Language as a social semiotics (Michael Halliday 1978)

Language as a social semiotic

Sociosemiotic theory of language

Elements * the Text the Situation the text variety or Register the Code the Linguistic system ( and the semantic system) the Social Structure

Text

Text as a Supersentece
Sociolinguistics perspective Text as enconded in sentences, not composed of them

The Text is a semantic unit (meaning); it is the basic unit of the semantic process.

Text represents choice (what is meant) Text as actualized meaning potential

Meaning potential paradigmatic range of semantic choice

Context of situation / Context of culture
Meaning Potential range of options that is characteristic of a specific situation type or social context.

Situation
It is the environment in which the text comes to life

Context of situation (it influences in the text)

Situational type

Social context

Semiotic structure

Semiotic structure > meanings deriving from the semiotic system that constitute culture

Semiotic structure

Field

Tenor
Mode

Register
It is a particular selection of words and structures It involves the selection of meaning (not just structure), that constitutes the variety to which a text belongs. We choose words in relation to the particular environmental conditions we are inserted in. E.g: teacher - student boyfriend girlfriend

(different social contexts different registers)

Code
The choice of meaning by a speaker and their interpretation by a hearer Types of social semiotic, or symbolic orders of meaning generated by the social system The society agrees to use a certain code in order to achieve a more complex system of communication (Languages)

The linguistic system

Semantic system

Sociolinguistic context

Metafunctions

Interpersonal

Ideational

Textual

Text

1.

Ideational Experimental / Logical Speaker as an observer Language as about something Relations of the world / environment

2. Interpersonal speaker as an intruder Language as doing something speaker into the context of situation (expressing/ influencing) relation with the situation 3. Textual speaker text- forming potential it makes language relevant relation of the Language to its environment including verbal environment and non-verbal environment

Clause ideational transitivity interpersonal mood / modality textual - theme

A sociolinguistic view of semantics

1. Semantics of situations types The selection of words in relation to the social

context (taking into consideration the addresse e.g: mother son). This is
called semantic network 2. The relation of the situation to the semantic system the situation type (social context) is constructed of field mode tenor (semiotic construct).

field ideational
tenor interpersonal mode - textual 3. Sociosemantics of Language development a child learning his mother tongue is learning how to mean

the meaning is based on social functions (semiotic environment)

Sociolinguistic theory
The text is the linguistic form of social interaction. Meanings (text) the selections made from the options that constitute the

meaning potential (semantic choice)

The text is embedded in a context of situation (social context) The Semiotic structure of the situation is formed out of three sociosemiotic variables

of field tenor mode (they represent the type of activity in which the text has
significant function) The semiotic components of the situation (field mode tenor) are systematically related to the functional components of the semantics (ideational interpersonal textual) The semantic system of language is a realization of the social semiotic It is through language that we are able to know about social rules, social

boundaries, differences between animal/human behaviour.

through language culture is transmitted to the child