Children’s encoding of simultaneity in British Sign Language narratives

Narrative discourse in BSL is first analyzed in an adult signer by describing how fixed and shifted sign space is used for reference and the encoding of simultaneity. Although children as young as 4 years old use parts of these sign spaces in isolation their combined use in encoding simultaneity in...

ver descrição completa

Detalhes bibliográficos
Autor: Morgan, Gary
Tipo de documento: artigo
Estado:Versión aceptada para publicación
Data de publicação:2002
País:España
Recursos:Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)
Repositório:O2, repositorio institucional de la UOC
OAI Identifier:oai:openaccess.uoc.edu:10609/151841
Acesso em linha:http://hdl.handle.net/10609/151841
https://doi.org/10.1075/sll.5.2.04mor
Access Level:Acceso aberto
Palavra-chave:narrative development
British Sign Language
simultaneity
sign spaces
frog story
Descrição
Resumo:Narrative discourse in BSL is first analyzed in an adult signer by describing how fixed and shifted sign space is used for reference and the encoding of simultaneity. Although children as young as 4 years old use parts of these sign spaces in isolation their combined use in encoding simultaneity in narrative is a major hurdle to achieving full mastery of British Sign Language (BSL). The paper describes the developmental trends in encoding simultaneity in BSL ‘frog story’ narratives from a group of 12 signing children, aged 4; 3 to 13; 4. We focus on the gradual control of reference in sign space. A transcription framework for recording this aspect of sign discourse is also outlined. The results point away from the role of iconicity and instead toward general patterns in narrative development as driving the organization of sign space and reference.