|
HIF-2014: Category formation and conceptual structure Work Load
10 credits (ECTS) | Type of course
Theoretical subject. | Level of course/Year of study
Normally third year. | Language of instruction
Norwegian/English | Examination semester
Autumn
| Objectives
The students should be able to show knowledge of the materials described in the course description. Students must also develop the skills for oral presentation and argumentation, as well as the skills necessary for group work and individual project work. | Contents
Languages split up time, space and other experiential categories in different ways. From lexical semantics we know that languages vary in how they categorise the spectre of colours. How we categorise our experiences linguistically also influences linguistic structure. For instance, many languages have grammatical gender, and this results in agreement, while other languages lack gender. Recent research shows that certain rules exist for gender assignment in nouns. In Norwegian, for example, a rule exists which assigns feminine gender to words for depressions in the terrain but masculine gender to words for peaks. This course will examine how language encodes our perception of time and of the internal structure of time in actions, our attitudes towards the content of what we say (our evaluations of the desirability or feasibility of the proposition). The course will also discuss diachronic aspects and examine the principles that govern changes in the content of grammatical categories over time, and the extent to which categories and their content can be said to be universal or culturally determined. We will attempt to shed light on the question of whether any relationship whatsoever exists between the physical conditions of a culture and the manner in which category formation takes place.
| Recommended previous qualifications
LIN-1011 Syntax, LIN-1012 Phonology | Form of teaching
Lectures, exercises, seminars, project work. Teaching period of approximately 12/14 weeks, individual study/project work 7 weeks. A total of 39 hours of teaching.
| Exam and assessment
Coursework Requirements: One oral presentation approximately halfway through the semester.
Assessment method:
Portfolio assessment: One paper, 3-4 pages (30%) approximately halfway through the semester, and a 4-hour written exam (70%).
Grading: Performance in the course will be assessed with the grades A-F.
Exam language(s): Norwegian/English | Contact person/lecturer
Professor Gillian Ramchand, tel.: 776 45620, e-mail: gillian.ramchand@hum.uit.no | Recommended reading/syllabus
Available on request |
|
