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Papers by Joseph Gafaranga

Conversation Analysis and Language Alternation

Handbook of Multilingualism and Multilingual Communication, 2007

... that very same action. As for CA, associated with sociologists such as Harvey Sacks,Emmanuel ... more ... that very same action. As for CA, associated with sociologists such as Harvey Sacks,Emmanuel Schegloff, Gail Jefferson and others, it aims to ac-count for the orderliness of talk itself as practical social action. Some of the key ...

Bilingualism as Interactional Practices, 2017

Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards th... more Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards the concurrent use of two or more languages within the same conversation, has traditionally been geared towards rehabilitating this form of language use. Now that code-switching has been rehabilitated, the research tradition faces an entirely new challenge, namely that of its continued relevance. This book argues that, in order to overcome this challenge, research should aim to describe specific interactional practices involving the use of two or more languages and outlines a methodology for doing so. This chapter illustrates this methodology by means of a specific case study. It describes the language choice practice of translinguistic apposition as observed in written texts in Rwanda. In Rwanda, authors often construct appositive structures in two languages. In turn, this possibility raises a theoretical as well as a practical issue. At the theoretical level language alternation is obser...

Bilingualism as Interactional Practices, 2017

Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards th... more Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards the concurrent use of two or more languages within the same conversation, has traditionally been geared towards rehabilitating this form of language use. Now that code-switching has been rehabilitated, the research tradition faces an entirely new challenge, namely that of its continued relevance. This book argues that, in order to overcome this challenge, research should aim to describe specific interactional practices involving the use of two or more languages and outlines a methodology for doing so. This chapter illustrates this methodology by means of a specific case study. In the chapter, the interaction practice of speech representation in talk in two languages is described. It is shown that, in talk in two languages, language choice in the interactional site of speech representation follows a three-path map: language choice may be an incidental aspect, it may be as a supportive aspec...

Applying Conversation Analysis, 2005

A visit to one’s GP (General Practitioner) is a very common social event, at least in the British... more A visit to one’s GP (General Practitioner) is a very common social event, at least in the British context. We (patients) visit our GPs for a variety of reasons, including reporting a new medical condition, reporting developments on an ongoing concern, renewing a prescription, and even obtaining a certificate for sick leave from work. The fact that a ‘list’ (Jefferson 1990) of the reasons for visiting one’s GP can be attempted is an important indication of the nature of doctor-patient interaction. It is a goal-oriented activity, an instance of institutional talk (Drew and Heritage 1992b; Heritage 1997). At once these two facts, diversity of goals and goal-focus, lead to the important issue of opening, of how participants enter the interactional world of the consultation. Time constraints within which consultations are conducted (more or less ten minutes) add to the urgency to get the consultation underway as soon as possible. The ordinary everyday conversational method of introducing topics in a stepwise progression (Sacks 1992) is not likely to be helpful here. Rather, participants in a consultation overwhelmingly use the strategy of topic initial elicitors (Button and Casey 1984). Such topic initial elicitors include questions such as ‘How are you?’, ‘What can I do for you?’, ‘What’s the problem?’, ‘How are you feeling?’ and even commands such as ‘Fire away’. Given this diversity of first concern elicitors, the question arises as to whether they are equivalent, whether the choice between alternative ways of opening the consultation is random or whether it is orderly.

Talk in Two Languages, 2007

In Chapter 3, we saw that, at the grammatical level, language alternation can be seen as an issue... more In Chapter 3, we saw that, at the grammatical level, language alternation can be seen as an issue of order because it runs counter to the Uniform Structure Principle. In Chapter 5, we saw that, under identity-related perspectives, language alternation is an issue of order for it runs counter to the One-Situation-One-Language Principle. Therefore, at the organisational level, for language alternation to be seen as an issue of order, there must be an organisational principle counter to which language alternation can be seen as running. In the literature, two related and yet different principles have been proposed. These are the ‘Preference for Same Language Talk’ as adopted by Auer (1984, 1988, 1995) and the ‘Preference for Same Medium Talk’ as adopted by Gafaranga (1998, 1999, 2000b, 2005) and Gafaranga and Torras (2001, 2002). These two principles correspond to the two approaches to language alternation which, in Table 5.1, are listed under the node ‘organisational explanation’. It is to these approaches that I now turn.

Langage Et Societe, 1987

Gafaranga Joseph. Code-switching ou le Vernaculaire du locuteur bilingue au Rwanda. In: Langage e... more Gafaranga Joseph. Code-switching ou le Vernaculaire du locuteur bilingue au Rwanda. In: Langage et société, n°41, 1987. Contacts de langues : quels modèles. pp. 24-25

International Journal of Bilingualism, 2000

One of the issues studies of language alternation among bilingual speaker still have to resolve i... more One of the issues studies of language alternation among bilingual speaker still have to resolve is that of the b ase language (Auer, 1997; Deprèz de Hérédia, 1991), of a s cheme of interpretation (Garfinkel, 1967), with respect to which categories of language alternation are identified. Starting from the fact that the need for a scheme of interpretation is not felt by analysts only, but also by speakers themselves, this paper argues that, in order to “discover” the relevant scheme, a speakers' own perspective must be adopted. Therefore, the paper illustrates this perspective by examining two activities bilingual speakers accomplish while talking, namely medium repair and o ther-language repair. Both activities are accomplished when, missing the mot juste in one language, speakers draw on their other languages to overcome that difficulty. As the discussion shows, through their own orientation to their language choice acts while accomplishing these activities, speakers themselves ...

International Journal of Bilingualism, 2001

This paper is based on bilingual conversations we have collected in two bilingual settings, namel... more This paper is based on bilingual conversations we have collected in two bilingual settings, namely service encounters in Barcelona and ordinary informal conversations among bilingual Rwandese in Belgium. On the basis of these data, the paper raises the question of whether the concept of l anguage is a useful one in accounting for language choice acts among bilingual speakers. Observation of the data reveals that the concept of language can account for bilinguals' language choice acts only partially. This observation is found to be consistent with Gumperz' (1982) argument according to which, in talk, speakers themselves do not necessarily orient to the notion of language, but rather to their “own notion of code.” In the paper, we refer to that speakers' own code as the medium of a bilingual conversation. Therefore, our main argumentis that, for an account of language choice among bilingual speakers, the concept of language need be suspended in favor of that of the medium ...

Sociolinguistic Studies, 2000

In this paper, I argue that, for a 'faithful' account of the orderliness of language alte... more In this paper, I argue that, for a 'faithful' account of the orderliness of language alternation among bilingual speakers, an attitude of indifference must be adopted inapproaching the data. More specifically, I argue that bilingual speakers cannot be assumed to be 'normatively' speaking either language A or language B. They could also have adopted the use of both languages as the medium (Gafaranga, 1998, 1999, 2000). To demonstrate the need for such an attitude, the paper looks at four of the most influential accounts of language alternation, namely the work of Fishman, Gumperz, Myers-Scotton and Auer. It shows that these accounts fail to capture the orderliness of language alternation because they approach bilingual conversations, not with an attitude of indifference, but from a normative framework whereby every instance of language alternation is defined in terms of language separateness.

Edinburgh University Press eBooks, Dec 1, 2016

Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards th... more Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards the concurrent use of two or more languages within the same conversation, has traditionally been geared towards rehabilitating this form of language use. From being seen as a random phenomenon reflecting the user’s lack of competence, code-switching is currently seen as sign of an advanced level of competence in the languages involved and as serving different interactional functions. This chapter discusses in some detail the research effort which has led to the rehabilitation of code-switching, with a special focus on studies conducted from a socio-functional perspective. Key paradigms in this perspective are covered, including Gumperz’ interactional sociolinguistics model, Myers-Scotton’s markedness (rational choice) model and Auer’s and Gafaranga’s conversation analytic model of code-switching. In turn, this overview of existing research serves as a context for the challenge the study of code-switching is face with, namely that of its continued relevance.

Journal of Pragmatics, 2021

Abstract This article investigates a language choice practice, referred to as other-language reca... more Abstract This article investigates a language choice practice, referred to as other-language recalibration, which I have observed in news interviews in Rwanda. A recalibration repair is a type of repair in which the trouble source and the repairer have the same referent. In news interviews in Rwanda, the trouble source and the repairer can come from two different languages. It was observed that going from the trouble source to the repairer, language alternation can take either of two directions. It can go from Kinyarwanda to French/English and it can proceed from French/English to Kinyarwanda. Therefore, the article investigates the question whether, in these interviews, language alternation in other-language recalibration is directional. Observation of the data shows that the direction Kinyarwanda – French/English serves the interactional function of word clarification while the direction French/English – Kinyarwanda serves the function of medium repair. In turn, this finding leads to a respecification of the notion of directionality. Traditionally, this concept has been viewed in terms of the social indexicality of the languages involved. The paper proposes that, from an organisational perspective, directionality can be understood in terms of the interactional tasks alternative patterns of language alternation allow participants to accomplish in talk-in-interaction.

Conversation Analysis and Language Alternation

Handbook of Multilingualism and Multilingual Communication, 2007

... that very same action. As for CA, associated with sociologists such as Harvey Sacks,Emmanuel ... more ... that very same action. As for CA, associated with sociologists such as Harvey Sacks,Emmanuel Schegloff, Gail Jefferson and others, it aims to ac-count for the orderliness of talk itself as practical social action. Some of the key ...

Bilingualism as Interactional Practices, 2017

Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards th... more Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards the concurrent use of two or more languages within the same conversation, has traditionally been geared towards rehabilitating this form of language use. Now that code-switching has been rehabilitated, the research tradition faces an entirely new challenge, namely that of its continued relevance. This book argues that, in order to overcome this challenge, research should aim to describe specific interactional practices involving the use of two or more languages and outlines a methodology for doing so. This chapter illustrates this methodology by means of a specific case study. It describes the language choice practice of translinguistic apposition as observed in written texts in Rwanda. In Rwanda, authors often construct appositive structures in two languages. In turn, this possibility raises a theoretical as well as a practical issue. At the theoretical level language alternation is obser...

Bilingualism as Interactional Practices, 2017

Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards th... more Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards the concurrent use of two or more languages within the same conversation, has traditionally been geared towards rehabilitating this form of language use. Now that code-switching has been rehabilitated, the research tradition faces an entirely new challenge, namely that of its continued relevance. This book argues that, in order to overcome this challenge, research should aim to describe specific interactional practices involving the use of two or more languages and outlines a methodology for doing so. This chapter illustrates this methodology by means of a specific case study. In the chapter, the interaction practice of speech representation in talk in two languages is described. It is shown that, in talk in two languages, language choice in the interactional site of speech representation follows a three-path map: language choice may be an incidental aspect, it may be as a supportive aspec...

Applying Conversation Analysis, 2005

A visit to one’s GP (General Practitioner) is a very common social event, at least in the British... more A visit to one’s GP (General Practitioner) is a very common social event, at least in the British context. We (patients) visit our GPs for a variety of reasons, including reporting a new medical condition, reporting developments on an ongoing concern, renewing a prescription, and even obtaining a certificate for sick leave from work. The fact that a ‘list’ (Jefferson 1990) of the reasons for visiting one’s GP can be attempted is an important indication of the nature of doctor-patient interaction. It is a goal-oriented activity, an instance of institutional talk (Drew and Heritage 1992b; Heritage 1997). At once these two facts, diversity of goals and goal-focus, lead to the important issue of opening, of how participants enter the interactional world of the consultation. Time constraints within which consultations are conducted (more or less ten minutes) add to the urgency to get the consultation underway as soon as possible. The ordinary everyday conversational method of introducing topics in a stepwise progression (Sacks 1992) is not likely to be helpful here. Rather, participants in a consultation overwhelmingly use the strategy of topic initial elicitors (Button and Casey 1984). Such topic initial elicitors include questions such as ‘How are you?’, ‘What can I do for you?’, ‘What’s the problem?’, ‘How are you feeling?’ and even commands such as ‘Fire away’. Given this diversity of first concern elicitors, the question arises as to whether they are equivalent, whether the choice between alternative ways of opening the consultation is random or whether it is orderly.

Talk in Two Languages, 2007

In Chapter 3, we saw that, at the grammatical level, language alternation can be seen as an issue... more In Chapter 3, we saw that, at the grammatical level, language alternation can be seen as an issue of order because it runs counter to the Uniform Structure Principle. In Chapter 5, we saw that, under identity-related perspectives, language alternation is an issue of order for it runs counter to the One-Situation-One-Language Principle. Therefore, at the organisational level, for language alternation to be seen as an issue of order, there must be an organisational principle counter to which language alternation can be seen as running. In the literature, two related and yet different principles have been proposed. These are the ‘Preference for Same Language Talk’ as adopted by Auer (1984, 1988, 1995) and the ‘Preference for Same Medium Talk’ as adopted by Gafaranga (1998, 1999, 2000b, 2005) and Gafaranga and Torras (2001, 2002). These two principles correspond to the two approaches to language alternation which, in Table 5.1, are listed under the node ‘organisational explanation’. It is to these approaches that I now turn.

Langage Et Societe, 1987

Gafaranga Joseph. Code-switching ou le Vernaculaire du locuteur bilingue au Rwanda. In: Langage e... more Gafaranga Joseph. Code-switching ou le Vernaculaire du locuteur bilingue au Rwanda. In: Langage et société, n°41, 1987. Contacts de langues : quels modèles. pp. 24-25

International Journal of Bilingualism, 2000

One of the issues studies of language alternation among bilingual speaker still have to resolve i... more One of the issues studies of language alternation among bilingual speaker still have to resolve is that of the b ase language (Auer, 1997; Deprèz de Hérédia, 1991), of a s cheme of interpretation (Garfinkel, 1967), with respect to which categories of language alternation are identified. Starting from the fact that the need for a scheme of interpretation is not felt by analysts only, but also by speakers themselves, this paper argues that, in order to “discover” the relevant scheme, a speakers' own perspective must be adopted. Therefore, the paper illustrates this perspective by examining two activities bilingual speakers accomplish while talking, namely medium repair and o ther-language repair. Both activities are accomplished when, missing the mot juste in one language, speakers draw on their other languages to overcome that difficulty. As the discussion shows, through their own orientation to their language choice acts while accomplishing these activities, speakers themselves ...

International Journal of Bilingualism, 2001

This paper is based on bilingual conversations we have collected in two bilingual settings, namel... more This paper is based on bilingual conversations we have collected in two bilingual settings, namely service encounters in Barcelona and ordinary informal conversations among bilingual Rwandese in Belgium. On the basis of these data, the paper raises the question of whether the concept of l anguage is a useful one in accounting for language choice acts among bilingual speakers. Observation of the data reveals that the concept of language can account for bilinguals' language choice acts only partially. This observation is found to be consistent with Gumperz' (1982) argument according to which, in talk, speakers themselves do not necessarily orient to the notion of language, but rather to their “own notion of code.” In the paper, we refer to that speakers' own code as the medium of a bilingual conversation. Therefore, our main argumentis that, for an account of language choice among bilingual speakers, the concept of language need be suspended in favor of that of the medium ...

Sociolinguistic Studies, 2000

In this paper, I argue that, for a 'faithful' account of the orderliness of language alte... more In this paper, I argue that, for a 'faithful' account of the orderliness of language alternation among bilingual speakers, an attitude of indifference must be adopted inapproaching the data. More specifically, I argue that bilingual speakers cannot be assumed to be 'normatively' speaking either language A or language B. They could also have adopted the use of both languages as the medium (Gafaranga, 1998, 1999, 2000). To demonstrate the need for such an attitude, the paper looks at four of the most influential accounts of language alternation, namely the work of Fishman, Gumperz, Myers-Scotton and Auer. It shows that these accounts fail to capture the orderliness of language alternation because they approach bilingual conversations, not with an attitude of indifference, but from a normative framework whereby every instance of language alternation is defined in terms of language separateness.

Edinburgh University Press eBooks, Dec 1, 2016

Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards th... more Research in code-switching, undertaken against the backdrop of very negative attitudes towards the concurrent use of two or more languages within the same conversation, has traditionally been geared towards rehabilitating this form of language use. From being seen as a random phenomenon reflecting the user’s lack of competence, code-switching is currently seen as sign of an advanced level of competence in the languages involved and as serving different interactional functions. This chapter discusses in some detail the research effort which has led to the rehabilitation of code-switching, with a special focus on studies conducted from a socio-functional perspective. Key paradigms in this perspective are covered, including Gumperz’ interactional sociolinguistics model, Myers-Scotton’s markedness (rational choice) model and Auer’s and Gafaranga’s conversation analytic model of code-switching. In turn, this overview of existing research serves as a context for the challenge the study of code-switching is face with, namely that of its continued relevance.

Journal of Pragmatics, 2021

Abstract This article investigates a language choice practice, referred to as other-language reca... more Abstract This article investigates a language choice practice, referred to as other-language recalibration, which I have observed in news interviews in Rwanda. A recalibration repair is a type of repair in which the trouble source and the repairer have the same referent. In news interviews in Rwanda, the trouble source and the repairer can come from two different languages. It was observed that going from the trouble source to the repairer, language alternation can take either of two directions. It can go from Kinyarwanda to French/English and it can proceed from French/English to Kinyarwanda. Therefore, the article investigates the question whether, in these interviews, language alternation in other-language recalibration is directional. Observation of the data shows that the direction Kinyarwanda – French/English serves the interactional function of word clarification while the direction French/English – Kinyarwanda serves the function of medium repair. In turn, this finding leads to a respecification of the notion of directionality. Traditionally, this concept has been viewed in terms of the social indexicality of the languages involved. The paper proposes that, from an organisational perspective, directionality can be understood in terms of the interactional tasks alternative patterns of language alternation allow participants to accomplish in talk-in-interaction.