Transcription

 A written record of talk that captures

 (1) what’s said exactly
 (2) Moments of overlap
 (3) Its pacing and intonation

 Goals
 Be able to read transcripts with symbols from levels 1-3
 Be able to make a transcript of two 2-min. excerpts (4
mins total for each person) from the conversation,
including (1) and (2)
Transcription Symbols

 Words and sounds

spelling captures how talk sounds
gonna, yup, yeah, uh huh, mm

 Punctuation captures intonation

Yes. Falling
Ed? Rising
Overlap or Adjacent Talk
Latching A pair of equals signs
Overlap Square brackets

(latching) & overlapping talk

 A: she went to the restaurant=
 B: =to find [Matt
 C: [I did not
Prosodic (voice ) qualities & pauses
stretched out sound no::: wa::::y
cut off word that’s a cr- a big
mistake
stressed word, syllable exactly
loud speech TE::SS get in here
soft speech ºyes okay º
exhalation hhhhh
inhalation .hhh
pauses I (.) said (.) no. (2.4)
 Transcribing Tutorial
Step-by-step guide illustrating how to
transcribe

The Painters’ Conversation

Round 1

 . Begin by writing each speaker’s name

and the words and sounds that s/he
makes. Work to capture their uhs and
ums, any broken words or repetitions, and
noticeable contractions (e.g., gotta).
E: When I first started seeing Marshall I feel like I was a
different person back then I was a really nice person back
then I was I feel I feel
M:Well the kernel- the kernel of the problem is that we’re both
stuck in the same apartment
E: That’s not the-
M:We both paint
E: No that’s not the core of the problem Marshall
M:And and we both have to
M:We both have to get apart and we can’t afford to move out
E: That’s not the core of the problem. The core of the problem
is that Marshall
M:The core of the problem is that we gotta
E: is king of the double standard.
Round 2

 Once you have the speakers' words down,

add overlapping speech. In this step, you
are working to identify where two people
are speaking at the same time and when
the instances of talk begin. Also, use the
equals sign to mark any time where there
is no hearable gap in a speaker's talk.
Look at the transcript to see the changes
(highlighted in red) that would be added.
E: When I first started seeing Marshall I feel like I was a different
person back then I was a really nice person back then I was
[I feel
M: [ Well the kernel- [the kernel of the problem=
E: [I feel
M: =is that we’re both stuck in the same apart[ment
E: [That’s not the-
M: We both pa[int
E: [No that’s not the [ core of the problem Marshall
M: [ And and we both have
to we both have to get apart and we can’t afford to move out
E: That’s not the core of the problem. The core of the problem is
that Marsh [all
M: [The core of the problem is that
we got [ta
E: [ is king of the double standard.
Round 3
 At this point, you have captured all the words
and the ways in which the speakers overlap or
continue each other’s sentences. Now, focus on
intonation and paralinguistic markers as outlined
on page 110 of ET. Remember, punctuation, if
you use it, is used for intonation. Colons indicate
a sound being stretched; underlining marks
stress, and (.) cues a small hearable pause.
Listen to the short clip one more time and note
the changes (highlighted in blue) we have made
to the transcript.
E: When I first started seeing Marshall (.) I feel like I was a different person
back then (.) I was a really nice person back then (.) I wa:s?
[I feel
M: [ Well the kernel- [the kernel of the problem=
E: [I fee:l
M: =is that we’re both stuck in the same apart[ment
E: [That’s not the-
M: We both pa[int
E: [No that’s not the [ core of the problem Marshall
M: [ And and we both have
to we both have to get apart and we can’t afford to move out
E: That’s not the core of the problem. The core of the problem is that
Marsh [all
M: [The core of the problem is that
we got [ta
E: [ is KING iof the double standard.