Talking the Dog: Framing Pets as Interactional Resources in Family Discourse

by: Deborah Tannen

Research on Language and Social Interaction, Vol. 37, No. 4. (2004), pp. 399-420.

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Abstract

Based on examples drawn from tape recordings of two middle-class, dual-career White couples with children who audiotaped their own interactions for a week, I examined how family members mediate interpersonal interaction by speaking as, to, or about pet dogs who are present in the interaction. Analysis demonstrates that dogs become resources by which speakers effect a frame shift to a humorous key, buffer criticism, deliver praise, teach values to a child, resolve potential conflict with a spouse, and create a family identity that includes the dogs as family members. In this analysis, I contribute to an understanding of framing in interaction, including the relevance of Bakhtin's (1981) notion of polyvocality for conversational discourse and demonstrate how family members use pets as resources to mediate their interactions while constituting and reinforcing their identity as a family.

@article{citeulike:2155993, abstract = {Based on examples drawn from tape recordings of two middle-class, dual-career White couples with children who audiotaped their own interactions for a week, I examined how family members mediate interpersonal interaction by speaking as, to, or about pet dogs who are present in the interaction. Analysis demonstrates that dogs become resources by which speakers effect a frame shift to a humorous key, buffer criticism, deliver praise, teach values to a child, resolve potential conflict with a spouse, and create a family identity that includes the dogs as family members. In this analysis, I contribute to an understanding of framing in interaction, including the relevance of Bakhtin's (1981) notion of polyvocality for conversational discourse and demonstrate how family members use pets as resources to mediate their interactions while constituting and reinforcing their identity as a family.}, author = {Tannen, Deborah }, citeulike-article-id = {2155993}, doi = {10.1207/s15327973rlsi3704\_1}, journal = {Research on Language and Social Interaction}, keywords = {authority}, number = {4}, pages = {399--420}, posted-at = {2007-12-21 16:17:45}, priority = {3}, title = {Talking the Dog: Framing Pets as Interactional Resources in Family Discourse}, url = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15327973rlsi3704\_1}, volume = {37}, year = {2004} }

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TY - JOUR ID - citeulike:2155993 L3 - citeulike-article-id:2155993 TI - Talking the Dog: Framing Pets as Interactional Resources in Family Discourse JF - Research on Language and Social Interaction VL - 37 IS - 4 SP - 399 EP - 420 N2 - Based on examples drawn from tape recordings of two middle-class, dual-career White couples with children who audiotaped their own interactions for a week, I examined how family members mediate interpersonal interaction by speaking as, to, or about pet dogs who are present in the interaction. Analysis demonstrates that dogs become resources by which speakers effect a frame shift to a humorous key, buffer criticism, deliver praise, teach values to a child, resolve potential conflict with a spouse, and create a family identity that includes the dogs as family members. In this analysis, I contribute to an understanding of framing in interaction, including the relevance of Bakhtin's (1981) notion of polyvocality for conversational discourse and demonstrate how family members use pets as resources to mediate their interactions while constituting and reinforcing their identity as a family. KW - authority AU - Tannen, Deborah PY - 2004/// UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/s15327973rlsi3704_1 ER -

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