Language and Communication in Society

This course explores the fundamental relationship between language, communication, and human society. Students will examine core questions – such as the nature of language and its societal functions – through the lens of foundational theories and real-world case studies. The curriculum is designed to sharpen high-level academic and English proficiency through research, critical thinking, and collaborative discourse. 

By the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Conduct Research: Produce a coherent, properly cited academic essay on a relevant topic.

• Present Findings: Deliver a professional oral presentation supported by audio-visual aids.

• Engage in Discourse: Participate actively in constructive and critical academic dialogues.

• Master Note-Taking: Capture precise and rigorous notes from sophisticated academic lectures. 

Learning is facilitated through a blend of lectures and group discussions. Assessment through in-class exams and a term paper ensures students develop clarity, rigour, and precision in both their written and spoken academic communication. 

Course Plan

1.       Introduction: language and communication

2.   Language in history and culture

3.   Forms of language

4.   The written world

5.   The politics and practice of reading

6.   Mid-term in-class exam 

7.   Dialogue, conversation, literature

8.   The artist as visual communicator

9.   Language in a multicultural society

10.   Communication and modern culture

11.   Telling stories

12.   Course review. Oral presentations skills

13.   Students’ presentations

14.   Students’ presentations 

15.   Final in-class exam

Bibliography:

Jean F. Wallwork, Language and People (1978)

Dwight L. Bolinger, Aspects of Language (1968)

David Abercrombie, Elements of General Phonetics (1967)

John Lyons, Language and Linguistics: An Introduction (1981)

Dell Hymes (ed.), Language in Culture and Society (1964)

Roy Harris, The Language Myth (1981)

George A. Miller, Language and Speech (1981)

Michael Morris, An Introduction to the Philosophy of Language (2008)

Hans Aarsleff, From Locke to Saussure: Essays on the Study of Language and Intellectual History (1982)

Barry Lee, ed. Philosophy of Language: The Key Thinkers (2011)

Noam Chomsky, The Science of Language (2012)

Jeremy Campbell, Grammatical Man: Information, Entropy, Language, and Life (1982) Derek Bickerton, Roots of Language (1981)

Graham D. Martin, The Architecture of Experience: A Discussion of the Role of Language and Literature in the Construction of the World (1981)