By Ceil Lucas
This introductory textual content celebrates one other size of variety within the usa Deaf community——variation within the method American signal Language (ASL) is utilized by Deaf humans all around the kingdom. different methods humans have of claiming or signing an identical factor defines version in language. In spoken English, a few humans say ''soda,'' others say ''pop,'' ''coke,'' or ''soft drink;'' in ASL, there are various symptoms for BIRTHDAY, HALLOWEEN, EARLY, and naturally, PIZZA.
''What's Your signal for PIZZA'' derives from an intensive seven-year study undertaking within which greater than two hundred Deaf ASL clients representing assorted a while, genders and ethnic teams from seven diverse areas have been videotaped sharing their symptoms for daily vocabulary. this helpful textual content and its accompanying CD starts off with a proof of the elemental suggestions of language and the constitution of signal language, for the reason that signal version abides by way of the foundations governing all human languages. each one a part of the textual content concludes with questions for dialogue, and the ultimate part bargains 3 supplemental readings that offer extra details on version in either spoken and signed languages. ''What's Your signal for PIZZA'' additionally in brief sketches the improvement of ASL, and is the reason the relationships among language forms during the nation.
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Extra info for What's Your Sign for Pizza?: An Introduction to Variation in American Sign Language
Example text
The analysis of pronoun use in stories such as the example given here shows that the variation is systematic. Signers used a pronoun with only 35 percent of the plain verbs. English influence is the most important factor in the variation—that is, if a sentence had some English-like structure, the signer was likely to produce the subject pronoun. Signers produced more first-person pronouns (“I”) than second- and third-person pronouns, both singular and plural. As we expected, pronouns tend to be left out more in same-reference situations and to be produced more in switchreference ones, although even with the subject changes, signers omitted the pronoun slightly more than half the time.
ANNOUNCE HAVE TIME 43 Chapter 5 NINE-O’CLOCK index-location SILENCE FOR ONE MINUTE. FINE. 1 CLASS TIME EIGHT T-(O) TEN. FINE. 3). 3 WANT HONOR. FINE. WELL GET-UP (CL: people standing in a semicircle). BE-QUIET. STAND. BE-QUIET. 1 OPEN-EYES. THINK ENOUGH TIME. 1 (CL: eyes look up). (rs: be startled). HOLD-IT. SILLY! STUDENT CRY+++. LOOK-AT. WOW TOUCH-HEART (rs: index-location). 3 SEVERAL FRIENDS DIE index-location TOO. 3 KNOW SOME PEOPLE index-location. WOW LOOK-AT WONDER TOUCH-HEART WOW. (How awful!
Researchers working on spoken language variation typically record only the voice; the face of the participant cannot be seen. But researchers working on sign language variation have to use video cameras, and this means that it is impossible to preserve the anonymity of the participants. The researchers and other people will see the participants’ faces. Because people may simply not want their faces shown in a relatively small community, it is often difficult to recruit participants in Deaf communities.