xv differently in different social context and they are concerned with identifying the
social functions of language of the way it is used to convey social meaning. There are four different dimensions for analysis that relate to the social factors, namely
social distance scale, social status scale, formality scale and function scale.
1. A social distance scale
This scale is useful in emphasizing that how well we know someone is a relevant factor in language choices. The choice of using Black English in
conversations reflects consideration of this dimension, for instance. Black English is often used between black people who belong to the same group.
The social distance scale Intimate Distant
High Solidarity Low Solidarity
2. A social scale status
Dimension of social status points out to the relevance of relative status in some linguistics choices. This scale status is the dimension that accounts for a
variety of linguistics differences in the way people speak. People speak in a way that signals their status in a community. The various ways on which we choose
words can show whether we see the person addressed as a superior, a subordinate or an equal.
The social status scale Superior
High status Subordinate
Low Status
3. A formality scale
The formality dimension is the dimension that accounts for speech variation in different settings or contexts. People will choose a certain variety of
linguistics choices in accordance with the context or setting The scale is useful in assessing the influence of the social setting or type
of interaction on language choice. In a formal situation such as, at a transaction in the bank or at a ritual service in church, the language used will be influenced by
the formality of the setting. Black English is used among the speakers in informal situations.
The formality scale Formal High formality
Informal Low formality
4. The function scale
The function dimension here covers referential meaning and affective social meaning. Those functions above identified in these scales are particularly
pervasive and basic. Language can convey objective information of a referential kind; and it can also express how someone feels. Gossip may provide a great deal
of new referential information, while it also clearly conveys how the speaker feels about those referred to. In general the more referentially oriented an interaction is,
the less it tends to express the feelings of the speaker. The weather forecaster
xvi tends to put the emphasis on information or the referential function, for instance.
By contrast, interactions, which are more concerned with expressing feelings often, have little in the way of new information to communicate. The talk between
neighbors over the fence at the weekend about the weather, for instance, is more likely to be mainly affective in function, and it is intended to convey goodwill
towards the neighbor rather than important new information.
The referential and affective function scales Referential
High information content Low information content Affective
Low affective content High affective content
Ethnography of Speaking 1.
The Definition of Ethnography of Speaking
Ethnography of speaking or more generally called ethnography of communication is approach to the sociolinguistics of language in which the use of
language in general is related to social and cultural values Fasold, 1990; 39. Meanwhile Hymes 1974; 39 states that ethnography of speaking is
concerned with the situations and users, the patterns and functions of speaking as an activity in its own right. Trudgill in Introducing Language and Society 1992;
31 states that ethnography of speaking studies the norms and rules for using language in social situations in different cultures and is thus clearly important for
cross-cultural communication. The ethnography of speaking of communication seeks to account not
merely for what can be said but for when, where, by whom, to whom, in what manner, and in what particular circumstances Saville-Troike in McKay and
Hornberger, 1996; 352. From the statements above it can be concluded that ethnography of
speaking deals with speakers and situations in which the conversation occurs.
2. Speech Community
