Language and Power

Essential study guides for the future linguist. Language and Power is an introduction to how English is used to influence, persuade and position us within hierarchies. It is suitable for students at advanced level and beyond. Written with input from the Cambridge English Corpus, it looks at the linguistic techniques in situations where language is used to exert influence, exploring how contexts affect the language we use. Short activities help explain analysis methods, guiding students through major modern issues and concepts. It summarises key concerns and modern findings, while providing inspiration for language investigations and non-examined assessments (NEAs) with research suggestions.

1. Language and power: 1.1. Inequality and power imbalance in society; 1.2. The power of language; 2. Types of power: 2.1. Concepts about power; 2.2. Politeness as a power tool; 2.3. Power and genre; 3. Language, power and the media: 3.1. Access to the media; 3.2. The language and power of journalism; 3.3. The language and power of advertising; 3.4. The language and power of charity appeals; 4. Language, power and occupation: 4.1. Exclusive features of occupational language; 4.2. Workplace interactions; 4.3. The negotiation of roles: the customer is always right; 5. Language, power and education: 5.1. Traditional classroom discourse; 5.2. A more collaborative classroom; 6. Language, power and politics: 6.1. Ideology and critical discourse analysis; 6.2. Political rhetoric in speeches, interviews and debates; 7. Language, power and the law: 7.1. A register rooted in tradition; 7.2. Functions and features of legal language in written discourse; 7.3. Spoken language in the courtroom; Ideas and answers; References.