diversity in the country has turned codeswitching into the norm in almost every conversation. The absence of any provision regarding language use allows the mix of languages, mainly French, Kituba, Lingala, and other ethnic languages, in almost all unofficial business.Sin financiaciónSPI 2022UE
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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