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Language as Power: Foucault's Insights

This document discusses language and power in three paragraphs: 1) It introduces the topic of language not being a neutral system but rather a social practice that can change with every use depending on who is using it. 2) It further explains that the same utterances may be interpreted quite differently depending on who makes them and in what variety of language they are made. 3) It discusses how certain terms have become pejorated over time when used to refer to women, such as words that were once gender neutral taking on negative connotations when applied to women.

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33 views11 pages

Language as Power: Foucault's Insights

This document discusses language and power in three paragraphs: 1) It introduces the topic of language not being a neutral system but rather a social practice that can change with every use depending on who is using it. 2) It further explains that the same utterances may be interpreted quite differently depending on who makes them and in what variety of language they are made. 3) It discusses how certain terms have become pejorated over time when used to refer to women, such as words that were once gender neutral taking on negative connotations when applied to women.

Uploaded by

marissge909
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

Language and Power

•  What is power?
–  ability to control one’s environment, influence
events.
•  Power and Authority
•  Power, Hegemony and Discourse
–  Antonio Gramsci (1891–1937)
–  Michel Foucault (1926-1984)
Language and Power

So far, we’ve been studying language as if it were a


neutral system that just gets taken off the shelf and
used, then put back unchanged.
But language is a social practice, and every use carries
the potential for change.
Language and Power

So far, we’ve been studying language as a neutral


system whose locutions have the same illocutionary and
perlocutionary effect no matter who utters them.

But the same utterances may be interpreted quite


differently depending on who makes them - and what
variety they make them in.
Do these maxims work the same in every circumstance?
power and perlocutionary force

•  Why are you stirring counter-clockwise?


–  Chemistry student to teacher
–  Chemistry teacher to student
Indirect speech acts
Performing one speech act with the intention of
performing another.

•  Can/Could you pass the salt?


•  Would you remove your hat?
•  It would be nice if you were quieter.
•  It sure is cold in here.

•  Can I have this by 3:00?


–  Boss to secretary
–  1 secretary to another
–  Secretary to boss
Language and Power

So far, we’ve been studying language as if it simply


encoded predetermined meanings.

But linguistic practice is the means by which we create


new meanings.
Power, implicature, and pejoration

Common historical patterns by which terms for women are pejorated.

•  Asymmetric pairs: master - mistress

•  Words that used to simply refer to a female: wench, bitch, Spanish


puta

•  Words that originally applied to women and men: harlot (‘riff-raff’)

•  Words that were once neutral: hussy (‘housewife’) prude


(‘virtuous’)
Dialect humor – another kind of pejoration

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