International Symposium on American English(es): Linguistic and Socio-cultural Perspectives

This one-day Symposium aims at discussing the linguistic, socio-cultural, and political role of the theoretically troublesome notions of ‘Standard’, ‘non-Standard’, and ‘sub-Standard’ varieties of English in the United States of America.

 Papers will be presented which address the following topics:

 -          language policies in the USA;

-          non-Standard and socially marked lexical categories (e.g. slang, regionalisms), with a focus on their use in the mass media;

-          varieties of American English that have been, and/or still are, considered as non-Standard or sub-Standard, both institutionally and popularly;

-          social and cultural issues arising from the requirement of Standard American English in educational and professional contexts.

The opening plenary lecture will be delivered by Donaldo Macedo (University of Massachusetts, Boston), who has published extensively on language policy, sociolinguistics, and critical pedagogy.

Scientific Committee:

Anna Belladelli (University of Verona), Roberto Cagliero (University of Verona), Roberta Facchinetti (University of Verona), Cesare Gagliardi (University of Verona), Donaldo Macedo (University of Massachusetts, Boston).