Cyber socialising: emerging genres and registers of intimacy
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Date
2013
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
UNISA Press
Taylor & Francis
Taylor & Francis
Abstract
The popularity of digital media networks for socialising among the youth is well
documented. Much has been written on the emerging norms of textese, the global
shorthand for chatting. However, becoming a proficient user involves more than simply
mastering this code: it requires knowing the appropriate genres and registers for
chatting. This article aims to explore these conventionalised genres and styles from
a discourse analytical perspective. It analyses data collected by first-year students in
the Linguistics Department at the University of the Western Cape (UWC) who use an
application called MXit for chatting with their friends. The analysis shows how, despite
the seemingly unrestrained and non-standard nature of MXit chatting, it is highly conventionalised
and structured and requires a particular �register of intimacy� which relies
heavily on evaluative language and affective markers. However, it is simultaneously
fluid and innovative thereby enabling users to �style� for themselves identities which
combine elements of global sophistication with local situatedness.
Description
Keywords
Cyber socialising, Genre, Intimacy, MXit, Register, Social media, South Africa, Textese, Youth
Citation
Bock, Z. (2013). Cyber socialising: emerging genres and registers of intimacy. Language Matters: Studies in the Languages of Southern Africa, 44(2): 68-91