Privilege. It’s a controversial word, one many of us don’t like to talk about. Some people associate it with guilt or with being accused of being racist, sexist, or homophobic. Many people have become tired of hearing all of the…
What causes violent crime? It’s an important question, and one that is at the heart of criminology. A large number of factors have been suggested as possible causes and found to correlate with criminal activity (check out this book for…
Recently, I’ve been engaged with a research project looking at the discourse of RateMyProfessors.com, a website where students rate and comment on their university or college instructors. I’ve been paying special attention to how students talk about instructors who are…
The Louvre (large museum in Paris, France, pictured below, home to many important works of art, for example, the Mona Lisa) closed today. Hundreds of staff members walked out citing complaints about rampant crime in the museum that was targeting both visitors and…
Last week, a man who most people have probably never heard of died: John Gumperz. He was, however, a very important discourse analyst and sociolinguist. His work has had an impact on my own thinking particularly about my approach to…
linguistic pulse 