Book
Talking Black
Newbury House Publishers, Inc. • Rowley, Mass. • Published In 1976 • Pages: xiv, 102
By: Abrahams, Roger D..
Abstract
This work is a detailed sociolinguistic study of Black English as it functions as a system of communication within and between various social segments of Afro-American communities in the United States. Much of the material presented here was gathered by the author, a linguist and folklorist, from observations of Black speaking behavior in the ghettos of Philadelphia, in Texas, and throughout the British West Indies. The source concentrates on Black English, not so much from its linguistic analysis, as from its use by American Blacks as a highly adaptable 'speaking system' of behaviors involving variations in style according to the appropriateness of the occasion, the relationship of the speaker to his/her listeners, what the speaker expects in return, etc. These behaviors are discussed throughout the major portion of the text under such terms as 'signifying, rapping, hipping, talking shit, putting-down, putting-on, hoorawing, and digging.'
- HRAF PubDate
- 2019
- Region
- North America
- Sub Region
- Regional, Ethnic and Diaspora Cultures
- Document Type
- Book
- Evaluation
- Creator Types
- Linguist
- Folklorist
- Document Rating
- 4: Excellent Secondary Data
- 5: Excellent Primary Data
- Analyst
- John Beierle ; 1986
- Field Date
- no date
- Notes
- Roger D. Abrahams
- Includes bibliographical references (p. 93-98) and index
- LCCN
- 76000077
- LCSH
- African Americans--Folklore
- English language--Social aspects--United States
- Black English