Email this article Complexity matters in TV dialogue as language input: A corpus-based description of clausal and phrasal patterns
Abstract
The spread of digital devices and new media has led to a proliferation of English-language audiovisual products and to a gradual shift in learning English as a second language (L2), which is increasingly occurring outside of the classroom. In fact, the extensive informal contact with English audiovisual dialogue as part of L2 learner-users’ everyday leisure activities has been found to be potentially conducive to incidental learning and language acquisition (Kusyk 2020; Sockett 2014). This calls for a description of English-language media, the major source of language input to which L2 viewers are exposed (Pavesi, Ghia 2020). The present study aims to investigate grammatical complexity in fictional TV dialogue by drawing on the Sydney Corpus of Television Dialogue (SydTV; Bednarek 2018a). A register-functional (RF) approach (Biber 1988) is adopted for the quantitative and qualitative assessments of clausal and phrasal complexity features in TV series, with a focus on finite/nonfinite subordinate clauses and noun phrase premodification. The data are first interpreted in relation to the diegetic and extradiegetic functions served by complexity features onscreen and are then compared to previous corpus-based findings regarding the grammatical complexity of spontaneous face-to-face conversations (Biber 2015; Biber et al. 2021). The results show that TV dialogue closely approximates casual conversation in terms of the main patterns of phrasal and clausal complexity. Register-specific functions emerge in accordance with the audience-oriented narrative dimension of telecinematic products, the striving for realism and the expression of characters’ stances. Such referential and communicative functions may increase the accessibility of TV narratives for L2 viewers, often in tandem with visuals in a multimodal fashion. Overall, by reproducing the complexity of conversational exchanges, TV dialogue qualifies as a rich, reliable source of input that learner-viewers can readily use as a model of spoken English.
References
Arends J. 2001, Simple Grammars, Complex Languages, in “Linguistic Typology” 5 [2/3], pp. 180-182.
Arnbjörnsdóttir B. and Ingvarsdóttir H. (Eds.) 2018, Language Development across the Life Span. The Impact of English on Education and Work in Iceland, Springer International Publishing, New York.
Bednarek M. 2010, The Language of Fictional Television: Drama and Identity, Continuum, London.
Bednarek M. 2011, The Language of Fictional Television: A Case Study of the ‘Dramedy’ Gilmore Girls, in “English Text Construction” 4 [1], pp. 54-83.
Bednarek M. 2012, “Get Us the Hell out of Here”: Key Words and Trigrams in Fictional Television Series, in “International Journal of Corpus Linguistics” 17 [1], pp. 35-63.
Bednarek M. 2018a, Language and Television Series. A Linguistic Approach to TV Dialogue, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Bednarek M. 2018b, Guide to the Sydney Corpus of Television Dialogue (SydTV), www.syd-tv.com (1.2.2021).
Bednarek M. 2023, Language and Characterisation in Television Series. A Corpus-informed Approach to the Construction of Social Identity in the Media, John Benjamins, Amsterdam-Philadelphia.
Bednarek M. and Zago R. 2024, Bibliography of Linguistic Research on Fictional (Narrative, Scripted) Television Series and Films/Movies, version 7, https://unico.academia.edu/RaffaeleZago (30.9.2024).
Berber Sardinha T. and Veirano Pinto M. 2019, Dimensions of Variation across American Television Registers, in “International Journal of Corpus Linguistics” 24 [1], pp. 3-32.
Biber D. 1988, Variation across Speech and Writing, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Biber D. 1992, On the Complexity of Discourse Complexity: A Multidimensional Analysis, in “Discourse Processes” 15, pp. 133-163.
Biber D. 2015, Stance and Grammatical Complexity: An Unlikely Partnership Discovered through Corpus Analysis, in “Corpus Linguistics Research” 1, pp. 1-19.
Biber D. and Gray B. 2016, Grammatical Complexity in Academic English: Linguistic Change in Writing, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Biber D., Gray B., Staples S. and Egbert J. 2020, Investigating Grammatical Complexity in L2 English Writing Research: Linguistic Description versus Predictive Measurement, in “Journal of English for Academic Purposes” 46, Article 100869, n.p..
Biber D., Johansson S., Leech G., Conrad S. and Finegan E. 2021, Grammar of Spoken and Written English, John Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia.
Biber D., Gray B., Staples S. and Egbert J. 2022, The Register-Functional Approach to Grammatical Complexity. Theoretical Foundation, Descriptive Research Findings, Application, Routledge, New York/London.
Biber D., Larsson T. and Hancock G.R. 2023, The Linguistic Organization of Grammatical Text Complexity: Comparing the Empirical Adequacy of Theory-Based Models, in “Corpus Linguistics and Linguistic Theory” 20 [2], pp. 347-373.
Bonsignori V. 2018, Using Films and TV Series for ESP Teaching: A Multimodal Perspective, in Crawford Camiciottoli B. and Campoy Cubillo M.C. (Eds.), Multimodal Perspectives on English Language Teaching in Higher Education, special issue of “System” 77, pp. 58-69.
Bulté B. and Housen A. 2012, Defining and Operationalising L2 Complexity, in A. Housen, F. Kuiken and I. Vedder (Eds.), Dimensions of L2 Performance and Proficiency. Complexity, Accuracy and Fluency in SLA, John Benjamins, Amsterdam, pp. 21-46.
Bulté B. and Housen A. 2014, Conceptualizing and Measuring Short-Term Changes in L2 Writing Complexity, in “Journal of Second Language Writing” 26, pp. 42-65.
Dang T.N.Y. 2020, The Potential for Learning Specialized Vocabulary of University Lectures and Seminars Through Watching Discipline-Related TV Programs: Insights From Medical Corpora, in “Tesol Quarterly” 54 [2], pp. 436-459.
Diessel H. 2005, Competing Motivations for the Ordering of Main and Adverbial Clauses, in “Linguistics” 43 [3], pp. 449-470.
Dynel M. 2011, ‘You Talking to Me?’ The Viewer as a Ratified Listener to Film Discourse, in “Journal of Pragmatics” 43, pp. 1628-1644.
Forchini P. 2012, Movie Language Revisited. Evidence from Multi-Dimensional Analysis and Corpora, Peter Lang, Bern.
Forchini P. 2018, The Applicability of Movies in Legal Language Teaching: Evidence from Multi-Dimensional Analysis, in “International Journal of Linguistics” 10 [6], pp. 245-262.
Formentelli M. 2014, Exploring Lexical Variety and Simplification in Original and Dubbed Film Dialogue, in M. Pavesi, M. Formentelli and E. Ghia (Eds.), The Languages of Dubbing. Mainstream Audiovisual Translation in Italy, Peter Lang, Bern, pp. 141-166.
Formentelli M., Galiano L. and Pavesi M. forthcoming, Grammatical Complexity in Film Dialogue: A Corpus-Based Study from a Register-Functional Perspective, in “International Journal of Corpus Linguistics”.
Franceschi D. 2021, Fostering Multimodal Literacy in ESP Teaching: the Case of Lawyer-Client Interviews, in “ESP Across Cultures” 18, pp. 81-103.
Gotti M. 2011, Investigating Specialised Discourse, Peter Lang, Bern.
Halliday M.A.K. 1989, Spoken and Written Language, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
Jones C. 2017, Soap Operas as Models of Authentic Conversations: Implications for Materials Design, in Tomlinson B. and Maley A. (Eds.), Authenticity in Materials Development for Language Learning, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle upon Tyne, pp.158-175.
Kozloff S. 2000, Overhearing Film Dialogue, University of California Press, Berkeley/Los Angeles-London.
Kusyk M. 2020, Informal English Learning in France, in Dressman M. and Sadler R. (Eds.), Handbook of Informal Language Learning, Wiley Blackwell, Hoboken, pp. 333-348.
Miestamo M., Sinnemäki K. and Karlsson F. (Eds.) 2008, Language Complexity: Typology, Contact, Change, John Benjamins, Amsterdam.
Nichols J. 2009, Linguistic Complexity: A Comprehensive Definition and Survey, in Sampson G., Gil D. and Trudgill P. (Eds.), Language Complexity as an Evolving Variable, Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 64-79.
Norris J.M. and Ortega L. 2009, Towards an Organic Approach to Investigating CAF in Instructed SLA: The Case of Complexity, in “Applied Linguistics” 30, pp. 555-578.
Pallotti G. 2015, A Simple View of Linguistic Complexity, in “Second Language Research” 31 [1], pp. 117-134.
Pavesi M. 2012, The Potentials of Audiovisual Dialogue for Second Language Acquisition, in Alderete-Díez P., Incalcaterra McLoughlin L., Ní Dhonnchadha L. and Ní Uigín D. (Eds.), Translation, Technology and Autonomy in Language Teaching and Learning, Peter Lang, Bern, pp. 155-174.
Pavesi M. 2015, From the Screen to the Viewer-Learner. Audiovisual Input as a Context for Second Language Acquisition, in S. Campagna, E. Ochse, V. Pulcini and M. Solly (Eds.), Languaging in and across Communities: New Voices, New Identities. Studies in Honour of Giuseppina Cortese, Peter Lang, Bern, pp. 83-104.
Pavesi M. and Ghia E. 2020, Informal Contact with English: A Case-Study of Italian Postgraduate Students, Edizioni ETS, Pisa.
Quaglio P. 2009, Television Dialogue: The Sitcom Friends vs. Natural Conversation, John Benjamins, Amsterdam/Philadelphia.
Scheffler P., Jones C. and Dominska A. 2020, The Peppa Pig Television Series as Input in Pre-primary EFL Instruction: A Corpus-based Study, in “International Journal of Applied Linguistics” 31, pp. 3-17.
Sockett G. 2014, The Online Informal Learning of English, Palgrave MacMillan, London.
Szmrecsanyi B. 2015, Recontextualizing Language Complexity, in Daems J., Zenner E., Heylen K., Speelman D. and Cuyckens H. (Eds.), Change of Paradigms – New Paradoxes: Recontextualizing Language and Linguistics, Applications of Cognitive Linguistics 31, De Gruyter Mouton, Berlin, pp. 347-360.
Veirano Pinto M. 2014, Dimensions of Variation in North American Movies, in T. Berber Sardinha and M. Veirano Pinto (Eds.), Multi-dimensional Analysis, 25 Years on: A Tribute to Douglas Biber, John Benjamins, Amsterdam, pp. 109-146.
Webb S. and Rodgers P.H. 2009a, Vocabulary Demands of Television Programmes, in “Language Learning” 59 [2], pp. 335-366.
Webb S. and Rodgers P.H. 2009b, The Lexical Coverage of Movies, in “Applied Linguistics” 30 [3], pp. 407-427.
Werner V. 2018, The Language of Pop Culture, Routledge, New York.
Zago R. 2019, Complexity in Film Dialogue, in “Le forme e la storia” 12 [1], pp. 123-32.
Zago R. 2024, Complexity Markers in TV Series: A Corpus-based Analysis of Premodification, in D’Amore M., Zago R., Bugliani P., Polatti A. and Vignozzi G. (Eds.), English Studies in Italy: New Directions and Perspectives, Carocci, Roma, pp. 137-150.
TV series
Abrams J. J., Kurtzman A., Orci R. (Creators) (2008), The transformation (Season 1 Episode 13) [TV series episode], in Abrams J.J., Burk B., Kurtzman A., Orci R., Wyman J.H., J. Pinkner, Chappelle J. (Executive Producers), Fringe, Bad Robot, Warner Bros. Television.
Bays C., Thomas C. (Creators), Fryman P., Greenberg R., Shea M., Harris N.P. (Directors) (2005), The wedding (Season 1 Episode 12) [TV series episode], in Bays C., Thomas C., Greenberg R., Fryman P., Heisler E., Heline D., Lord P., Malins G., Miller C., Harris C., Lloyd S., Kang K., Rhonheimer J., Tatham C. (Executive Producers), How I Met your Mother, Bays Thomas Productions, 20th Century Fox Television.
Biderman A. (Creator) (2009), Mozambique (Season 1 Episode 2) [TV series episode], in Biderman A., Chulack C., Wells J. (Executive Producers), Southland, John Wells Productions, Warner Bros. Television.
Cherry M. (Creator) (2004), Live alone and like it (Season 1 Episode 19) [TV series episode], in Cherry M., Spezialy T., Edelstein M. (Executive Producers), Desperate Housewives, Cherry Productions, Touchstone Television.
Cody D. (Creator) (2009), Abundance (Season 1 Episode 8) [TV series episode], in Spielberg S., Cody D., Junge A., Frank D., Falvey J. (Executive Producers), United States of Tara, DreamWorks Television, Showtime Networks.
Daniels G., Schur M. (Creators) (2009), Rock show (Season 1 Episode 6) [TV series episode], in Daniels G., Schur M., Klein H., Miner D., Sackett M., Holland D., Goor D. (Executive Producers), Parks and Recreation, Open 4 Business Productions, Deedle-Dee Productions, Fremulon, 3 Arts Entertainment, Universal Television.
Dunham L. (Creator) (2012), All adventurous women do (Season 1 Episode 3) [TV series episode], in Dunham L., Apatow J., Konner J., Landress I.S., Kaplan B.E. (Executive Producers), Girls, Apatow Productions, I Am Jenni Konner Productions, HBO Entertainment.
Gilligan V. (Creator) (2008), And the bag’s in the river (Season 1 Episode 3) [TV series episode], in Gilligan V., Johnson M., MacLaren M. (Executive Producers), Breaking Bad, High Bridge Entertainment, Gran Via Productions, Sony Pictures Television.
Helford B. (Creator) (2012), Charlie goes back to therapy (Season 1, Episode 1) [TV series episode], in Helford B., Estevez R., Sheen C., Caplan D., Burg M., Totino V., Roth J., Kushell B., Maron R. (Executive Producers), Anger Management, Mohawk Productions, Revolution Studios, Estevez/Sheen Productions, Twisted Television, Debmar-Mercury, Lionsgate Television.
Kohan J. (Creator) (2005), You can’t miss the bear (Season 1 Episode 1) [TV series episode], in Kohan J. (Executive Producers), Weeds, Tilted Productions, Lionsgate Television, Showtime Networks.
Korsh A. (Creator) (2011), The shelf life (Season 1 Episode 11) [TV series episode], in Korsh A., Liman D., Bartis D. (Executive Producers), Suits, Untitled Korsh Company, Hypnotic Films & Television, Universal Cable Productions, Open 4 Business Productions.
Lieber J., Abrams J.J., Lindelof D. (Creators) (2004), ... in translation (Season 1 Episode 17) [TV series episode], in Abrams J.J., Lindelof D., Burk B., Cuse C., Bender J., Pinkner J., Williams S., Kitsis E., Horowitz A., Higgins J., Sarnoff E. (Executive Producers), Lost, Grass Skirt Productions, Bad Robot, Touchstone Television.
Rhimes S. (Creator) (2005), Who’s zoomin’ who? (Season 1 Episode 9) [TV series episode], in Rhimes S., Pompeo E., Heinberg A., Reaser A., Beers B., Allen D., Parriott J.D., Renshaw J., Rafner J., Rater J., Hodder K., Vernoff K., Gordon M., Wilding M., Noxon M., Marinis M., Horton P., Corn R., McKee S., Mulholland S., Phelan T., Harper W., Clack Z., Dumont O. (Executive Producers), Gray’s Anatomy. Shondaland, Lionsgate Television, 20th Television.
Ryan S. (Creator) (2002), Dawg days (Season 1 Episode 4) [TV series episode], in Ryan S., Brazil S., Mazzara G., Eglee C.H., Sutter K., Rosenbaum S., Fierro A. (Executive Producers), The Shield, The Barn Productions, MiddKid Productions, Columbia TriStar Domestic Television, Fox Television Studios.
Schwartz J., Savage S. (Creators) (2007), Woman on the verge (Season 1 Episode 17) [TV series episode], in Schwartz J., Savage S., Levy B., Morgenstein L., Stephens J. (Executive Producers), Gossip Girl, Warner Bros. Television, Alloy Entertainment, College Hill Pictures, Inc.
Shore D. (Creator) (2004), Babies and birthwater (Season 1 Episode 18) [TV series episode], in Attanasio P., Jacobs K., Shore D., Singer B., Moran T.L., Friend R., Lerner G., Yaitanes G., Laurie H. (Executive Producers), House, Heel and Toe Films, Shore Z Productions, Bad Hat Harry Productions, NBC Universal Television Studio.
Steinberg J.E. (Creator) (2010), Victoria (Season 1 Episode 11) [TV series episode], in Steinberg J.E., Kern B., Hooks K., McG, Johnson P., Miller M. (Executive Producers), Human Target, Wonderland Sound and Vision, DC Entertainment, Bonanza Productions, Warner Bros. Television.
Whedon J. (Creator) (2009), Man on the street (Season 1 Episode 6) [TV series episode], in Whedon J., Solomon D., Minear T. (Executive Producers), Dollhouse, Mutant Enemy Productions, 20th Century Fox Television.
Full Text: pdf
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
