Introduction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny Audring ◽  
Sebastian Fedden
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Single Gender ◽  
System P ◽  
The World ◽  
Canonical Ideal ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Gender System

Grammatical gender systems vary widely across the languages of the world. Many conform to the canonical ideal in that each noun belongs to a single gender, and this gender is reflected in the agreement affixes on various words throughout the sentence. Other systems diverge from this ideal, some quite substantially. This chapter is the opening chapter of a unique collection of non-canonical gender systems from a variety of language families across the world. It outlines the theoretical perspective taken in the volume—Canonical Typology—and introduces the individual chapters, highlighting in what particular ways each language discussed in the book has a non-canonical gender system.

Canonical gender

2015 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 495-531 ◽  
Author(s):  
GREVILLE G. CORBETT ◽  
SEBASTIAN FEDDEN
Keyword(s):  
Classification Systems ◽  
Single Type ◽  
Entire System ◽  
Single Gender ◽  
Parts Of Speech ◽  
The World ◽  
Canonical Ideal ◽  
Typological Approach ◽  
Nominal Classification ◽  
Gender System

Nominal classification remains a fascinating topic but in order to make further progress we need greater clarity of definition and analysis. Taking a Canonical Typology approach, we use canonical gender as an ideal against which we can measure the actual gender systems we find in the languages of the world. Building on previous work on canonical morphosyntactic features, particularly on how they intersect with canonical parts of speech, we establish the distinctiveness of gender, reflected in the Canonical Gender Principle: In a canonical gender system, each noun has a single gender value. We develop three criteria associated with this principle, which together ensure that canonically a noun has exactly one gender value; we give examples of non-canonicity for each criterion, thus gradually building the typology. This is the essential groundwork for a comprehensive typology of nominal classification: the Canonical Typological approach allows us to tease apart clusterings of properties and to characterize individual properties with respect to a canonical ideal, rather than requiring us to treat the entire system as belonging to a single type. This approach is designed to facilitate comparisons of different noun classification systems across languages.

New approaches to the typology of gender

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Greville G. Corbett ◽  
Sebastian Fedden
Keyword(s):  
Single Gender ◽  
Parts Of Speech ◽  
New Approaches ◽  
The World ◽  
Nominal Classification ◽  
Gender System

Nominal classification remains a fascinating topic. To make further progress in this area we need greater clarity of definition and analysis. We use canonical gender as an ideal against which we can measure the great variety of the actual gender systems we find in the languages of the world. Starting from previous work on canonical morphosyntactic features, particularly on how they intersect with canonical parts of speech, we establish the distinctiveness of gender, reflected in the Canonical Gender Principle: In a canonical gender system, each noun has a single gender value. We develop three criteria associated with this principle, which together ensure that canonically a noun has exactly one gender value. We give examples of non-canonicity for each criterion, and this establishes a substantial typological space, which accommodates the various non-canonical gender systems in the languages featured in this volume.

The starting point

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michele Loporcaro
Keyword(s):  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
European Perspective ◽  
System P ◽  
Inherent Feature ◽  
Starting Point ◽  
Word Classes ◽  
Gender System

The chapter describes the three-gender system of Latin, with a particular focus on the neuter gender: unlike the masculine and feminine, this was not only assigned to nouns as an inherent feature, and used to specify words from other word classes agreeing with those nouns, but it also served default functions in a range of contexts. Arguably, this property was inherited from (late) Proto-Indo-European, as was the three-way gender system itself, in which the neuter seems to have contrasted with masculine/feminine in terms of (in)animacy. Simplification of the gender system in most of Romance is placed in the broader Indo-European perspective, showing that in most branches the gender contrasts have reduced via a drift that reaches its endpoint in the eradication of grammatical gender in, for example Armenian or Farsi. Within this picture, some Romance dialects apparently deviate, showing complexification rather than simplification of the gender system.

Gender

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny Audring
Keyword(s):  
Second Language ◽  
Second Language Acquisition ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Feminine Gender ◽  
Biological Sex ◽  
The World ◽  
Broad Variety ◽  
Formal Properties ◽  
Gender System

Gender is a grammatical feature, in a family with person, number, and case. In the languages that have grammatical gender—according to a representative typological sample, almost half of the languages in the world—it is a property that separates nouns into classes. These classes are often meaningful and often linked to biological sex, which is why many languages are said to have a “masculine” and a “feminine” gender. A typical example is Italian, which has masculine words for male persons (il bambino “the.m little boy”) and feminine words for female persons (la bambina “the.f little girl”). However, gender systems may be based on other semantic distinctions or may reflect formal properties of the noun. In all cases, the defining property is agreement: the behavior of associated words. In Italian, the masculine gender of the noun bambino matches its meaning as well as its form—the noun ends in –o and inflects like a regular –o class noun—but the true indicator of gender is the form of the article. This can be seen in words like la mano “the.f hand,” which is feminine despite its final -o, and il soprano “the.m soprano,” which is masculine, although it usually refers to a woman. For the same reasons, we speak of grammatical gender only if the distinction is reflected in syntax; a language that has words for male and female persons or animals does not necessarily have a gender system. Across the languages of the world, gender systems vary widely. They differ in the number of classes, in the underlying assignment rules, and in how and where gender is marked. Since agreement is a definitional property, gender is generally absent in isolating languages as well as in young languages with little bound morphology, including sign languages. Therefore, gender is considered a mature phenomenon in language. Gender interacts in various ways with other grammatical features. For example, it may be limited to the singular number or the third person, and it may be crosscut by case distinctions. These and other interrelations can complicate the task of figuring out a gender system in first or second language acquisition. Yet, children master gender early, making use of a broad variety of cues. By contrast, gender is famously difficult for second-language learners. This is especially true for adults and for learners whose first language does not have a gender system. Nevertheless, tests show that even for this group, native-like competence is possible to attain.

scholarly journals Grammatical gender in German language and the acquisition of this systemAlmancada dilbilgisel cinsiyet sitemi ve bu sistemin yabancı dil olarak edinimi

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 837
Author(s):  
Mehmet Halit Atlı
Keyword(s):  
Detailed Examination ◽  
Grammatical Gender ◽  
Definite Article ◽  
German Language ◽  
Complex Nature ◽  
Irregular Structures ◽  
The People ◽  
System P ◽  
Determination Process ◽  
Gender System

<p>It is said that the learning/acquisition of German language as L2 is difficult. The possible reason for this opinion is German grammatical gender system, because it has a very unorderly and complex nature system. By each grammatical rules of this language has got a series of exception rules. We are witnessed that, both linguists and educators, who are expert in languages, as well as the people, who are not experts in the language, are often commented the multitude of exceptions in grammatical rules and the difficulty of grammatical gender system of this language. Some modern linguists say that, this language has no rules to determine the grammatical gender system and goes further and say, each substantive should be memorized with its definite article.</p><p>However, it is not correct to say that the language occurred from irregular structures, above all there is no language in the world, particularly the natural language occurs from a number of irregular structures. The modern linguistics says the building of words and sentence is not arbitrary, they occur in a certain harmony. However, many of the studies of descriptive linguistics analysis showed that, the leaner of German language acquired the grammatical gender system; during they handled the words in a process of morphological, semantic and phonological according some inductive rules. But in which extent the acquirers use the rules of this language as L2 and how they use exactly the rules is unknown.</p><p>In this study, we have showed the concept of grammatical gender, the use of its in German language, its specifications, functions and we have made a detailed examination of the various studies conducted on this issue. Furthermore, we have got soughed the answer of acquisition process of grammatical gender system and the formulated grammatical gender determination process by L2 learner.</p><p> </p><p><strong>Özet</strong></p><p>Almancanın yabancı dil (L2) olarak öğrenilmesi/edinilmesi zor bir dil olduğu söylenilir. Bu düşüncenin başlıca nedenlerinden biri tanesi bu dilde olup Türkçede olmayan çok kurallı ve karmaşık bir yapısı olan dilbilgisel cinsiyet sistemi ile her bir dilbilgisel kuralın yanında neredeyse bir dizi yan kuralın (istisna) daha bulunmasındandır. Bu dildeki dilbilgisel cinsiyet sisteminin çok kurallı ve karmaşıklığına ve dilbilgisindeki istisnaların çokluğuna ilişkin benzer açıklamalar, hem bu dilin uzmanı olan dilbilimci ve eğitmenler, hem de bu dilin uzmanı olmayan sıradan kişiler tarafından sık sık yapıldığına şahit oluyoruz.</p><p>Hatta bazı çağdaş dilbilimciler, bu dilin dilbilgisel cinsiyet sistemini belirlemenin hiçbir kuralı olmadığını ve her tekil ismin artikeli ile birlikte ezberlenmesi gerektiğini söyleyecek kadar ileri giderler. Hâlbuki dünyadaki hiçbir dilin, özellikle doğal dillerin bir takım kuralsız yapılardan meydana geldiğini ve bu yapıların öğreniminin/ediniminin semaî olduğunu söylemek doğru değildir. Çünkü modern dilbilim, doğal dillerde bazı kuralsız yapıların olmasına rağmen her dilin bir kurallar bütünü olduğunu, cümlelerin yapıtaşı olan kelimelerin dizilişinin rastgele olmadığını, sözdizimi ve kelime üretiminin belli bir ahenk içinde meydana geldiğini ortaya koymuştur. Betimleyici dilbilim çözümlemesi ile yapılan çalışmalarının birçoğu, dilbilgisel cinsiyet sistemini edinmeye çalışan öğrenicilerin öğrenme/edinme sürecinde biçimbilimsel, anlamsal ve ses bilimsel ilkelere bağlı bazı tümevarımlı kurallara göre hareket ettiklerini gösteriyor. Ancak bu dili L2 olarak edinmeye çalışanların bu kuralları hangi ölçüde ve nasıl kullandıkları sorularına ise tam olarak henüz cevap veril(e)memiştir.</p><p>Mevcut çalışmada, dilbilgisel cinsiyet kavramının ne olduğu, Almancadaki kullanımı, belirtkeleri, işlevi ve önceden nasıl belirleneceği hususunda bu konuda yapılan çeşitli çalışmaların ayrıntılı incelemesi yapılmıştır. Buna ilaveten dilbilgisel cinsiyet sistemi için formüle edilen dilbilgisel cinsiyet belirleme ilkelerinin L2 edinim işleme sürecinde ne kadar etkili kullanıldığı sorusuna cevap aranmıştır.</p>

New walls to keep the bad out: populism and the totalitarian psyche

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 120-130
Author(s):  
Coline Covington
Keyword(s):  
Cold War ◽  
Balance Of Power ◽  
Berlin Wall ◽  
Group Solidarity ◽  
Freedom Of Movement ◽  
Psychological Understanding ◽  
Psychic Development ◽  
The World ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Cold War

The Berlin Wall came down on 9 November 1989 and marked the end of the Cold War. As old antagonisms thawed a new landscape emerged of unification and tolerance. Censorship was no longer the principal means of ensuring group solidarity. The crumbling bricks brought not only freedom of movement but freedom of thought. Now, nearly thirty years later, globalisation has created a new balance of power, disrupting borders and economies across the world. The groups that thought they were in power no longer have much of a say and are anxious about their future. As protest grows, we are beginning to see that the old antagonisms have not disappeared but are, in fact, resurfacing. This article will start by looking at the dissembling of a marriage in which the wall that had peacefully maintained coexistence disintegrates and leads to a psychic development that uncannily mirrors that of populism today. The individual vignette leads to a broader psychological understanding of the totalitarian dynamic that underlies populism and threatens once again to imprison us within its walls.

Virginia Woolf and Being-in-the-world

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma Simone
Keyword(s):  
Virginia Woolf ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
The Political ◽  
Cartesian Dualism ◽  
Self And Other ◽  
The World ◽  
Binary Oppositions ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Existential Perspective

Virginia Woolf and Being-in-the-world: A Heideggerian Study explores Woolf’s treatment of the relationship between self and world from a phenomenological-existential perspective. This study presents a timely and compelling interpretation of Virginia Woolf’s textual treatment of the relationship between self and world from the perspective of the philosophy of Martin Heidegger. Drawing on Woolf’s novels, essays, reviews, letters, diary entries, short stories, and memoirs, the book explores the political and the ontological, as the individual’s connection to the world comes to be defined by an involvement and engagement that is always already situated within a particular physical, societal, and historical context. Emma Simone argues that at the heart of what it means to be an individual making his or her way in the world, the perspectives of Woolf and Heidegger are founded upon certain shared concerns, including the sustained critique of Cartesian dualism, particularly the resultant binary oppositions of subject and object, and self and Other; the understanding that the individual is a temporal being; an emphasis upon intersubjective relations insofar as Being-in-the-world is defined by Being-with-Others; and a consistent emphasis upon average everydayness as both determinative and representative of the individual’s relationship to and with the world.

“Utopia First!” A Machiavellian Conception of Solidarity in More's Utopia

Moreana ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (Number 209) (1) ◽  
pp. 79-93
Author(s):  
Marie-Claire Phélippeau
Keyword(s):  
At Risk ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Farm Work ◽  
The World ◽  
Social Difficulties ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Democratic Elections ◽  
Communal Organization

This paper shows how solidarity is one of the founding principles in Thomas More's Utopia (1516). In the fictional republic of Utopia described in Book II, solidarity has a political and a moral function. The principle is at the center of the communal organization of Utopian society, exemplified in a number of practices such as the sharing of farm work, the management of surplus crops, or the democratic elections of the governor and the priests. Not only does solidarity benefit the individual Utopian, but it is a prerequisite to ensure the prosperity of the island of Utopia and its moral preeminence over its neighboring countries. However, a limit to this principle is drawn when the republic of Utopia faces specific social difficulties, and also deals with the rest of the world. In order for the principle of solidarity to function perfectly, it is necessary to apply it exclusively within the island or the republic would be at risk. War is not out of the question then, and compassion does not apply to all human beings. This conception of solidarity, summed up as “Utopia first!,” could be dubbed a Machiavellian strategy, devised to ensure the durability of the republic. We will show how some of the recommendations of Realpolitik made by Machiavelli in The Prince (1532) correspond to the Utopian policy enforced to protect their commonwealth.

Drowning in negativism, self-hate, doubt, madness: Linguistic insights into Sylvia Plath’s experience of depression

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zsófia Demjén
Keyword(s):  
Lived Experience ◽  
Medical Humanities ◽  
Sylvia Plath ◽  
Individual Experience ◽  
Qualitative And Quantitative ◽  
The World ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Linguistic Methods ◽  
Linguistic Approach

This paper demonstrates how a range of linguistic methods can be harnessed in pursuit of a deeper understanding of the ‘lived experience’ of psychological disorders. It argues that such methods should be applied more in medical contexts, especially in medical humanities. Key extracts from The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia Plath are examined, as a case study of the experience of depression. Combinations of qualitative and quantitative linguistic methods, and inter- and intra-textual comparisons are used to consider distinctive patterns in the use of metaphor, personal pronouns and (the semantics of) verbs, as well as other relevant aspects of language. Qualitative techniques provide in-depth insights, while quantitative corpus methods make the analyses more robust and ensure the breadth necessary to gain insights into the individual experience. Depression emerges as a highly complex and sometimes potentially contradictory experience for Plath, involving both a sense of apathy and inner turmoil. It involves a sense of a split self, trapped in a state that one cannot overcome, and intense self-focus, a turning in on oneself and a view of the world that is both more negative and more polarized than the norm. It is argued that a linguistic approach is useful beyond this specific case.

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