Matching Items (16)
Description
This study is based on 31 interviews conducted in 2012 with male, female, and transgender sex workers at the St. James Infirmary, a full-spectrum health clinic run by sex workers for sex workers, located in San Francisco, California. My primary goals were, first, to document the lived realities of a diverse range of sex workers who live and work in the San Francisco Bay Area, and, second, to understand the impact of sex work discourse on the facilitation of stigma toward the sex work community and, finally, how that stigma influences the sex worker group identity and individual identity constructions. My primary findings indicate that although sex work discourse has traditionally been constructed within the dominant public sphere and not by sex workers themselves, this discourse has a profound effect on creating and perpetuating the stigma associated with sex work. In turn, this stigma affects both how the group and how individuals construct their identities, often negatively. Alternatively, a benefit of stigma is that it can induce the production of counterpublics which facilitate the emergence of new discourse. However, for this new discourse to gain acceptance into the public sphere, activist organizations must utilize traditional (and sometimes unintentionally marginalizing) strategies that can impact both the identity construction of the group and of individuals within the group. Understanding these complex relationships is therefore essential to understanding how activist organizations, such as the St. James Infirmary, situate themselves within the larger dominant public sphere, their impact on sex work discourse, and their impact on individual sex worker identity construction.
ContributorsRead, Kathleen (Author) / Adams, Karen L (Thesis advisor) / Katsulis, Yasmina (Thesis advisor) / Adelman, Madelaine (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2013
Description
Lakoff and Levinson claim they have discredited the theory of universal grammar. This dissertation discusses the possibility of a universal humor, suggesting that if universals exist in language's most playful and least rule-governed aspect then they must exist in grammar, language's least playful and most rule-governed aspect. Lakoff's and Levinson's texts are closely analyzed to demonstrate that their claims against Chomsky are not firmly supported; that their groundbreaking new theories of language, perception and cognition do not constitute data that undermines Chomskyan theory; that Levinson's theory of a universal mechanism for human interaction is no stronger than the the grammar universals that Levinson strongly rejects. It is suggested that the litmus test of culture-specific versus universal language may be its level of rhetorical density, as illustrated with humor and naming samples. It is argued that Fillmore's deep case theory, as explained by Nilsen using semantic features and pragmatic intent, has never lost its status as a linguistic universal; Chomsky's theoretical debt to Charles Fillmore may indicate that he unconsciously used Fillmore's deep case, which for Chomsky became thematic relations, without realizing that Fillmore had been the impetus for his research. It is argued that none of the theories of universality, typology or conceptual metaphor may be considered mutually exclusive.
ContributorsNathan, Sheri (Author) / Nilsen, Don L. F. (Thesis advisor) / Adams, Karen L (Committee member) / Nilsen, Alleen (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2011
Description
Using a sociocultural framework, this dissertation investigated the writing processes of 31 ESL learners in an EAP context at a large North American university. The qualitative case study involved one of the four major writing assignments in a required first-year composition course for ESL students. Data were collected from four different sources: (a) A semi-structured interview with each participant, (b) process logs kept by participants for the entire duration of the writing assignment, (c) classroom observation notes, and (d) class materials. Findings that emerged through analyses of activity systems, an analytical framework within Vygotskian activity theory, indicate that L2 writers used various context-specific, social, and cultural affordances to accomplish the writing tasks. The study arrived at these findings by creating taxonomies of the six activity system elements - subject, tools, goals, division of labor, community, and rules - as they were realized by L2 writers, and examining the influence that these elements had in the process of composing. The analysis of data helped create categories of each of the six activity system elements. To illustrate with an example, the categories that emerged within the element division of labor were as follows: (a) Instructor, (b) friends and classmates, (c) writing center tutors, (d) family members, and (e) people in the world. The emergent categories for each of the six activity system elements were then examined to determine if their effects on L2 writing were positive or negative. Overall, the findings of the present study validate arguments related to the post-process views that an explanation of L2 writing processes solely based on cognitive perspectives provides but only a partial picture of how second language writing takes place. In order for a more comprehensive understanding of L2 writing one must also account for the various social and cultural factors that play critical roles in the production of L2 texts.
ContributorsBhowmik, Subrata Kumar (Author) / Adams, Karen L (Thesis advisor) / James, Mark A (Committee member) / Major, Roy C (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
Extensive cross-linguistic data document a wide gamut of semantic and pragmatic uses of the diminutive that revolve around the fundamental concepts of `small' and `child'. As typical inventory of informal registers, diminutives are utilized as pragmatic markers of politeness in a wide range of contextual meanings. This dissertation is intended to fill some major gaps in the systematic and empirical research on the formation and pragmatic uses of the diminutives in Macedonian and to explore the role of diminutivization in a broader linguistic framework, by examining the consistency of the field of diminutives, the core and peripheral meanings of the diminutive, their typology, as well as their pragmatic potential. The morphology and pragmatics of the diminutive is examined by combining data from electronic and printed sources, video recordings of natural conversations, as well as from material collected from participant and non-participant observations. At the level of morphology, it is argued that three fundamental semantic constraints underlie the formation of diminutives: [-big], [+ emotional], and [+ informal]. Furthermore, it is shown how diminutive combinability is rule governed in Macedonian by proposing sets of formal constraints for all grades of diminutives. At the level of pragmatics, the pragmatic functions of the diminutives proper and the related periphrastic diminutive malku are investigated in a variety of contexts involving child-directed speech (CDS) and adult communication. By analyzing the pragmatic functions of the diminutive in a series of speech acts, and drawing upon cross-cultural interpretations suggested by Wierzbicka (1991), it is argued that, in Macedonian, social bonding, cordiality, intimacy or affection are pragmatically more salient than personal autonomy in the Anglo-Saxon societies, realized through non-imposition, tentativeness, or similar pragmatic strategies for saving face. Additionally, it is contended that there exist cultural differences in the assessment of the concept of imposition between these societies. The analyses of the pragmatic potential of the diminutive proper and the periphrastic diminutive 'malku' give rise to the claim that Macedonian culture is predominantly founded on the pragmatic principle of positive politeness.
ContributorsSpasovski, Lupco (Author) / Adams, Karen L (Thesis advisor) / Gelderen, Elly van (Committee member) / Sipka, Danko (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
This dissertation examines the organizational discourse of business meetings in a Kuwaiti financial organization (Innovative Kuwait Co., pseudonym) and an American non-profit trade organization (Global Phoenix, pseudonym). Specifically, I explore the discourse and social identities, agency, and power used in staff members' task-oriented business meetings (Bargiela-Chiappini & Harris, 1997). The study is based on ethnographic business meetings data collected during eight months of fieldwork in 2010, 2011 and 2012. I used three major qualitative methodologies: observation, audio recording, and feedback focus group. In this study, I propose three research questions: 1) How does agency of staff members reflect membership in the corporate culture of an organization as a whole? 2) How is power used in relation to agency in business meetings? And 3) How are discourse and social identities of staff members enacted in business meetings? The analyses of ethnographic and fieldwork data demonstrate similar and different business linguistic behaviors in the two companies. In Innovative Kuwait Co., male managers are responsible for opening and closing the meetings. They also perform power by using language directives and suggestions directed to staff members. In contrast, female staff members in the Kuwaiti company participated insignificantly in meetings and produce more nonverbal cues. However, in one meeting, a female manager organized the discussion by controlling topics and giving directions. In Global Phoenix, female managers outnumber their male counterparts; therefore, agency, power, discourse, and social identities are performed differently. Female managers are responsible for opening and closing the meetings and for organizing the overall discussions. Additionally, female and male staff members participate equally and they interrupted their colleagues less frequently compared to staff members in Kuwait. Interestingly, American staff members laugh and joke more together than staff members in Kuwait. The findings of this dissertation will contribute to existing linguistic literature on business discourse and the examination of social meanings and structures in organizations, explaining how language shapes the actions and relationships of business staff members. This dissertation will also encourage business people to become mindful of the role of language and language training in developing and maintaining the corporate culture of their organizations.
ContributorsAlHaidari, Fatma M. (Author) / Adams, Karen L (Thesis advisor) / Prior, Matthew (Committee member) / Broome, Benjamin (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2012
Description
A critical discourse analysis (CDA) was employed to examine judicial opinions in the United States and Russia on the free speech provisions in their respective constitutions. As a research perspective, CDA is designed to directly speak to social change, focusing on power, history, ideology, and language’s role as a social phenomenon in expressing values of individuals and social groups (Wodak & Meyer, 2001). Fairclough’s (2001) methodological approach to CDA was selected for its consistency and structure in examining societal issues in CDA; namely, a five-stage approach that includes: (1) focusing on a social problem that possesses a semiotic aspect; (2) identifying obstacles to addressing the problem through text as semiosis (in relation to his three-part model addressed above); (3) considering whether the social structure “needs” the problem; (4) identifying potential routes to overcome the obstacles, and (5) reflecting critically on the first four stages. This methodological framework was utilized in answering the following research questions: (1) What are the textual and constructive differences in the U.S. and Russian constitutional free speech provisions and judicial systems? (2) How do the differences in (1) affect the protection of individual speech rights? (3)What are avenues to protect or improve speech rights in the future? The results of this study manifested similar structures of power and methods of defending the courts’ authority, notwithstanding different cultural understanding of free speech and jurisprudential approaches.
ContributorsWeaver, Amanda (Author) / Sipka, Danko (Thesis advisor) / Adams, Karen (Committee member) / Bambauer, Jane (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2019
Description
Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita has been misunderstood by some scholars in terms of interpreting the character of Ivan, otherwise known as Homeless. Past researchers have looked at Ivan and found him to be a spiritual failure in not carrying on the tale of the Master's novel. In this paper, it is argued Ivan the poet actually achieves a spiritual state superior to the other character's in the novel. By the novel's end readers witness a rebirth of Ivan into one who yearly has a intimate spiritual vision involving Yeshua. Meanwhile other characters like the Master or his love Margarita end the novel in only a purgatory-like space which leaves them neither in the arms of a spiritual experience nor on earth. But Ivan is able to experience both the spiritual and the physical at the same time. Conclusions of this nature are drawn from the writings of Orthodox Father Pavel Florensky whose writings on aesthetics are heavily reflected in the novel. Ivan comes to embody the standard of Fr. Florensky's writings which glorify a person who has turned towards God. This then is the ultimate in beauty, the reflection of God who is the standard of goodness and beauty. Ivan then at the novel's end is able to experience a sense of closeness with God through a vision where he sees a Christlike figure. The dream causes him to become calm and at peace. He has in effect turned towards God and then embodies the goodness of God. Therefore, the spiritual state of Ivan is one who has garnered a closer connection with God than any other character in the novel.
ContributorsPierce, Phillip David (Author) / Orlich, Ileana (Thesis director) / Sipka, Danko (Committee member) / College of Integrative Sciences and Arts (Contributor) / School of Politics and Global Studies (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2017-05
Description
Does immigrating to a foreign country cause you to become less inclined to use the traditional health remedies of your homeland? Is it possible that you can be more convinced of the effectiveness of the practices of health of your native country when you are exposed to health practices of different cultures? The aim of this study was to gain insight into how immigration and culture can affect the confidence people have in health practices. Russian natives (n=106) and Russian immigrants (n=46) were asked if they had experienced Russian health remedies and if so, for what illnesses and ailments? The participants were then asked to rate the effectiveness of 10 traditional health remedies. It was hypothesized that the sample of Russians living in America would rate traditional Russian health remedies as being less effective. The participants were asked to complete a survey distributed electronically and available in English or in Russian. Overall the results of the study did not support the hypothesis. In fact, the mean rating for health remedy effectiveness was higher for the sample of Russians in America than for the sample of Russians living in Russia. However, this measured difference between sample means is not particularly convincing because of a lack of statistical significance as measured by the Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon W statistical tests. For 7 of the 10 remedies (vodka, garlic, dry mustard, gorchichniki, banki, potato steam, zelyonka and raspberry tea), the data did not show strong statistical evidence that attitudes generally change after immigration. The three health remedies that did show statistical significance were garlic, goosegrass, and use of a banya.
ContributorsDavis, Mitchell Sparling (Author) / Sipka, Danko (Thesis director) / Moldabekova, Saule (Committee member) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-12
Description
The purpose of this creative project is to develop an Android application which teaches English speakers Sakha language. Sakha is the language of indigenous people of Sakha Republic in Russia's Far East region. There are approximately half of a million Sakha people. Creating Learn Sakha app will be useful for English speakers, who are descendants of Sakha but live in English-speaking countries, to learn Sakha language. For the application development, I utilized Android Studio environment and Java as the programming language. Additionally, I saved quiz questions in the JSON file to allow further scalability. Question class was created to hold the values extracted from JSON file. Also, I used Intents and SharedPrefences for saving user data. Progress bar, buttons, and onClick sound effects were used to enhance user experience. I shared the Learn Sakha app at different stages of development with my friends to gather user feedback. Overall, I learned how to create an application on Android Studio, improved my Java and troubleshooting skills. As the result of this creative project, I was able to develop a working Android application with four lessons, each with three stages. Currently, there are 16 Sakha words can be learned from the application. Repetition principle was used to improve learning of new words. I am planning to further develop Learn Sakha app as an open source project and attract developers, linguists, and designers to advance the improvements. Furthermore, this app can be extended to learn Sakha from Russian and be shared with other small languages, currently neglected by large language-learning platforms.
ContributorsEverstova, Rozaliya (Author) / Sipka, Danko (Thesis director) / Ahmad, Altaf (Committee member) / Department of Information Systems (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05
Description
This study offers a critical discourse analysis of four Saudi newspapers, examining their coverage of two particular incidents relating to the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. Following van Dijk’s framework, the study examines the ideological role of language within media discourse. The tools of analysis include headlines, leads, lexical choices, reported speech, unnamed sources, and silenced texts. The findings of the study show that there are differences between the four newspapers in the coverage of the two incidents. The analysis also reveals different ideological attitudes among writers.
ContributorsAlshalawi, Hamad (Author) / Adams, Karen L (Thesis advisor) / Long, Elenore (Committee member) / Prior, Mathew (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016