Sociophonetic variation in Stoke-on-Trent's pottery industry
This thesis presents a sociophonetic analysis of two dialect variables in twenty-six speakers from Stoke-on-Trent; specifically, speakers who worked in the cityâs pottery industry. The recordings used come from an oral history archive, and much of the analysis presented considers the impact of the social and spatial structures of the pottery industry on dialect variation. The analysis presented also combines quantitative and qualitative methodologies in order to examine both broader patterns of dialect variation in the selected speakers, and how the same variables may be used in the construction of meaning-in-interaction. Finally, I consider the impact of using oral history data in this kind of sociophonetic analysis. I use literature on the social structures of the industry and the content of the recordings themselves to model an internal hierarchy for the industry, which I then examine alongside auditory and acoustic data from two linguistic variables: /h/-dropping, and the (i) vowel. /h/-dropping is particularly sensitive to industrial role, with speakers in mass production roles more likely to drop /h/ and those in administrative, managerial and design roles less likely to. I demonstrate how this links
Leach, Hannah
Sociophonetic variation in Stoke-on-Trent's pottery industry. This thesis presents a sociophonetic analysis of two dialect variables in twenty-six speakers from Stoke-on-Trent; specifically, speakers who worked in the cityâs pottery industry. The recordings used come from an oral history archive, and much of the analysis presented considers the impact of the social and spatial structures of the pottery industry on dialect variation. The analysis presented also combines quantitative and qualitative methodologies in order to examine both broader patterns of dialect variation in the selected speakers, and how the same variables may be used in the construction of meaning-in-interaction. Finally, I consider the impact of using oral history data in this kind of sociophonetic analysis. I use literature on the social structures of the industry and the content of the recordings themselves to model an internal hierarchy for the industry, which I then examine alongside auditory and acoustic data from two linguistic variables: /h/-dropping, and the (i) vowel. /h/-dropping is particularly sensitive to industrial role, with speakers in mass production roles more likely to drop /h/ and those in administrative, managerial and design roles less likely to. I demonstrate how this links
sociophonetic variation pottery_industry present sociophonetic analysis dialect variable twenty speaker specifically speaker work city pottery_industry recording use come oral_history archive much analysis present considers_impact social spatial structure pottery_industry dialect variation analysis present also quantitative_qualitative methodology order_examine broader pattern dialect variation select speaker variable may_use construction meaning interaction finally_consider impact use_oral history data kind sociophonetic analysis use literature social_structure industry content recording model internal hierarchy industry examine alongside auditory acoustic data linguistic_variable vowel particularly sensitive industrial role speaker mass_production role likely drop administrative managerial design roles less likely link