Using Spanish in Social Contexts

9 units · Undergraduate

Fall and Spring: 9 units What does it mean to be able to use Spanish in social contexts? This course is for those who would like to explore the intersection of language and social variables in various Spanish-speaking contexts all around the world. The course has two main foci: 1) introducing some of the sociolinguistic diversity of Spanish around the world; and 2) building communicative competence through hands-on practice using Spanish in socially appropriate ways that may differ from English/other languages, for example: how to apologize, refuse, compliment, request, offer condolences, etc. Sample topics to be covered include Spanish in contact with other languages; geographic variation (lexical, phonological, grammatical); language policy and ideology; speech acts; pragmatics; Spanish in a globalized world. This course is taught in Spanish. No prior experience with linguistics needed. This class is taught in Spanish. Prerequisite: 82-242 Min. grade C