How We Talk Online
Course Description
Why are people suddenly saying "unalive" instead of "die"? What does “6-7” actually mean? In this seminar, we'll use digital communication as a window into foundational questions in linguistics: How do people convey meaning beyond the literal words they use? How do new communicative conventions emerge, and how do they change under social and technological pressures?
In our seminar, we'll draw on research in pragmatics, conversation analysis, and sociolinguistics to examine the everyday linguistic phenomena you encounter online. Two books anchor the course: Because Internet (2019) by Gretchen McCulloch and Algospeak (2025) by Adam Aleksic (@etymologynerd). Short academic readings and journalism will supplement both.
Coursework centers on a sequence of short analytic exercises that build toward your final project. You'll annotate a conversation from your own group chats, document an emerging online expression in the wild, and develop an original analysis of a digital communication phenomenon of your choosing. Plan on roughly 50–75 pages of reading per week, three short writing assignments (3–5 pages each) across the quarter, and a final paper of 10–12 pages (or an equivalent multimedia project). No background in linguistics is required. You'll leave the course with a set of analytical tools for understanding how language works that apply far beyond your phone screen.
Meet the Instructor: Robert Hawkins
"I'm a linguist studying how people understand each other in conversation. It's surprisingly hard to explain how we do it. How do we pick up on what someone is hinting at beyond what they literally say, how do inside jokes form in group chats, how do strangers 'click' within minutes of talking? I direct the Social Interaction Lab, where a team of undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral researchers investigates these questions using a mix of behavioral experiments, computational models of communication, and naturally occurring data from real conversations. This seminar grew out of a fascination with the endlessly creative ways people bend language to express themselves, and several of its topics connect directly to ongoing lab work; students who get hooked are welcome to continue with the lab as research assistants. I wanted to build a course where students could bring their own everyday experiences to bear on deep linguistic questions."
Of related interest
Bad Sounds
