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language variation and cultural hegemony: toward an integration of sociolinguistic and social theory
Author(s) -
WOOLARD KATHRYN A.
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
american ethnologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.875
H-Index - 78
eISSN - 1548-1425
pISSN - 0094-0496
DOI - 10.1525/ae.1985.12.4.02a00090
Subject(s) - sociolinguistics , hegemony , sociology , solidarity , ideology , social reproduction , variation (astronomy) , reproduction , field (mathematics) , social science , gender studies , epistemology , linguistics , political science , politics , law , social capital , ecology , philosophy , physics , mathematics , astrophysics , pure mathematics , biology
Although the social theory behind sociolinguistics is in need of explicit formulation and critique, basic insights from the field can be of considerable value in addressing current debates concerning social reproduction. Using sociolinguistic concepts of status and solidarity and empirical evidence from Catalonia and other community studies, this paper argues that the emphasis by reproduction theorists on formal institutions such as the school is misplaced, and that the structuralist representation of dominant, hegemonic ideologies as impenetrable does not capture the reality of working‐class and minority community practices. Attention to sociolinguistic evidence by social theorists could advance the understanding of hegemonic and oppositional cultural practices in the maintenance of social inequality. [ Spain, language variation, sociolinguistic theory, cultural hegemony, social reproduction ]