Universidad de los Andes

Facultad de Educación
Evaluation English III - Module II (Language and Culture)

LANGUAGE AND CULTURE READING TASK

(For points-based grade)

Read chapter 1 from Kramsch, C. (1998). Language and Culture. Oxford, UK: Oxford University

Write down 2 quotes from chapter 1 that caught your attention and explain why you think they
are interesting. Write at least 80 words in each section without including the quotes.

Quote 1: “But members of a community or social group do not only express experience; they also
create experience through language”.

Your answer: This quote is very interesting because it portrays the importance of the use of
language, not only about expressing experience but also about creating it. This means that the
use of language by a certain group of people, community, or culture has its own ways to interpret
the use of words or actions through verbal and non-verbal aspects. In this way, cultures share
similarities in interpreting language, creating experiences and their own forms of communication
or understanding. Language embodies cultural reality which is very important for the identity of a
particular community. An example for my analysis could be the way that Chilean people refer or
say the concept of “dating” as “pololear”. This word is used only in Chile and is also different from
the universal Spanish form to refer to people in a relationship (salir, estar de novio). In
conclusion, language symbolize different cultural realities.

Quote 2: “People who identify themselves as members of a social group (family, neighborhood,
professional or ethnic affiliation, nation) acquire common ways of viewing the world through
their interactions with other members of the same group”.

Your answer: Common language usage is acquired because of similarities in the attitudes, beliefs,
and values of a certain group of people. This quote shares some similarities with my analysis
above, but the difference relies on the use of language of a more closed circle or group of people.
In my perception, communities or cultures can have a variety of people with different ideologies,
professions, religious beliefs, or in general, different points of view about a specific theme or
concept. In this way, people that share similarities in their opinions or beliefs will probably share
a common use of language. An example from the chapter related to this analysis is that these
groups with different opinions will differ on what they choose to say or not to say and how they
say it. An illustration of this idea can be explained with politics. In Chile, there is a constant battle
between left and right about referring to “Dictadura” or “Military government” to the period in
which the executive power was occupied by Pinochet. This shows that language or concepts can
be interpreted in different ways depending on what a group of people believe or think about a
certain topic.
Your answer will be evaluated according to these descriptors:

Descriptors 0.3 0.6 1

The student presents 2 quotes from the chapter and writes at least 80 words
in each section.
The student demonstrates understanding of the chapter by developing clear
and elaborate answers.
Overall, there is good use of English (grammar, vocabulary, spelling,
organization).

Total points