Postgraduate (Level 7) modules

Module Convenor: D. Adger 
Timetable: Wednesday 9am-11am (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

Current generative theory has developed a model of the interaction between structure, morphological form, and meaning which takes the syntax to provide the central system with which morphophonology and semantics interface. This idea has been mainly developed in primary technical literature by Chomsky, Marantz, Borer, Kayne, Cinque, Ramchand, Adger and others. The module systematically develops an understanding of what this architecture for language implies for analyses of crucial phenomena: clause and nominal structure, predication, syntactic dependencies, language variation, through a critical exploration of the relevant literature. It also develops students' skills of syntactic argumentation, and the presentation of these arguments to professional audiences.

Indicative Reading List:

• Adger, D. (2003) Core Syntax. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Adger, D. & G. Ramchand (2003) Predication and Equation. Linguistic Inquiry 34: 325-59.
• Adger, D. & G. Ramchand (2005) Merge and Move: Wh-Dependencies Revisited. Linguistic Inquiry 36: 161-93.
• Borer, H. (2004) Structuring Sense. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Chomsky, N. (1995) The Minimalist Programme. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Chomsky, N. (2004) Beyond Explanatory Adequacy, in Belletti, A. (ed) Structures and Beyond. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Cinque, G. (1999) Adverbs. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Kayne, R. (1994) The Antisymmetry of Syntax. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
• Kratzer, A. (1995) Severing the External argument from the verb, in Rooryck, J. & L. Zaring (eds.) Phrase Structure and the Lexicon. Dordrecht: Kluwer.
• Marantz, A. (2005) Phases and Words. ms.
• Ramchand, G. (2009) Verb Meaning and the Lexicon. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Module Convenors: L. Marti and D. Harbour 
Timetable: Thursday 10am-12pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

Much of the current literature in syntax and semantics presupposes an understanding of aspects of mathematics as they are applied in linguistic domains. This module provides students with the wherewithal to understand what these techniques are, why they are applied, whether they have been applied appropriately and how to apply them themselves. The course introduces students to the relevant aspects of: set theory, functions, propositional and predicate logic, model theory, basic concepts in algebra (including lattice theory), compositionality and lambda abstraction, basics of formal grammar theory.

Indicative Reading List:

• Partee, B., A. ter Meulen, & R. Wall (1990) Mathematical Methods in Linguistics. Dordrecht: Kluwer

Module Convenor: D. Sharma 
Timetable: Friday 12pm-2pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

The field of sociolinguistics has seen the parallel development of a number of theories of how language relates to, and is embedded in, society. Some of these developments have been mutually reinforcing or complementary, while others have raised questions and debates over the nature of social variation in language. This course reviews the major 'lineages' of thinking in sociolinguistics, covering theories that have formed the foundation of both quantitative and qualitative approaches sociolinguistics. With a focus on the former, the course will require students to read classic texts from early sociolinguistic theory (developed in William Labov's early work and parallel strands of thought from the same period) and then trace the development of distinct 'waves' of thinking and analysis in subsequent decades. On the qualitative side, the course will cover selected classic works from social theory, and literary and cultural theory that have been influential in sociolinguists' thinking about social structure and variation (e.g. Bourdieu, Bakhtin). Overall, the course will provide students with an advanced foundational knowledge of major developments in sociolinguistic thought over the past half century.

Indicative Reading List:

• Bakhtin, M. (1981). The Dialogic Imagination: Four Essays Austin: University of Texas Press.
• Bourdieu, P. (1977). The economics of linguistic exchanges. Social Science Information XVI (6): 645-668.
• Chambers, J. (2009) Sociolinguistic Theory, 2nd edition. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Chambers, J., P. Trudgill & N. Schilling-Estes (2004) The Handbook of Language Variation and Change. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Coupland, N. & A. Jaworski (2009) The New Sociolinguistics Reader. Basingstoke: Palgrave.
• Eckert, P. (2000) Linguistic variation as social practice. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Labov, W. (1972) Sociolinguistic Patterns. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.
• Labov, W. (1994) Principles of Linguistic Change: Internal Factors. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Labov, W. (2001) Principles of Linguistic Change: Social Factors. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Meyerhoff, M. & E. Schleef (2010) The Routledge Sociolinguistics Reader. London: Routledge.
• Milroy, L (1980) Language and Social Networks. Oxford: Blackwell.

Module Convenor: E. Levon 
Timetable: Tuesday 10am-12pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

This module provides students with an advanced overview of both qualitative and quantitative research methods in sociolinguistics. Covering all aspects of data collection and analysis, students will learn how to devise appropriate research hypotheses; collect data for subsequent quantitative and qualitative scrutiny; and perform a variety of analytical techniques most commonly used in the humanities and social sciences (including narrative analysis, discourse analysis, conversation analysis, analyses of variance, multiple regression and various non-parametric tests). Methods covered include observation, interview, surveys, questionnaires and corpus-based techniques. Students will also learn how to effectively summarize and present findings to both specialist and non-specialist audiences.

Indicative Reading List:

• Baayen, R. H. (2008) Analyzing linguistic data. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Baker, P. (2010) Sociolinguistics and corpus linguistics. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
• Cedergren, H. & D. Sankoff (1974) Variable rules: Performance as a statistical reflection of competence. Language 50: 333-355.
• Fairclough, N. (1995) Critical Discourse Analysis. London: Longman.
• Johnson, K. (2008) Quantitative methods in linguistics. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Linde, C. (1993) Life Stories. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Rasinger, S. (2008) Quantitative research in linguistics. London: Continuum.
• Saville-Troike, M. (2003) Ethnography of Communication. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Schiffrin, D. (1994) Approaches to Discourse. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Sidnell, J. (2009) Conversation Analysis. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Tagliamonte, S. (2006) Analyzing sociolinguistic variation. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Walker, J. (2009) Variation in linguistic systems. London: Routledge.

Module Convenor: L. Stockall 
Timetable: Tuesday 2pm-5pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar/practicum per week)

The goal of this module is to take students with no prior training in the methods or tools of experimental psychological science and provide them with the theoretical and practical training required to be able to critically engage with the Psycholinguistics literature and to undertake experimental linguistics research themselves. The module will include hands-on training in inferential statistics and hypothesis testing, experimental design, data collection (including training in ethical human subjects research protocols), and data analysis, as well as a thorough grounding in the primary source literature. Students will develop their critical reading skills and gain practice in presenting primary source literature to their peers.

Indicative Reading List:

• Frank, M. et al. (2008) Number as a cognitive technology: evidence from Pirahã language and cognition. Cognition 108: 819-24.
• Marantz, A. (2005) Generative linguistics within the cognitive neuroscience of language. The Linguistics Review 22: 429-45.
• Phillips, C. (2001) Levels of representation in the electrophysiology of speech perception. Cognitive Science 25: 711-3
• Pylkkänen, L. & B. McElree (2006) The syntax-semantics interface: On-line composition of sentence meaning. in Traxler, M. & M.A. Gernsbacher (eds.), Handbook of Psycholinguistics (2nd Ed). New York: Elsevier.
• Pylkkänen, L. and A. Marantz (2003) Tracking the time course of word recognition with MEG. Trends in Cognitive Science 7: 187-89.
• Schütze, C. (2004) Thinking about what we are asking speakers to do, in Kepser, S & R. Reis (eds) Linguistic Evidence: Empirical, Theoretical, and Computational Perspectives. Berlin: de Gruyter.
• Sprouse. (2007) Continuous acceptability, categorical grammaticality, and experimental syntax. Biolinguistics 1: 118-29.
• Vasishth, S. and M. Broe (2011) The foundations of statistics: A simulation-based approach. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
• Baayen, R. H. (2008) Analyzing linguistic data. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Module Convenor: E. Levon 
Timetable: Friday 2pm-5pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar per week)

In this module, we explore the development of feminist and queer theoretic conceptualizations of identity and how these conceptualizations relate to language. Drawing on foundational texts in philosophy, literary theory, sociology and cultural studies in addition to linguistics, we interrogate the position of women and men in society through the prism of linguistic practice, and work to develop a holistic account of the ways in which individual speakers negotiate social and ideological pressures in their construction and presentations of gendered and sexual selves. Students will gain hands-on experience in conducting original research on a sex- and/or gender-related topic, and special emphasis will be placed on linking academic research in this area to finding solutions for the real-world problems that women and men may face.

Indicative Reading List:

• Butler, J. (1990) Gender trouble: Feminism and the subversion of identity. London: Routledge.
• Cameron, D. (2006) On language and sexual politics. London: Routledge.
• Cameron, D. & D. Kulick (2003) Language and sexuality. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Coates, Jennifer & Pia Pichler (2011) Language and gender: A reader. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Foucault, M. (1990) The history of sexuality, volume 1. New York: Vintage Books.
• Gaudio, R. (2009) Allah made us: Sexual outlaws in an Islamic African city. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Gal, S. & G. Kligman (2000) Reproducing gender: Politics, publics and everyday life after socialism. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
• Hobson, B. (2003) Recognition struggles and social movements: Contested identities, agency and power. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Leap, William & T. Boellstorff (2004) Speaking in queer tongues: Globalisation and gay language. Urbana-Champagne: University of Illinois Press.
• McElhinny, B. (2008) Words, worlds and material girls: Language, gender and globalisation. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter.
• Mendoza-Denton, N. (2008) Homegirls: Language and cultural practice among Latina youth gangs. Oxford: Blackwell.

Module Convenor: C. Cotter 
Timetable: Wednesday 11am-2pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar per week)

This module provides an overview of Ethnography of Communication, a theoretical and methodological approach to analyzing and understanding communicative patterns and language use in social and cultural contexts. The focus on primary literature includes the seminal figures who established the approach (e.g., Hymes, Gumperz), developed the framework (Baumann, Briggs, Ervin-Tripp, Philipps), and who continue to advance it today (Duranti, Goodwin, Hill, Rampton). Applying ethnographic insights and methodologies to fieldwork activities and projects in the local community will instill understanding of the broad range of practices that constitute doing ethnography as well as illustrate the points raised in the literature.

• Agar, M. (1986) Speaking of Ethnography. London: Sage.
• Bauman, R. & J. Sherzer (1989) Explorations in the Ethnography of Speaking. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Duranti, A. (1997) Linguistic Anthropology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Duranti, A. (2001) Key Terms in Language and Culture. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Emerson, R. et al. (1995) Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
• Heath, S. B. (1983) Ways with Words: Language, Life, and Work in Communities and Classrooms. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Saville-Troike, M. (2003) Ethnography of Communication. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Van Maanen, J. (1988) Tales of the Field. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Module Convenor: D. Harbour 
Timetable: Monday 4pm-7pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar per week)

The diversity of the world's languages is of crucial importance to linguistic theory. Linguistic theory developed primarily with reference to data from major world languages (English, Japanese, French, etc.) nonetheless frequently yields rapid and deep insight into understudied languages from diverse families. In this course, we will work with a speaker of such a language, eliciting data, forming generalisations, and testing and explaining these in light of current linguistic theory. The course is, therefore, a practicum-style approach to formal linguistics.

• Adger, D. (2003) Core Syntax. Oxford : Oxford University Press.
• Newman, P. & M. Ratliff (2001) Linguistic Fieldwork. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Module Convenor: Staff
Timetable: Wednesday 10am-12pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week for 6 weeks + individual tutorials)

Research at postgraduate level places special demands on the developing researcher, for which appropriate training is needed. The two primary goals of this module are to prepare students for the practical challenges of postgraduate research (including the development of a research question/agenda, advanced library research, ethics and practical dimensions of research collection, outlining and writing a dissertation, abstract-writing, oral presentation, and other related skills) and to initiate students into specialised research in their chosen dissertation area. The first part of the module (before reading week) will cover core, generic postgraduate training for all students on the MA, taught through group sessions. The second part of the module (after reading week) will require students to apply this knowledge (as well as knowledge from core modules in Semester 1) to their chosen area of research by pursuing independent reading and research towards their potential dissertation topics (to be completed during the summer term), taught through individual meetings with supervisors.

Module Convenor: D. Adger and D. Sharma
Timetable: Monday 10am-12pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

For the last 35 years, sociolinguistic theory and syntactic and morphological theory have interacted only rarely and lightly. However, more recently an emerging field of `sociosyntax' has taken root, which brings syntactic methods to bear on problems of language variability, and sociolinguistic findings to bear on questions about the structure of formal theories of language. This course introduces students to that literature, its problems and findings, and provides students with the interdisciplinary knowledge and skills necessary to combine the two fields in their own work.

• Adger, D. (2006) Combinatorial Variability. Journal of Linguistics 42: 503-30.
• Adger, D. & J. Smith (2010) Variation in agreement: A lexical feature-based approach. Lingua 120: 1009-34.
• Anttila, A. & V. Fong (2004) Variation, ambiguity and noun classes in English. Lingua 114: 1253-90.
• Bender, E. (2007) Socially meaningful syntactic variation in sign-based grammar. English Language and Linguistics 11: 347-8
• Bresnan, J., A. Deo & D. Sharma (2007) Typology in variation: A probabilistic approach to be and n’t in the Survey of English Dialects. English Language and Linguistics 11: 301-46.
• Cornips, L. & K. Corrigan (2005) Syntax and variation: Reconciling the biological and the social. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
• Hudson, R. (2007) English dialect syntax in Word Grammar. English Language and Linguistics 11: 383-405.
• Nevins, A. & J. Parrott (2010) Variable rules meet Impoverishment Theory: Patterns of agreement levelling in English varieties. Lingua 120: 1135-59.

Module Convenor: E. de Leeuw 
Timetable: Friday 2pm-4pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

In this module students will be trained in the phonetic and phonemic transcription of various European and non-European languages using the International Phonetic Alphabet. Knowledge of transcribing sounds in isolation as well as in connected speech, considering prosodic features, will develop. Additionally, we will consider socially significant pronunciation norms, as shared by groups of speakers. We will discuss how and why such norms affect our understanding of what it means to speak "correctly" in English and other languages. Throughout, we will pay particular attention to the different ways in which the phonetic and phonological knowledge we develop can be applied to practical data gathering and analysis situations.

• Collins, B. & I. Mees (2003) Practical Phonetics and Phonology. London: Routledge.
• Di Paolo, M. (2010) Sociophonetics: A student's guide. London: Routledge.
• Harlow, R. (2007) Maori: A Linguistic Introduction. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Honey, J. (1997) Sociophonology, in Coulmas, F. (ed.) The handbook of sociolinguistics. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Horga, D. (1999) Handbook of the International Phonetic Association: A Guide to the Use of the International Phonetic Alphabet. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Hualde, J. (2005) The sounds of Spanish. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Ladefoged, P. & I. Maddieson (1996) The sounds of the world's languages. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Lin, Y.-H. (2007) The sounds of Chinese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Vance, T. (2008) The sounds of Japanese. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Module Convenor: L. Stockall 
Timetable: TBD (independent study and individual tutorials)

Students taking this module will work closely with a member of staff on a research project that is connected to the staff member's own research objectives and is related to the intended specialization of the student. Students will receive individualized training in the skills necessary to engage in this research, and regular supervision as they complete their project. Possible research projects include organizing and analyzing an existing data set with a view to publication of the results, designing materials for a future experiment, conducting critical literature reviews preparatory to the launch of a new line of research, collecting data from research participants, formulating new research protocols and research methods, synthesizing existing research results for presentation to non-academic audiences, etc. The skills and experience gained through this practicum will substantially enhance the preparedness of the student to pursue their own research goals.

Module Convenor: L. Oakes 
Timetable: Tuesday 4pm-6pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

This module provides students with an advanced exploration of the of the field of Language Policy and Language Planning. We will learn the various theories that have been proposed to account for phenomena such as language maintenance and language death, and we will describe the different kinds of policy applications that these theories have. Case studies from around the world will be scrutinized in order to impart to students different modes of language policy and planning that have been effective in the past. Our discussion of policy and planning issues will also be informed by a critical examination of language attitudes as it has been described and theorized in both linguistics and social psychology.

• Edwards, J. (2010) Minority languages and group identity: Cases and categories. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
• Fishman, J. (1991) Reversing language shift. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
• Kymlicka, W. (1996) Multicultural citizenship. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Kymlicka, W. & W. Norman (2000) Citizenship in diverse societies. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Kymlicka, W. & A. Patten (2003) Language rights and political theory. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Oakes, L. (2001) Language and national identity: Comparing France and Sweden. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
• Oakes, L. & J. Warren (2009) Language, citizenship and identity in Quebec. Basingstoke: Palgrave.
• Ricento, T. (2000) Ideology, politics and language policies. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
• Shohamy, E. (2006) Language policy: Hidden agendas and new approaches. London: Routledge.
• Skutnabb-Kangas, T., R. Phillipson & M. Rannut (1995) Linguistic human rights: Overcoming linguistic discrimination. Berlin: de Gruyter.
• Spolsky, B. (2004) Language policy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Module Convenor: TBD 
Timetable: Monday 12pm-3pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar per week)

This module examines controversies over the origins of pidgin and creole languages, salient aspects of their structure, sociohistorical factors and socio-political issues in contemporary creole-speaking societies, and the relevance of these languages for theories of syntax, morphology, phonology, language acquisition, and cognitive universals. Pidgin and creole languages provide important insights into processes prevalent in situations of natural language contact, radical language change, and language birth. The module also examines the question of whether they are a special type of language, considering structural as well as sociohistorical factors in the development of these languages. In relation to contemporary creole-speaking societies, the course will study processes of decreolization, language planning issues, creoles in literature, creole influences in London English, and ideologies and identities in situations in which creoles co-exist with other languages.

• Arends, J., P. Muysken & N. Smith (1994) Pidgins and creoles: An introduction. Amsterdam: John Benjamins.
• Holm, J. (1988/89) Pidgins and creoles (2 vols.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Mühlhäusler, P. (1997) Pidgin and creole linguistics. London: University of Westminster Press.
• Thomason, S. (2001) Language contact: An introduction. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
• Winford, D. (2003) An introduction to contact linguistics. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Holm, J. & P. Patrick (2007) Comparative creole syntax. London: Battlebridge Publications.

Module Convenor: E. de Leeuw and D. Sharma 
Timetable: Friday 11am-2pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar per week)

This module will explore the consequences of simultaneous use of two (or more) languages in an individual or a community. The module covers aspects of societal bilingualism, including language planning, attitudes, language change through contact, code-switching, and bilingual identity. It also covers individual bilinguality, including experimental research in neurocognition, cognitive advantages or disadvantages of bilingualism, formal models of bilingual mental representations, debates over a critical age for language learning, effects of early and late bilingualism, and language attrition. Throughout the course, the interaction of cognitive and social forces will be emphasised, as will links to linguistic and sociolinguistic theory.

• Appel, R. & Muysken, P. (1987) Language contact and bilingualism. London: Edward Arnold.
• Auer, P. (1998) Code-Switching in Conversation: Language, Interaction and Identity. London: Routledge.
• Baker, C. (1988) Key Issues in Bilingualism and Bilingual Education. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.
• Bhatia, T. & W. Ritchie (2005). The Handbook of Bilingualism. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Bialystok, E. (2009) Bilingualism: The good, the bad, and the indifferent. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 12: 3-1
• Gardner-Chloros, P. (1991) Language selection and switching in Strasbourg. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Gass, S. M. & A. Mackey (2007) Data elicitation for second and foreign language research. Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum.
• Grosjean, F. (1982) Life with two languages: An introduction to bilingualism. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
• Grosjean, F. (2008) Studying Bilinguals. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Hamers, J. F., & M. H. A. Blanc (1989) Bilinguality and bilingualism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• MacSwan, J. (2000) The architecture of the bilingual language faculty: Evidence from codeswitching. Bilingualism: Language and Cognition 3: 37-54.
• Milroy, L., & P. Muysken (1995) One speaker, two languages: Cross-disciplinary perspectives on code-switching. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Mougeon , R. & E. Beniak (1991) Linguistic consequences of language contact and restriction: The case of French in Ontario. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Muysken, P. (2000) Bilingual Speech: A Typology of Code-mixing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Myers-Scotton, C (1993) Duelling Languages. Grammatical structure in codeswitching. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
• Romaine, S. (1995) Bilingualism, 2nd edition. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Schwartz, B. & R.A. Sprouse (2000) When syntactic theories evolve: Consequences for L2 acquisition research. In Archibald (ed.), Second Language Acquisition and Linguistic Theory. Oxford: Blackwell.
• Silva-Corvalan, C. (1994) Language contact and change: Spanish in Los Angeles. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
• Treffers-Daller, J. (1994) Mixing Two Languages: French-Dutch Contact in a Comparative Perspective. Berlin: Mouton de Gruyter
• Wei, L. (2000). The Bilingualism reader London: Routledge.
• Zentella, A.C. (1997) Growing up Bilingual: Puerto Rican Children in New York. Oxford: Blackwell.

Module Convenor: P. Elbourne
Timetable: Thursday 3pm-5pm (2 hours of combined lecture/seminar per week)

This module builds on the topics covered in From Morpheme to Meaning and Formal Methods to give an advanced understanding of the syntax-semantics interface. It will show how compositionality---the combination of the meanings of words to yield the meanings of larger phrases and sentences---can be modelled as functional application within lambda calculus. In these terms, it will give explicit semantic treatments of a range of phenomena, including predication, relativization, quantification, and pronominalization.

Indicative reading list:

• Irene Heim and Angelika Kratzer (1998). Semantics in Generative Grammar. Blackwell.
• Paul Elbourne (2011). Meaning: A Slim Guide to Semantics. Oxford University Press.

Module Convenor: D. Adger
Timetable: Thursday 10am-1pm (2 hours of lecture + 1 hour of seminar per week)

Information about this module will be available shortly.