Volume Two, Number Two
ABSTRACTS
Articles
Defining the concept
of a loan word in Japanese: Results from a survey of 860 respondents
Takako Tomoda, Monash University
The Japanese term gairaigo is frequently used as a gloss for loanword. However, formal Japanese definitions of gairaigo generally exclude words borrowed from Chinese from the scope of this term. Upon inspection of the usage of the main Japanese terms for the three main word categories wago (native Japanese words), kango (words of Chinese origin) and gairaigo (loanwords), it was found that words were classified not by actual origin, but by apparent origin. Consequently both the kango and gairaigo portions of the Japanese vocabulary contain both loanwords and words coined in Japan from borrowed elements. In surveys of the responses of the Japanese public to gairaigo , the definition of this term has not generally been ascertained even though the influx of gairaigo into everyday life has been one of the main issues polled in most surveys on public attitudes towards current language use in Japan. The present paper reports the results obtained when a question concerning the definition of gairaigo was included in a survey of attitudes to gairaigo. It was found that over 30% of respondents did not concur with the formal definition of this term. These respondents included kango in the definition, thereby adopting a more literal interpretation of gairaigo than that found in the academic literature.
Indonesian
speech act realisation in face-threatening situations
E. Aminudin Aziz, Monash University
While clarity and explicitness in responding to a request are highly desirable, there are conventionally indirect strategies people use when responding. This indirectness cannot be deemed as always indicating impoliteness as different people have different strategies in giving a response; it is determined by the cultural norms and values in which they are brought up. In this paper, we will look at the strategies Indonesians use when responding to a request at times when their circumstances pressure them to make refusals. The study reported here found that apart from giving refusals, in which indirect refusal strategies are preferred, in situations where the ranking of imposition of a request is high, they tend to accept the request. It appears that their strategies of responding are closely related to their strong willingness to maintain the (existing) harmony between them and their interlocutors.
Towards an understanding
of graffiti discourse
Anne Menis, Monash
University
The aim of this paper is to explore the extent to which conversational analysis and turn-taking principles may be used to examine graffiti communication. It proposes a definition of graffiti and discusses some of the more important linguistic features. Cursory reference will be made to the differences between men's and women's graffiti. This paper argues that conversational analysis tools alone are not sufficient to examine graffiti, but that a framework which incorporates these is worth persuing.
The
myth of the linguistic lie detector
Georgina
Heydon, Monash University
This paper is the result of investigations into the features of a mythology of police interviewing techniques and its relationship with current law enforcement practices. An investigation of the SCAN (Scientific Content Analysis) technique as promoted on the website of the Laboratory for Scientific Interrogation was initiated in order to discover the way in which texts aimed at law enforcement professionals contribute to or form a part of the network of beliefs, assumptions and understandings which constitute a mythology about police interviewing. This paper suggests that critical discourse analysis is an appropriate approach to the policy issues surrounding police interviewing techniques as it provides the possibility of exposing the mythology at an institution-wide level.
Name games and automobiles: A very informal
study of car model nomenclature
Tim Moore,
Monash University
On a lighter note, Tim Moore looks for linguistic patterns in the curious lexicon used by car manufacturers in the naming of their products...