Language in Use 215-216
One aspect of our ability to handle relationships successfully is our facility
in interpreting a speaker's attitude to a subject and to us, even though the
necessary clues are not contained in the informational part of the message. Its
aim is to show that both the intonation of a message and our use of certain
common words and phrases often reveal an attitude to the matter in hand which
is contrary to what the actual words seem to be saying
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[1] The aim of this session is to see how far meaning can be varied merely by altering the intonation pattern of an utterance Ask the class to imagine a delicate situation' such as mother coming home with a new hairdo. In how many different ways can a simple response like 'It suits you' or 'I like it' be said in order to convey different shades of meaning? Explore two or three different examples and then look at the way these shades of meaning can be classified into categories like reservation, doubt or emphasis. Let the class work out its own set of labels and look for particular instances where there is strong disagreement as to what precisely a particular intonation pattern means.
[2] The aim of this session is to extend the work of [1] by considering
next how shades of meaning may be conveyed by using that group of words which
includes 'honestly', 'actually' and 'well. . .' Consider why these words occur,
if at all, at the beginning of an utterance. The scope of the discussion should
then be broadened to include words like 'frankly', clearly', 'rightly or wrongly'.
The discussion should then focus upon such questions as:
(a) what attitude to the listener does the word's use reveal?
(b) what does it reveal about the speaker's attitude to what he is going on
to say?
(c) do certain words indicate particular ranges of feeling?
(d) how important is the actual word used as opposed to the intonation with
which it is said?
[3] The aim of this session is to use the insight already gained to go on to the much more difficult problem of distinguishing between what a speaker appears to be saying and the way he is able to comment on what he is saving in the process of saying it. Divide the class into groups and ask each for a short, scripted conversation in which a speaker, by using a phrase like 'broadly speaking', 'far be it from me', 'I'm sorry but. . .' shows that his real feeling about something is not at all what it appears to be. Circulate the results and build tip on the board a picture of what kinds f comment have been used. Then explore them in discussion along the lines suggested in session [2].
Related topics are explored in C6, C7, and C8.