it’s been fun teaching this class. i’d do it again any time. here’s my final: Language & Humor Final Exam Spring 2008 Choose one question from each category. Answer each question thoroughly in one page or less. Please write legibly, since I won’t be able to grade it otherwise. Provide thoughtful analysis and examples [...]
for Dan Sanford’s 490/590 seminar: Formulaic Language. i had to pick two out of these four: What is the difference, with respect to idioms, between compositionality and conventionality? Why is it a mistake to confuse the two? How are the questions of whether or not idioms are compositional, and whether or not they’re metaphorical, related? [...]
Today I lost my mind on Twitter and pointed out some often misused words & punctuation marks. For posterity, I will enumerate them again here, having wiped off the overtones of condescension and annoyance. 1. Apostrophe use: some simple guidelines. Apostrophes do not mark plural. Do not use them to mean more than one of [...]
to explain the data in the last post: Ruth E. Cisneros | LING 590 | Formulaic Language Formulaic Language & Humor: An overview of idiomatic language usage in comedy I. Introduction The initial focus of this paper was to explore the intersection between formulaic language and humor by exposing the former in the latter. However, [...]
Formulaic Language & Humor: I. Judy Grimes, Travel Writer – Use of “just kidding:” II. Nick Fehn, Political Humorist – Use of many idiomatic expressions: III. Chocolate – acting out of a language chunk:
McCreery, John L. 1995. Negotiating With Demons: The Uses of Magical Language. American Ethnologist. Vol. 22, No. 1. 144-164. first way of reading transcription of an incantation by a Taoist healer in Taipei is as text. However, “dislocated from this primary context, assertions about the significance of particular words or phrases are dubious at best.” [...]