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 Ling 131: Language & Style
 

 Topic 6 (session A) - Style and Style variation > Language Variation: Register > Task B

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Language Variation: Register

Task B: Domain

Now we are going to look at extracts from two different written sources.

(a) Identify which domain you think they come form and
(b) how you know (i.e. what linguistic features are associated with each medium).

You can compare your conclusions with ours by clicking on the button after each text.

Text 1

3.2

The following provisions of this clause are a Statement of the general aims of the Charity to which the Trustees are (subject to the following) to have regard at all times but no part of or provision in such Statement is to qualify derogate from add to or otherwise affect the Objects set out in clause 3.1 and the furtherance of the Objects (which shall in the event of any conflict prevail over such Statement)

 

Our answer:

This is an extract from a legal document setting up a charitable trust. 'Derogate' is a term that does not often crop up outside the law, and various other terms (e.g. 'clause' 'provisions') have special meanings here compared with their more normal uses. Besides the somewhat arcane lexis, the grammar is complex, and also involves list constructions with frequent use of 'and' and 'or'. And apart from sentence- and word-initial capitals (the latter indicating words specifically defined elsewhere in the document), there is no punctuation. The grammatical and punctuation characteristics are typical of legal documents because they need to be worded in such a way that, for the lawyers at least (!) there are no misunderstandings or ambiguities about what is being said.

Text 2

The exact way in which information is 'coded' in the auditory nerve is not clear. However, we know that any single neurone is activated only by vibration on a limited part of the basilar membrane. Each neurone is 'tuned' and responds to only a limited range of frequencies. This information about frequency can be coded in terms of which neurones are active or 'firing' with spikes. This form of coding is called 'place' coding. Information about sound level may be carried both in the rate of firing (i.e. the number of spikes per second) and in terms of the number of neurones which are firing.

Our answer:

This is an extract from The Oxford Companion to the Mind, a book on the nervous system written for students of psychology, biology and medicine. It has obvious biological technical terms (e.g. 'auditory nerve', 'neurone'), and like the legal document, is written so that complex material can be understood clearly. Terms not already introduced are defined as the text goes along, and important metaphorical uses are signalled by inverted commas. This text is considerably less complex grammatically than the legal extract. The language of science is usually fairy formal, though, and this text is no exception. Apart from the technical terms and formal vocabulary items like 'however' and 'in terms of', the prevalence of passive constructions is a marker both of formality and, more generally, of the language of science. There are six passive constructions in this six-sentence (105 words) extract:

  • . . . information is 'coded' in the auditory nerve . . .

  • . . . any single neurone is activated only by vibration on a limited part of the basilar membrane . . .

  • Each neurone is 'tuned' . . .

  • This information about frequency can be coded . . .

  • This form of coding is called 'place' coding.

  • Information about sound level may be carried both in the rate of firing . . .

 

 


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