Study Questions
Answer only ONE of the following questions on Keith Basso’s “’To Give up on Words’: Silence in Western Apache Culture:
1. What are some of the ways silence is used in European American communication, and how are they different from those in Apache culture?
2. How are the meaning and function of silence affected by the social and cultural context?
3. What is the critical factor in an Apache's decision to speak or keep silent?
4. How do Apaches interact upon meeting a stranger, courting, welcoming children home, "getting cussed out," and being with people who are sad?
5. Despite the variety of situations in which Apaches are silent, what is the underlying determinant?
Answer only ONE of the following questions on Jane H. Hill’s “Language, Race, and White Public Space”:
1. According to Hill, what double standard do many white folks impose when it comes to Spanish? Support your discussion with examples.
2. What does Hill mean by “white public space” and how is language used to enforce that space?
3. Give three examples of “mock Spanish” from the article. How and why do whites use “mock Spanish” according to Hill? Give one of example that you’ve seen of “mock Spanish.”
4. What are key differences between the “Spanglish” discussed by Eric Johnson in the Tedx Talk earlier in this module and the “Mock Spanish” that Hill writes about. Support your discussion with an example of each.
Answer only ONE of the following questions on Robert Myers’s “Trigger Happy with Gunspeak.”
1. What do we learn in this article about the use of “gun” metaphors in everyday language? Provide and explain two examples from the article. What are one or two ways you or people you know use “gunspeak”?
2. What is Myer’s underlying argument in this article? How does he support it? What is your take? What does this article suggest to you about the relationship between language and culture?
Choose one question for each part, there are three parts here！！
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Question 3
What is the critical factor in an Apache's decision to speak or keep silent?
The critical factor in the Apache’s decision not to speak or keep silent is the nature of individual relationships with the other people. This implies that the nature of relationship dictate whether to speak or remain silent in the Apache culture. In this case, those who do not have any relationship with the locals may choose to keep silent. For instance, the strangers, in Apache culture, are any person that has never been seen before an initial meeting and cannot be identified. Such people have no relationships with the Apaches, and may choose not to speak or keep silent.
Question 2
What does Hill mean by ‘‘White Public Space’’ and how is language used to enforce that space?
According to Hill, ‘‘White public Space’’ is the scope and range of professionally managed public action organized in defense of white privilege to propagate ideological representations of whiteness and secure saliency o...