Language in Use 115
This unit considers the way in which a particular use of language can exhibit
so distinctive a pattern that we can very readily identify it, even if we are
not very familiar with it. By taking a strongly defined example, a sermon,
the unit enables a class to discover how much they can deduce about a passage
from the language alone. A recording of a sermon is included in the Language
in Use tape, section E.
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[1] In this session the class should hear the tape of the sermon through
twice. Ask them what they think the recording is, and, when they have identified
it as a sermon, how they were able to do so. After a preliminary exploration,
the tape should be played again, and the ensuing discussion should be focused
upon such questions as
(a) why they think it is a sermon and not some other part of a religious service
(b) whether or not it could be a radio talk or a lecture
(c) whether it must have been preached in church or chapel rather than in a
secular setting like a school assembly
(d) whether there are any clues as to the variety of Christian belief it embodies
(e) what the preacher's relationship to his congregation was.
In this session, the class should be asked to concentrate on particular features of the language of the sermon. Play the tape again and ask the class to note down any features that strike them. In discussion, the focus should be upon the cumulative effect of individual items in the language of the sermon, and how far any unusualness derives from the way in which the voice is used. Such features might include, beside vocabulary and grammatical constructions, voice qualities and general method of delivery.
B2 will give a contrast between sermons and other forms of public speaking, while C3 is an approach to voice qualities. Reference may also be made to F6.