Basil Amber

Basil Bernard Bernstein (born November 1, 1924 in London ; † September 24, 2000 ) was a British sociologist whose works were widely received in linguistics .

In the 1960s, Basil Bernstein proposed the deficit hypothesis (named after him, the Bernstein hypothesis ) in sociolinguistics. He put forward the theory that the language of the lower class was inferior to the language of the middle and upper class. He distinguished between the restricted code and the elaborate code .

The restricted code stands for the rigid, limited use of adverbs and adjectives, while the elaborate code stands for a differentiated use of the two word forms.

Bernstein himself rejected the term deficit hypothesis. He did not want the restricted code to be understood as deficient, but only as "different". He justified this with the fact that the respective ruling class alone determines the legitimate code and therefore there can only be a superior and an inferior code temporarily.

Publications

• Social structure, socialization and language behavior. Articles 1958–1970. Amsterdam 1970. (Black row 8)
• Linguistic Socialization Studies. Düsseldorf 1972. (Language and learning 7)
• B. Bernstein / W. Brandis / D. Henderson: Social Class, Language, and Communication. Düsseldorf 1973. (Primary socialization, language and education)

literature

• Hager, Frithjof / Haberland, Hartmut / Paris, Rainer: Sociology and Linguistics (Sociology + Linguistics). The poor resolution of social inequality through language. Metzler, Stuttgart 1973.
• Douglas, Mary : ritual, taboo and body symbolism. Socioanthropological studies in industrial society and tribal culture. Fischer, Frankfurt am Main 1993.
• Morais, Ana (Ed.): Towards a sociology of pedagogy. The contribution of Basil Bernstein to research. New York et al. 2001. (History of schools and schooling 23)

Web links

Literature by and about Basil Bernstein in the catalog of the German National Library

• Detailed biography (English)