Linguistics: Pop Culture
Pop culture is a concept permeates the everyday lives of people in a given society
Pop Culture topics
When picking a topic, start big and work your way towards something smaller and more specific.
Other resources
The Language of Food by Call Number: TX353 .J78 2014ISBN: 9780393240832Publication Date: 2014-09-15Ketchup began as a fermented fish sauce from China's Fujian province: ke for fermented fish, tchup for sauce. The British were the first to add tomatoes to their anchovy "catsup" in 1817. A century later, Heinz changed the spelling again--and added sugar. In The Language of Food, Dan Jurafsky opens a panoramic window onto everything from the modern descendants of ancient recipes to the hidden persuasion in restaurant reviews. Combining history with linguistic analysis, Jurafsky uncovers a global atlas of premodern culinary influence: why we toast to good health at dinner and eat toast for breakfast and why the Chinese don't have a word for "dessert". Engaging and eclectic, Jurafsky's study reveals how everything from medieval meal order to modern menu design informs the way we drink and dine today. Tuck in!
Speaking Pittsburghese by Call Number: PE3101 .P4 J64 2013ISBN: 9780199945702Publication Date: 2013-11-25This book explores the history of Pittsburghese, the language of the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area as it is imagined and used by Pittsburghers. Pittburghese is linked to local identity so strongly that it is alluded to almost every time people talk about what Pittsburgh is like, or what it means to be a Pittsburgher. But what happened during the second half of the 20th century to reshape a largely unnoticed way of speaking into this highly visible urban "dialect"? In this book, sociolinguist Barbara Johnstone focuses on this question. Treating Pittsburghese as a cultural product of talk, writing, and other forms of social practice, Johnstone shows how non-standard pronunciations, words, and bits of grammar used in the Pittsburgh area were taken up into a repertoire of words and phrases and a vocal style that has become one of the most resonant symbols of local identity in the United States today.
Holy Sh*t by Call Number: PE3724 .S85 .M65 2013ISBN: 9780199742677Publication Date: 2013-04-29Almost everyone swears, or worries about not swearing, from the two year-old who has just discovered the power of potty mouth to the grandma who wonders why every other word she hears is obscene. Whether they express anger or exhilaration, are meant to insult or to commend, swear words perform a crucial role in language. But swearing is also a uniquely well-suited lens through which to look at history, offering a fascinating record of what people care about on the deepest levels of a culture--what's divine, what's terrifying, and what's taboo. Holy Sh*t tells the story of two kinds of swearing--obscenities and oaths--from ancient Rome and the Bible to today. With humor and insight, Melissa Mohr takes readers on a journey to discover how "swearing" has come to include both testifying with your hand on the Bible and calling someone a *#$&!* when they cut you off on the highway. She explores obscenities in ancient Rome--which were remarkably similar to our own--and unearths the history of religious oaths in the Middle Ages, when swearing (or not swearing) an oath was often a matter of life and death. Holy Sh*t also explains the advancement of civility and corresponding censorship of language in the 18th century, considers the rise of racial slurs after World War II, examines the physiological effects of swearing (increased heart rate and greater pain tolerance), and answers a question that preoccupies the FCC, the US Senate, and anyone who has recently overheard little kids at a playground: are we swearing more now than people did in the past? A gem of lexicography and cultural history, Holy Sh*t is a serious exploration of obscenity--and it also just might expand your repertoire of words to choose from the next time you shut your finger in the car door.
Web Resources
- FandomFandom encompasses over 40 million content pages in over 80 languages on 250,000 wikis about every fictional universe ever created.
- The Journal of Popular CultureThe Journal of Popular Culture works on breaking down the barriers between so-called “low” and “high” culture and focuses on filling in the gaps that a neglect of popular culture has left in our understanding of the workings of society.
- Mr. Pop CultureBlog dedicated to a wide variety of pop culture topics
- Cultural Evolution Through the DecadesBlog that examines the changes in culture throughout the decades, starting with the 1920s and ending with modern era, through text and infographics
- Green’s Dictionary of SlangGreen’s Dictionary of Slang is the largest historical dictionary of English slang. Written by Jonathon Green over 17 years from 1993, it reached the printed page in 2010 in a three-volume set containing nearly 100,000 entries supported by over 400,000 citations from c. AD 1000 to the present day. The main focus of the dictionary is the coverage of over 500 years of slang from c. 1500 onwards.
- Gale OneFile: Pop Culture Studies This link opens in a new window
Access to scholarly journals and magazines that both analyze and contribute to popular culture. The database offers useful information for researchers in social science, history, art, or liberal arts courses.
- Ray & Pat Browne Library for Popular Culture StudiesThe Browne Popular Culture Library is the most comprehensive archive of its kind in the United States. The collection focuses on research materials on popular fiction, popular entertainment, and the graphic arts