LINGUIST 471S · also PUBPOL 208S, SES 484S, SOCIOL 471S
Language and Politics: Global Perspectives
Gareth O. Price
Description from DukeHub
We will never speak a single language, or agree on the best way to organize society and politics for 'the good life.' How do macro-politics affect the language(s) we choose to speak? What public policy initiatives can be deployed so that language is an accessible resource for all? Are there such things as language rights, and how can they be distributed and defended? These questions are not just academic, but essential to understanding the world(s) that we inhabit. This course takes a global and historical approach to the politics of language, examining the relationships between language, society, and the state.
Skills
- policy and lawAI review: "What public policy initiatives can be deployed so that language is an accessible resource..."
AI-resilient: 2 of 5
- No: Physical, lab or field work
- No: Live work with people
- Yes: Judgment someone is accountable for · "policy"
- No: A craft you practice with your hands or body
- Yes: Small, in-person format · seminar, 18 seats per section
The checks lean on Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025), which found generative AI applies least to physical work and hands-on work with people. A signal, not a promise. How the score works
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