Asteroff@CUTCV1.BITNET (Janet Asteroff) (09/04/87)
[forwarded from AI List by Peter Marvit] In answer to the recent posting about "Terminal Talk," I recently completed my doctoral dissertation on Paralanguage in Electronic Mail, a.k.a. "Terminal Talk" in electronic communication. Below is a formal definition for paralanguage in computer-mediated communication and some categories that I developed for my analyses. /Janet Asteroff Teachers College Columbia University Definition: Paralanguage is a component of spoken, written, and electronic communication. It gives to what is being communicated a character over and above that which is necessary to convey meaning in the linguistic or grammatical sense. Paralanguage in electronic mail is positioned between spoken and written paralanguage in its visual and interpretive structures. Electronic paralanguage, a term developed to describe paralanguage in computer-mediated communication, is defined as: features of written language which are used outside of formal grammar and syntax, and other features related to but not part of written language, which through varieties of visual and interpretive contrast provide additional, enhanced, redundant or new meanings to the message. Categories of Paralanguage 1. Vocal Spellings. Vocal spellings or contractions can be used as a time-saving typing device for those who send many messages. In certain cases, this use may not have any relation to sound qualities. When used solely to save time or typing, vocal spellings are "speedwriting" techniques. r u clogging up the print queue? 2. Vocal Segregates. Sound substitutes to indicate tone of voice appear often in the public and private electronic mail of some computer users, usually but not exclusively those who have spent a great amount of time using computer-mediated communication systems. Many of these expressions originated in and are borrowed from cartoons or comics. Vocal segregates such as "wham," "arghh" and *gak* for instance, can be as common to some (but hardly to all) users of electronic mail as they are to cartoonists. In that form of print communication, vocal segregates function to convey a great deal of information in a small space, such as in a single drawing or in one frame of a longer strip. 3. Manipulation of Grammatical Markers. The use of ??? .... ( ) etc. 4. Manipulation of Special Symbols. This includes any symbol on the computer keyboard used to mark off various parts of a message by surrounding certain words or phrases. Like the manipulation of grammatical markers these symbols, in order to be paralinguistic features, are used outside of their traditional or formal meaning, e.g., Apartment #2K uses the number sign for its traditional meaning, but in the expression @@!#%^* it becomes a paralinguistic feature. Like grammatical markers, special symbols indicate degrees of stress, show pause, signal a shift in tone or changes of subject. Most often they are found on the top (number) row of the computer keyboard by shifting to uppercase, although any symbol on the keyboard can be used. This includes the asterisk (*), number sign (#), up-arrow (^), plus sign (+) and ampersand (&), as well as right and left angle brackets (< >) and the or bar (|). Like grammatical markers, special symbols serve many different functions. An asterisk placed at the beginning and end of a word, like uppercasing, shows stress, and a string of asterisks in the middle of a message signals a change in subject. When grouped together special symbols can be the entire communication, as indicated in the first example below, where the function is to indicate extreme stress and in some cases to substitute for obscenities. 5. Spatial Arrays. A spatial array is defined in this research as the systematic spatial arrangement of characters to create a graphic or an identifiable image... This definition of spatial arrays is supported by examples of the more recent use on the computer of symbols, letters and numbers to create "faces" or face symbols, popularly and generically referred to as a "smiley face." Various combinations of symbols, letters, and numbers create several different kinds of faces which when viewed sideways create an image. Face symbols, particularly the "smiley-face" and the "frowney-face" originated in print and mass media in the early 1970's, and were not created by computer users. The many variations on the basic "smiley-face" however, would appear to be unique to computer-mediated communication. 6. Text Forms. Text Forms describe the types of paralinguistic features made possible through certain kinds of basic and technically sophisticated text manipulation, the latter accomplished using a text editor. These features can provide a contrast and indicate stress, pause, or different kinds of tones within a message. Text Forms provides a way of looking at certain types of presentations of text on the screen, including the entire message or individual parts. In most cases a Text Form is not as dramatic or as systematically patterned as a spatial array. Text Forms include different types of text arrangements such as spacing between letters and words, the justification of paragraphs or blocks of text, numbered or unnumbered lists, outlines, and "the absence of certain features or expected work in composition" such as the lack of paragraphing (Carey, p. 68). 7. Text Movement. Text, or any symbol, can be made to appear to move across the screen, horizontally from left to right, by overwriting one letter on top of another. This places the same characters in different parts of the screen. By its very nature, text movement indicates that these words should be read differently from stationary text. Text movement indicates emphasis, and in some cases demonstrates extreme stress. Several kinds of text movement and combinations also make possible different features. Text movement can be smooth and constant if the spacing between each appearance is even, or choppy and inconsistent with uneven spacing. Regular or constant text movement creates a regular rhythm, while uneven text movement creates long or short pauses. - -