Dr. Louis Arsac
Year I, Semester I
Students learn that acquiring a new language is not just acquiring a set of new syntax, grammar and lexical rules, but also involves learning a new ‘cultural and civilizational grammar’. This involves distinguishing between two sets of rules, the rules of grammar on one hand, and the rules of communication on the other. The problem of acquiring a cultural and civilizational grammar is best dealt with a sociolinguistic approach. Such an approach requires students to take account of the historic, psychological and cultural aspects of speech, and to acknowledge the diversity and complexity of empirical situations which can complicate communication in a foreign language.