Sixth International Conference on Communication & Media Studies

Abstract

All communication whether in spoken, written, or in gestural form, involve an idea to be communicated to an audience. Communicants then move from the idea stage to the selection of linguistic units (e.g., phonemes, morphemes, syntax, semantics and prosody) pertinent to the message. In observing the choice of words in recent communication, one notices the plethora of figurative language used by speakers, primarily, to send a message. Examples of these communicative forms are Light at the End of the Tunnel, Throw under the Bus, and Walk it Back. The recent political atmosphere has contributed to communication with respect to the language seen and heard among protesters. Two examples that are relevant for this presentation are I Can’t Breathe and Stop the Steal. Words of this sort allow for an interdisciplinary approach to communication. One can deduce aspects of discourse analysis, cognitive psychology, and neurolinguistics. For this study I address three questions: 1) Why do speakers, primarily, use these forms of language? 2) To whom is the message directed? and 3) What can we learn form these forms of communication?