28 November 2018

How our language reveals how we understand the world – and who we are

Thora Tenbrink

“You talk like a teacher” – this kind of verdict can be heard when someone formulates their opinions in a somewhat pedagogical manner; hearers assume that the speaker thinks they know better than others. In my talk, I will look more closely at what is revealed about our thinking through the way we speak, through the kinds of words we use, in a specific context.

Language reflects thoughts and thought patterns in multiple ways, and certain patterns in language use reflect certain ways of thinking about the world. For instance, why do sailors rarely talk about ‘moving forwards’ the way you would do with a car? And why do musicians frequently use metaphors such as “a wall of sound” or “a forceful entrance” when communicating specific effects? Also, why can we often tell whether a speaker is an expert in the area they talk about?

Everyday language is full of features that reveal a lot about who we are – if we pay close attention. Cognitive Discourse Analysis (Tenbrink, 2015) was designed to address these effects systematically. In my talk, I will outline the motivation for this approach through a range of examples like the above, and provide a short introduction to the methodology.