Personal and Cultural Identity
Oral Language
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Learning Target(s):
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Language, in all its forms, constructs personal and social and cultural identities. Oral Language is the system through which we use spoken words to express knowledge, ideas, and feelings. There are many rhetorical strategies/literary devices we use to make our spoken language more effective.
These include:
- rhetorical question – ask a question which doesn’t need to be answered to get your audience thinking about their own opinions
- hyperbole – is an exaggeration often used to add humour or emphasis
- understatement - presenting something as being smaller, worse or less important than it actually is
- imperative – a command word used to grab attention
- listing – of examples and words to support an idea
- alliteration – using words starting with the same letter to make it memorable.
- other sounds devices - onomatopoeia, internal rhyme, cacophony
- simile/metaphor - comparisons
- repetition - used to emphasize important points
- enjambment/line structure - the continuation of a sentence without a pause beyond the end of a line or natural break
- context - the circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement, or idea, and in terms of which it can be fully understood and assessed.
- text structures - how the information is organized
- syntax - the arrangement of words and phrases to create well-formed sentences in a language
- diction - the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing.
- pun - a play on words to evoke humour
The use of language in texts shapes readers' and viewers' construction of meaning and appreciation of author's craft. Types of language used include:
- Colloquial - conversational language
- Dialect - a particular form of language that is specific to a region or social group
- Vernacular - the language or dialect spoken by the ordinary people in a particular country or region
- Accent - a distinctive mode of pronunciation of a language, especially associated with a particular nation, locality, or social class.
- Slang - a type of language that consists of words or phrases that are regarded as very informal, are more common in speech than writing, and are typically restricted to a particular context or group of people
- Jargon - special words or expressions that are used by a particular profession or group and are difficult for others to understand.
- Idiomatic expressions - phrases, sayings or a group of words that has a metaphorical (not literal) meaning, which has become accepted in common usage
Further explanation of these terms can be found at Literary Definitions.
Oral language uses a variety of voice techniques, as well. The following list shows you how and why you can vary your voice:
- pace – fast to show excitement, slow to show importance
- pitch – high to show excitement, low to show importance and authority
- intonation – the rise and fall of your voice when you speak
- inflection – when your voice goes up at the end of the sentence as if you were asking a question
- tone – feeling needs to suit the words said
- volume – loud to show excitement, soft to show fear
- pause – a planned rest in your speaking to emphasize an idea
- enunciation - pronounce words or parts of words clearly
- emphasis - stress laid on a word or words to indicate special meaning or particular importance
Source: http://www.studyit.org.nz/subjects/english/english2/5/subjectcontent/orallanguage/
Don't forget the importance of good performance techniques, as well.
- Nonverbal techniques - facial expressions, the tone and pitch of the voice, gestures displayed through body language and the physical distance between the communicators
- use of props or effective visuals
- eye contact
- memorize