Linguistics
John B. Haviland
Pragmatics, semantics, syntax, conversation, discourse, sociolinguistics, multilingualism, language conflict, literacy, social anthropology, ethnographic theory, social history, social change, cognition, ethnomusicology, Meso-America, Australia.
Matt Pearson
Syntax, typology and language description, phonology, morphology, historical linguistics, the syntax-semantics interface, Austronesian.
The concepts of linguistics are widely applied throughout the arts
and humanities, and beyond into mathematics, logic, philosophy, and
psychology. The linguistic metalanguage allows the characterization
of literary style and genre, poetic meter, trope, and register; it
therefore enhances an appreciation of literary artifice. Linguistic
investigation permits analytical penetration into the ideas of
other cultures, distant in space or time; linguistics thus serves
students of history and anthropology. Analogies borrowed from
linguistics pervade social science and set many of the parameters
for the analysis of social phenomena writ large. The metalanguage
allows a proper appreciation of the relation of logic to language,
and of the bases in natural language for many ideas in philosophy:
not only the obvious candidates in rhetoric and poetics, but also
in logic, set theory, and formal semantics. Finally, the conceptual
apparatus of linguistics is essential to modern approaches to
cognition as an internalized language of mental
representation.
Reed offers a variety of linguistics and linguistics-related
courses, as listed below. In addition to an introductory course in
general linguistics, more specific offerings deal with morphology,
syntax, semantics, pragmatics, historical linguistics, language
typology, sociolinguistics, anthropological linguistics, and the
psychology of language. A formal major in the field is available in
which students pursue programs of study and write theses, combining
linguistics with other interests, including foreign languages,
English, anthropology, sociology, philosophy, mathematics,
psychology, and literature. Students of linguistics at Reed are
encouraged to create interdisciplinary links, pursuing such topics
as pragmatics and the philosophy of language; formal syntax and
topics in set theory, algebra, or logic; anthropological
linguistics and the sociological study of speech; bilingualism and
psycholinguistics; discourse, literacy, and orality combined with
folklore and literature; the linguistic analysis of specific
foreign languages; historical linguistics and the diversification
of languages; and cognition, mental representations, and semantic
or syntactic representations. Students may also have the
opportunity to engage in supervised linguistic fieldwork, locally
and abroad. Linguists in other departments offer courses with
linguistic content and have expertise in such language families as
Romance, Chinese, and North and Central American Indian languages.
In addition to courses on languages regularly taught at Reed,
visitors to the college have offered, on a special basis, courses
on the structures of less familiar languages. Students are advised
to consult special announcements and are encouraged to confer with
members of the faculty about supplementary or future
offerings.
This major is for those whose interest in linguistics is sufficient
to motivate a program of study that combines linguistics with basic
grounding in an allied field. The linguistics major is administered
by a standing committee normally including a member from each of
the History and Social Sciences, Literature and Languages, and
Philosophy, Religion, and Psychology divisions.
Admission to the Major
After passing Linguistics 311 (or an equivalent), the prospective
linguistics major must present to the committee, for its approval,
a plan of study and a coherent rationale.
Requirements for the Major
1. Linguistics 311, six additional courses in linguistics (or
cross-listed in linguistics).
2. Competence in two languages other than English, equivalent to
second-year college-level proficiency in one language, and at least
first-year college-level proficiency in the second.
3. A total of four semester units in an allied field, none of which
can be used to fulfill 1 or 2 above. Some representative examples
are Anthropology 211 plus three upper-division anthropology courses
(including linguistics courses); or four courses in psychology,
including the introductory course; or four courses from the
Division of Literature and Languages; or four courses in
mathematics; and so forth. Other combinations, as appropriate to a
student’s needs and subject to the rationale mentioned above, will
be entertained.
4. A junior qualifying examination in linguistic theory and method,
to be attempted after taking no fewer than five units of
linguistics. An element of the examination will be a thesis
proposal.
5. Linguistics 470 (thesis), which may, as appropriate, be jointly
supervised by faculty members from linguistics and an allied
field.
Recommended:
1. Further courses in the allied field and in linguistics.
2. At least one classical language (Greek or Latin) as part of, or
in addition to, the language requirement above. Additionally, more
advanced competence in the languages used to meet that
requirement.
3. Courses in anthropology, psychology, and/or philosophy, in
addition to courses in the student’s chosen allied field, if it is
not one of these. Students’ attention is particularly drawn to
those courses dealing with poetry, prose style, and the grammars of
individual languages, both modern and classical, in the Division of
Literature and Languages; courses on logic and the philosophy of
language; and courses on cognition, mental representations, and
psycholinguistics.
Group and Division Applicability
Of the courses described below, Anthropology 332 and
Anthropology/Linguistics 311, 312, 313, 332, 348, 373, and 430
count towards the Group B requirement. These courses count towards
divisional requirements in History and Social Sciences, if taken as
anthropology courses. Anthropology/Linguistics 311, 312, and 348
and Linguistics 321, 323, 324, 326, 328, 329, 332, 336, 338, 341,
344, and 373 count toward the Group D requirement.
Linguistics/Psychology 296 and 393 count toward either Group B or
Group D.
Linguistics Course Descriptions
