Paralanguage - Ch. 5 pgs. 118-119

What the Book Says & How I Perceive It:

The "nonverbal elements of the voice" is paralanguage. There are three main elements to paralanguage:

• Vocal Characterizers (i.e: laughing, sobbing)

Laughter is a commonly used vocal characterizer.

 
• Vocal Qualifiers (i.e: intensity, pitch, extent)

A soundwave records the pitch of a voice.

• Vocal Segregates (i.e: "uhhh", "ummm", "uh-huh")

These are some vocal segregates.

The intensity in a voice can be based off cultural belief. For example, the book says that Thais speak softly and gently. Their cultural tells them that speaking in such a manner is how “one shows good manners and an educated character” (Jandt 118). The only time they raise their voice is to show that the emotion of anger in an argument. People here in the United States tend to speak with a loud voice, or at least many Thais believe that. What may seem like a normal speaking voice for us may be different to a Thai. It sometimes leads them to think that we’re “rude, angry, or don’t like Thais.” (Jandt 118)

Accents are considered a part of paralanguage, too. In Britain, the type of accent heard allows people to detect the educational background of the speaker. Everybody has an accent; “it’s just that some accents are more accepted than others” (Jandt 118).  

Being in the United States, we hear many, many, many different accents because we’re such a diverse country. We may here certain accents more in certain parts of the country because that may be the dialect of that area. Accents differ greatly from West Coast to East Coast. To us here on the West Coast the accent of a person from Louisiana doesn’t sound normal to us, and vice versa. To the people on the East Coast the accent of a person from California doesn’t sound normal to them.

“Accents may present problems and even lead to charges of racism (Ryan , 1974)” (Jandt 118). The book shows many examples where accents have lead people into problems, mainly with getting jobs. One example tells of a Filipino man who was denied a job in Honolulu. The argument was that “his heavy Filipino accent would have kept him from working effectively as a clerk.” (Jandt 119). I disagree with that statement, because I feel everybody should have a chance to prove themselves without being judged, especially by how they speak.

How I Apply Paralanguage to My Life:

One element of paralanguage that I really enjoy using is vocal qualifiers. Life would be soooooooooooo boring if we couldn't change the pitch, intensity, or tone of our voice to show our emotions. Everybody would speak in a boring monotone voice and it would be hard to figure out how somebody is feeling. I use pitch, intensity, and tone to express myself. If I'm angry I may speak in a soft monotone voice, or I might have an intensely loud voice. It just depends on the situation and what kind of anger I'm feeling. If I'm excited I might talk with a higher pitch.

I also love to laugh. It's such a great feeling, even though if you do it too much you may get a crazy pain in your stomach. To me it tells me that people are enjoying themselves. Crying is also a good feeling to me when I can't get what I want to say out. I feel like the tears are the words that I can't express.

The most of the adults on the Filipino side of my family have accents. The kids in our family like to joke around and laugh at the accents because sometimes we don't understand what they're trying to say because they butcher the word. Some people might view it as disrespect, but in my family we just see it as a way to laugh. The adults laugh at it, too.

  This lady doesn't really have a Filipino Accent, but she pretends to have one just for laughs.