A number of questions have been raised about James Kinneavy's theory of expressive discourse, among them the problem of how so many different genres, from the personal essay to the declaration of independence, can be lumped under one aim, self-expression. Another is why self-expression is the only one of the aims to be divided into two general…

A system of classification for tellings and retellings by Panama's Kuna Indians reveals the dimensions of their structure and function, textually, contextually, strategically, and ethnographically. Kuna verbal life can be characterized in terms of three distinct ritual-ceremonial traditions marked by three distinct languages, settings, sets of…

While there has been much interest in the differences between oral and written language styles, studies have focused on the relative use of certain features. Little attention has been paid to the cultural value given to language style in languages with a literary tradition versus value given to style in those with a non-literary traditions. All…

Two experiments investigated preschoolers' acquisition of spatial words in Mandarin Chinese. In one experiment, 5 groups of 10 children at 34, 39, 46, 52, and 57 months were tested for comprehension and production of 14 pairs of Chinese spatial words. In the comprehension test the children were asked to point to pictures corresponding to the words…

Voice can be considered as the writer's attitude toward the reader (the rhetorical function) and the writer's attitude toward the subject or object being written about (the epistemic function). Voice is expressed by such things as word choice, rhythm, sound, and juxtaposition of words and sentences. Moreover, the writer's attitude toward the…

Writing in the first person is not usually tolerated in academic writing under the illusion that the third person insures some kind of objectivity. But writing in the first person is honest, permitting the reader to know that what is being said is a matter of opinion. It is a direct way of speaking about what a writer sees or feels or thinks, and…

Recent research indicates that fourteen linguistic and paralinguistic patterns--thought to measure uncertainty, vagueness, dependence, and negative affect--discriminate between men's truth telling and deceptive language behavior. This study sought to determine if these same patterns also discriminate between women's truth telling and deceptive…

Discusses difficulties to be overcome and procedures for teaching techniques of expression in adult continuing education. (Text is in French.) (AM)

Advocates a reworking of lexical pedagogy with reference to the instruction of techniques of expression. (Text is in French.) (AM)

To study the relationship between stuttering and expressive language and between verbal expression and socioeconomic status, 15 stutterers and 15 nonstutterers (5-to 10-years old) from lower socioeconomic (predominantly Mexican-American) and middle socioeconomic levels were given the Verbal Expression subtest of the Illinois Test of…

Dreams can be used to draw students into an authentic expression of their creativity and to give them some validation for what they are as persons. A "dream seminar" in a writing course could have students read and discuss Whitman's "Leaves of Grass"; log, report, and discuss their dreams during the course; and explore other…