Language as Social Semiotic: The Social Interpretation of Language and Meaning

" This volume assembles Professor Halliday's most important recent essays on the functions of language in social communication. The investigation of 'language as social semiotic' means interpreting language within a sociocultural context, in which the culture itself is interpreted in semiotic terms- as an information system, to put it another way. The notion of language as one resource- albeit a principal one- in the exchange of meanings which constitute a culture requires a focus on language 'from the outside inwards', interpreting language by reference to its place in the social process. Professor Halliday's interest in linguistic questions is ultimately an 'applied' one, a concern with language in relation to the process and experience of socialization and education. The sociolinguistic patterns of the community, the language of family, neighbourhood and school, and the personal experience of language from earliest infancy are among the most fundamental elements in a child's environment for learning. This emphasis is directly reflected in the last part of this volume, on sociolinguistics and education; but it is indirectly present throughout, in discussion of areas ranging from the theoretical perspective and the sociosemantic nature of discourse to language in urban society and antilanguages."-- Publisher.