Speaking Only Your Own Mind: Reflections on Talk, Gossip and Intentionality in Bosavi (PNG)

While there are many tantalizing claims, few ethnographic accounts provide linguistic, ethnographic, or what Duranti (1994) calls ethnopragmatic analyses that link these practices and attitudes to local language ideologies, speech genres and activities, notions of personhood and evidence, or to idea...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Anthropological quarterly 2008-04, Vol.81 (2), p.431-441
Main Author: Schieffelin, Bambi B.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Analysis
Anthropology
Behavior
Bosavi
Caregivers
Children
Christianity
Communication
Concept of mind
Confession
Ethnographic research
Ethnography
Field study
Gossip
Intention
Intentionality
Interpersonal Communication
Language
Language attitudes
Language contact
Language ideologies
Linguistic anthropology
Linguistics
Mind (Psychology)
Nonverbal Communication
Organizational socialization
Ownership
Papua New Guinea
Pastors
Personhood
Psychological aspects
Psychology
Reflection (Philosophy)
Rhetorical questions
Social interaction
Social Thoght & Commentary
Socialization
Speech
Theory of mind
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:While there are many tantalizing claims, few ethnographic accounts provide linguistic, ethnographic, or what Duranti (1994) calls ethnopragmatic analyses that link these practices and attitudes to local language ideologies, speech genres and activities, notions of personhood and evidence, or to ideas about the ownership and exchange of things and ideas, for example, that shape and give meaning to sociality. After outlining some relevant facts about language socialization, I offer material from more recent research trips in Bosavi involving a social drama centering on an accusation of gossip and the avoidance of confession to further explore connections among, and changes in, Bosavi preferences for not speaking another's thoughts.5 My work on language socialization directly addresses issues in discussions about theories of theory of mind, and argues for a cultural perspective, Vygotskian in nature, where language plays a central role (Astington 1996).
ISSN:0003-5491
1534-1518
1534-1518
DOI:10.1353/anq.0.0003