| F745 |
Okay, erm so, what's your dissertation about? |
| F746 |
erm, I actually did mine on Onomastics,
//like,// |
| F745 |
//Right.// |
| F746 |
about, yeah, about kind of,
oh God, [inhale]
aye, the additional names that people use in my island; the kind of system of naming. |
| F745 |
oh right, what what isl- island is it you come from? |
| F746 |
North Uist, |
| F745 |
Right. |
| F746 |
in the Western Isles, I don't know if you know where that
//is. [laugh]// |
| F745 |
//[inaudible]//
I have a vague idea but I've
//never been there or anything.// |
| F746 |
//oh//
//oh, that's good quite cause most// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
people don't even know where the Western Isles is,
//so you're doing well.// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
How about yourself? |
| F745 |
erm, well my dissertation was about, |
| F746 |
[cough] |
| F745 |
well, it's for the Grammar paper and
//it's about// |
| F746 |
//oh right.// |
| F745 |
erm second language acquisition.
So basically I just interviewed some people
who, ehm, had learnt English as a second language. |
| F746 |
What kind of people? Was it a
//specific kind, like// |
| F745 |
//erm// |
| F746 |
people at the Uni,
//or?// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.//
Well, they were students but that was just, you know, that's just cause they were easier to find [laugh] |
| F746 |
Yeah. [laugh] |
| F745 |
But erm, they were people who origi- well, who, their first language was Chinese. |
| F746 |
oh right? |
| F745 |
em yeah, I just picked that because I already knew one person and so I thought, "I'll be able to find other people". |
| F746 |
Yeah, contacts, through |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
| F746 |
that person, that's quite good.
Yeah, I just interviewed members of my local community, which is quite good cause obviously I knew them [laugh]
//so I kinda knew// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
who to pick and choose to
might be good representatives.
[inhale]
[cough] |
| F745 |
erm, so have you finished writing it or is it still |
| F746 |
oh, yeah, I had to hand it in in June so
yeah, I think I get my mark back some time in September
but [laugh] not entirely sure.
How about yourself, have |
| F745 |
erm
//no, I// |
| F746 |
//di-// |
| F745 |
haven't finished mine yet; I had to get an extension, erm, so, it's due on the third of September so I've just going into a bit of panic about it now, you know,
erm.
Feel like it should be done but it isn't.
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//[laugh]// |
| F745 |
But I've, I've done, like, all the interviewing and looked at the results and stuff like that, so it's just actual writing
//[inaudible]// |
| F746 |
//Yeah, that's the main thing.// |
| F745 |
[inaudible] |
| F746 |
Yeah, so, erm
I don't know, I found it was more interesting that I'd kinda done interviews and done my own research for it, did you find that as well, or? |
| F745 |
Yeah, because when I asked my supervisor about it he said, you know, "You don't have to do your own research, you can just look at other people's and, you know, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
say something about that", but,
//but I thought, yeah.// |
| F746 |
//But it's not as original [?]underneath[/?]// |
| F745 |
I thought, you know, "This seems like a bit of a waste
//of time", really, you know// |
| F746 |
//[laugh]// |
| F745 |
all those other people have already said this,
//what can I// |
| F746 |
//Yeah, sai-// |
| F745 |
say about it? |
| F746 |
kinda, setting opinions against each other rather than actually, kinda
//contributing something new.// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
So, so, what have you found? |
| F745 |
erm, I've [laugh] well, it's kinda difficult to explain because, er, the tests I did were only to do with one specific grammatical thing, which is subjacency violations,
er, basically I found that, and it's about Universal Grammar, I don't know if you, did you do any
//grammar?// |
| F746 |
//oh we did a//
a wee bit, yeah, but
//oh yeah, I did// |
| F745 |
//[inaudible]// |
| F746 |
the Grammar paper, yeah. |
| F745 |
Yeah.
Yeah, well, yeah, sort of about that and whether, you know
I did people who learned, em, English at different ages,
//So,// |
| F746 |
//oh right.// |
| F745 |
I thought I'd see, you know, if it made a difference to, you know, whether Universal Grammar works, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
And ehm
I don't think it really did make much of a difference,
but I didn't test anyone who'd learnt it, like,
when they were quite old, like, you know, an adult, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
so they were mostly, like, teenagers when they learnt it or, one of them, erm, was bilingual,
So. |
| F746 |
That's quite interesting though that the teenagers would be the same as the bilingual
//individual.// |
| F745 |
//erm//
There definitely was differences
//erm,// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
especially, like, I got them to do two tests: one was just sort of, ehm, you know, "Are these sentences grammatical?" and some of them were, some of them weren't,
//and you'd have to// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
say whether it was or not.
And, ehm, on that one there wasn't so much of a difference but I also got them to do just, ehm, a sort of more spontaneous thing,
well, it wasn't completely spontaneous cause, erm, I got them to look at, er, a kid's book,
//and// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
there was only a few words and I covered them up [laugh]. |
| F746 |
[laugh]
//[laugh]// |
| F745 |
//So, you know,//
and just say what was happening in the pictures and stuff.
And you could definitely tell how, how much more confident the bilingual person was,
like, you know, they're just talking away, blah, blah, blah,
//telling you// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.// |
| F745 |
millions of stuff.
And the other people were more, sort of, you know, they kept things more simple,
and some of the things they didn't know the words for it at all, like, a rake. [laugh] |
| F746 |
oh right.
And perhaps they were like translating in their heads from Chinese
//to English as well.// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.//
Yeah, I mean, I cou- it was the last person who was the oldest;
I could definitely tell that she was having a hard time with it, and what she actually wanted to do was read through the book first
well, look at the pictures first
and then tell me, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
instead of looking at it page by page, and I could see that was trying to, you know, translate what she was going to say and then say it.
//But// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.// |
| F745 |
I couldn't let her [laugh] do that because
//that was not// |
| F746 |
//That.// |
| F745 |
what the other people had done, so, |
| F746 |
Yeah, I know, erm, in my own community, like, a lot of people are bilingual, cause it's, ehm, mainly a Gaelic-speaking area, |
| F745 |
mmhm |
| F746 |
So,
yeah, a lot of [cough], a lot of the, kind of, older people you can tell that they're actually kinda translating it in their head before they say it,
and sometimes, they can even say things, things that sound just a little bit odd in English, not quite right, although i- although obviously they are bilingual, but Gaelic's their first language, so |
| F745 |
Right, do you speak any Gaelic yourself? |
| F746 |
Not really, a little bit; my boyfriend's, er, speaks it as his first language
//in his// |
| F745 |
//oh right.// |
| F746 |
family and things.
But, yeah, I really should learn, I've got the
//perfect opportunity// |
| F745 |
//uh-huh// |
| F746 |
[laugh] so,
[inhale]
but jus-, yeah, bits and pieces |
| F745 |
Yeah, I didn't realise there still were any people who spoke it as their first language. |
| F746 |
Yeah, in the Western Isles it's still quite strong, but it's dying even there I think.
Like, I think it probably will die, which is a shame, but |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
| F746 |
[cough]
But, yeah my dissertation kind of, erm I think it's because it's a Gaelic-speaking area partly is why there's all these kinda additional names, cause one of the main categories it's kinda patronymics. |
| F745 |
mmhm |
| F746 |
Like, there's a really strong community there and people are known by their kinda father's name and their grandfather's name and, like, it's really deep-rooted.
So, I don't know, I find, I find that quite interesting. It's strange though cause I've, because I've grown up with it but I've had to try and
put everything into categories and sort of |
| F745 |
Be more objective,
//I suppose.// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.//
I, I found I was able to do it
but only kinda after interviewing other people and trying to be d-, really detached about it, so
But no, it was good.
[inhale] [yawn]
But, hmm
Also kinda pretty much everybody's called MacDonald. [laugh]
//Well,// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
Not, kind of, everybody but, like, about thirty percent of, like, the area that I was doing, the people are called MacDonald,
and something like, is it fifty-five percent of the population have one of five surnames, so it's kind of
like so many people are called the same name they kind of have to have some kind of additional system
or else it just, you know, you just couldn't identify people properly,
//You'd// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
have to go through some big spiel of, like, "oh, such and such, who lives in such and such, who does such and such, and is married to", basically.
//But you can like// |
| F745 |
//It's weird,//
because I don't think I've met anyone who has the same second name as me except family, obviously.
//[inaudible]// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.// |
| F745 |
My second name is, ehm, well, my Grandpa, whose name it is, is Irish, so I think that's where it comes from, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
erm, and, er, well it's Forde; a lot of people have F.O.R.D. but mine's got an E at the end.
I
//I don't think I've// |
| F746 |
//oh right.// |
| F745 |
ever met anyone who has it that's spelt that way. |
| F746 |
oh right.
Yeah, I mean I've got quite an unusual name, which is k-, which is probably why I don't have, like, one of these community names. [laugh]
But, like, my surname's Bramwell,
and we're the only family called that in, like, the whole of the [laugh] islands
//pretty much,// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
so,
so yeah.
Yeah, my Dad gets called Bramwell as, like, his, kind of, name cause my mum gets called, like, "bean Bramwell", like "wife of Bramwell"
//instead of,// |
| F745 |
//oh right.// |
| F746 |
you know, it's her surname as well, but because he's identified with that. |
| F745 |
mmhm |
| F746 |
And I'm, like, "nighean Bramwell", like, "daughter of Bramwell" [laugh] or whatever.
It helps that my dad's a teacher so, kind of, everyone in the community sort of knows him |
| F745 |
Right, so is it quite a small place then? |
| F746 |
Well, there's sixteen hundred people on the island,
but, em, like, the west side of the island that I did there's f-, I think it was three-hundred and twenty people roughly.
So it's, yeah, it's quite a small sort of
//area.// |
| F745 |
//mm//
That, that's weird because, you know, I've always lived in Glasgow so, |
| F746 |
Have you?
//What part?// |
| F745 |
//Well, I've//
briefly lived in Aberdeen but, you know, that's just a big city as well,
//so,// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
don't know, don't know really what it would be like to live in such a small community. |
| F746 |
Yeah, uh-huh it's quite nice erm
Well, it's quite nice in some ways but then you have the disadvantages as well,
Because it's, it's, in a way it's a great advantage that kinda everyone knows you and, it's really nice, people know your name,
and i- say you're walking home at six o'clock in the morning, someone would give you a lift, they wouldn't, like, [laugh] beat you up
//or whatever, you know.// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
[inhale]
But then, on the other hand, gossip's just horrendous, [laugh], so.
[laugh]
Honestly everybody knows everything about you, which can just get really claustrophobic after a while.
I mean, I think, I think that's maybe the b- biggest disadvantage of living in a small community. |
| F745 |
So, is that why you decided to come to Glasgow then? Because it's bigger? Or was it just, you know, Glasgow University itself that you wanted to |
| F746 |
Yeah, well I knew, like, I'd have to go away to go to university
//anyway, and// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
and I just quite fancied, well, first of all I went to Strathclyde to do Engineering.
[inhale]
//Not entirely// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
sure [laugh] why |
| F745 |
[laugh] |
| F746 |
[laugh] but then after a year I changed to Glasgow, so.
But yeah, I'm still not quite sure why I thought Engineering was for me [laugh] at all [laugh]. |
| F745 |
So, it didn't, you didn't like it then? [laugh] |
| F746 |
It was just really really dull.
I mean there were people in my class who absolutely loved it, but for me, I just found it just really really really dull, I don't know.
[inhale]
Like, I know it's necessary but
//[laugh]// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]//
//Not for// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.// |
| F745 |
you, then? [laugh] |
| F746 |
No, not for me at all.
Have you, er, what subjects did you do at first? Were you always really sure you wanted to do English Language?
//[inaudible]// |
| F745 |
//No, I//
I, my original plan was to do English Literature and Greek. [laugh] |
| F746 |
oh right. |
| F745 |
erm, yeah, because I'd done a little bit of Greek at school and then I did it again in first year and, erm, I did like it, but
it, doing a language is so so time-consuming.
It's like, there's always a lot more work to do for that than for anything else,
you know, there'd be something every night, some translation or whatever,
//erm// |
| F746 |
//mm// |
| F745 |
and I felt like it was just, you know, stopping me doing any work on, e-, on English Literature or, had to do English Language in first year as well, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
so then in in second year I didn't do Greek any more
so I couldn't have done that as my degree.
And then,
I was still thinking I would do English literature, but,
when I went to the pre-enrolment meeting that was, and they showed me the list of papers that was the
//moment when I thought// |
| F746 |
//mm// |
| F745 |
"Maybe this isn't for me" because, like, I looked at them and I thought, "I don't want to do any of these,
maybe like one, but not eight"! [laugh]
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//Yeah,//
//[inaudible]// |
| F745 |
//Let's do English//
Language instead, and I'm really glad that I did. |
| F746 |
Yeah, I'm really gla- I mean I took one English Lit paper;
Irish Literature, which was the only one that appealed to me, I have to say [laugh].
[inhale] But, erm, yeah, and I'm really glad I did English Language as well. |
| F745 |
Yeah, also there would have been, erm, talks [laugh] for English Literature. I hated that.
That was like, |
| F746 |
oh what, the
//presentations?// |
| F745 |
//Yeah,//
presentations.
erm |
| F746 |
mm |
| F745 |
that was like the worst bit of English Literature for me. |
| F746 |
Yeah, I had to do one for Onomastics for English Language anyway,
so, [laugh] I suppose that it didn't matter that I had to do them for Irish Lit as well.
But yeah, I think most papers in English Language you don't do you? |
| F745 |
No, I don't think so.
[laugh] I hope not
//anyway.// |
| F746 |
//[laugh]//
[laugh] So what
//did you// |
| F745 |
//Don't want to//
suddenly discover I've got one to do this year, or something. |
| F746 |
ah, I know. What are you taking this year, do you know yet? |
| F745 |
erm, I'm doing Old Icelandic and
I'm not sure about the other two, cause I did five in third year so I'll just be doing three
//in fourth year.// |
| F746 |
//Yeah, I'm the same.// |
| F745 |
erm, yeah, I should probably talk to someone about that but I haven't even th-, really thought about this coming year cause I'm still doing my [laugh] dissertation.
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//aw I suppose//
you don't really, haven't really had a chance to.
But, yeah, I know, I had a friend who did, I, I still have a friend in fact [laugh] who did Old Icelandic last year and
she found it really hard work but she really really enjoyed it; I think it's something you do have to work hard at, but it's worth doing. |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
| F746 |
[cough] |
| F745 |
Well, I've always, you know, been into languages and stuff, even if it's a weird wee language that I'm never gonna use like, you know, I did Greek, that was Classical Greek so
//obviously// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
no-one speaks it any more and, erm, in second year I did Russian [laugh]
//erm that was// |
| F746 |
//oh right, wow!// |
| F745 |
that was really hard, I've, cause I'd done, you know, German and French and stuff, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
but, Russian is just so different,
it's like, it's nothing like any European languages; it's got all these wee rules and
the whole way it works is just completely different,
[laugh] so it's really hard. |
| F746 |
That must make it quite interesting though
//[inaudible]// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.//
yeah, I mean I enjoyed doing it but,
you know,
couldn't tell you anything about it now because it's just like, you know, I'd just scraped a pass
and that was it, and then I thought, "never thinking
//about that again". [laugh]// |
| F746 |
//[laugh] oh right.//
Yeah, I've got a friend who did Ancient Greek actually, she was probably in your class.
Do you know [CENSORED: forename] [CENSORED: surname]?
//I don't know.// |
| F745 |
//oh//
//erm// |
| F746 |
//Maybe you had//
quite a big class in
//first year?// |
| F745 |
//No.//
//It wa- it was// |
| F746 |
//I don't know.// |
| F745 |
quite a small class, yeah I think
//[?]what is[/?]// |
| F746 |
//She's// |
| F745 |
is it short for [CENSORED: forename]? |
| F746 |
Yeah. |
| F745 |
Yeah, yeah,
//I definitely remember her.// |
| F746 |
//Aye, she's quite wee.//
But, |
| F745 |
Yeah, [laugh] |
| F746 |
[inhale]
Yeah, I think she gave that up after second year as well, cause it was just such a ridiculous amount of work.
//[inaudible]// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.//
Also, the, erm
I was more interested in the language side, well, they did make us do a little bit of history and
and I did Classics at school and I really liked that but
//the history// |
| F746 |
//mm// |
| F745 |
they made us do was, like,
you know, reading Herodotus and him going on about wars and it's just like so boring cause all he,
all he says is, you know, "There was these guys and they wearing this type of armour, and there was these other guys", and it's all just, like, big lists of people and stuff. |
| F746 |
Yeah.
//That's not// |
| F745 |
//And// |
| F746 |
really the kind of
//history you want to do.// |
| F745 |
//[?]and and no[/?]// |
| F746 |
[laugh] |
| F745 |
I didn't like that at all. |
| F746 |
No, erm
I don't know, I'm, I'm actually thinking I'm so glad I'm not doing English Literature now, |
| F745 |
[laugh] |
| F746 |
[laugh] I, I can actually read books again that I'm not forced to read by my subject, which is quite nice [laugh].
Like did you
//not find that// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
that |
| F745 |
Yeah, I was thinking, you know, I don't have time to read anything I want because I'm reading these other things
//that// |
| F746 |
//mm// |
| F745 |
I didn't think [laugh] much about. |
| F746 |
and then analysing them to death, which is a
//shame because// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
because it kinda, it ruins things that you really, really love in a way.
Well, I don't know, that's just totally my
//opinion [laugh] on it, but// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
[inhale] |
| F745 |
No, I suppose you have to be able to just switch off and just read books for enjoyment as well. |
| F746 |
mm
which I'm finally finding myself
//able to do// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
again after [laugh] after two and a half years of English [laugh] Literature. |
| F745 |
I mean, some of the things were good, cause it was things I probably wouldn't have read,
you know, otherwise, like Shakespeare, I mean I quite like Shakespeare but it's hard to sit down and read it if you don't have a reason. |
| F746 |
Yeah, and things like "Paradise Lost",
//like, as well.// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
I would never probably
//sit down and read that normally.// |
| F745 |
//[laugh] I don't think//
I ever, I even finished that. [laugh]
//[inaudible]// |
| F746 |
//uh-huh I really liked it.// |
| F745 |
erm, but "Ulysses", oh I just thought that was a waste of time.
//I didn't// |
| F746 |
//Didn't// |
| F745 |
read the whole thing but I read, kind of, more that the prescribed passages,
//but// |
| F746 |
//mmhm//
You didn't think much of it? |
| F745 |
No, I mean, I suppose, you know, it's all very interesting how it's, you know, completely different from other books that were, you know, had been written previously but
it just,
it just felt like a chore just getting through one page and I thought, "If you're not getting anything out of it,
//then what's// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.// |
| F745 |
the point?"
//Really?// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.//
I don't know, I think
I was going to say I quite liked it, but I think I liked it more once I'd finished it,
//which, [laugh]// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
p- probably defeats the purpose of liking a book [laugh], but,
[laugh]
yeah, I thought some sections were so, were, you know, quite good, and then other ones, it was, it was like a chore,
//even// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
even a paragraph, you had to, "Right, I have to read this, so I'll read this", and |
| F745 |
Yeah.
No, I mean, I suppose I'm glad I had a go at it but, [laugh] |
| F746 |
Yeah. |
| F745 |
I can't see myself ever picking it up again to read the bit that I didn't read. |
| F746 |
oh
[inhale] I don't know, I could maybe have another go at it but I think it's because, er, like, again because I finished it I'm thinking, "oh, maybe it wasn't so bad",
//but no, no it probably was. [laugh]// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
[inhale]
[inhale]
[cough]
So what part of Glasgow are you from, anyway? |
| F745 |
erm well, I was living in Shawlands,
but I just recently moved to Partick. |
| F746 |
oh right, so nice and close to the uni then. [laugh] |
| F745 |
Yeah, well I was thinking it'd be closer than Shawlands but, you know, walking, it takes half an hour and it took half an hour to get the underground and bus
//from Shawlands,// |
| F746 |
//oh right.// |
| F745 |
so it's kind of the same diff-, er, the same time but it's, er, it's much nicer to walk than to be on the bus.
[laugh] |
| F746 |
Yeah, true.
[inhale] No, I'm up in Anniesland just now. |
| F745 |
oh right, that's quite far away then, isn't it? |
| F746 |
A wee bit but it's quite good, like, bus service
between, like, just straight down Great Western Road basically
//and then get off// |
| F745 |
//oh right.// |
| F746 |
just, the end of Byres Road.
Well, quite a good bus service, apart from this morning, but,
//[laugh]// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
[laugh] |
| F745 |
Yeah, that's the thing about buses, they're not really very reliable. |
| F746 |
No, they're not the best, are they? |
| F745 |
Like, especially early in the morning; I mean, I was lucky because last year I didn't have, er, in first year I didn't have classes very early, |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
so, i-, you know, it was not too bad but then, you know, in third year I had classes, like, quite early, so I had to leave, erm, and i-, at a time when it was really, really busy because the s- the road where I live, er, well it was right next to Pollockshaws Road which is quite a busy road. |
| F746 |
Yeah. |
| F745 |
so there was, like, always millions and billions of people going to work at
//that time.// |
| F746 |
//And then you//
find buses just going past you
//and past you and past you, because they're full.// |
| F745 |
//Yeah, cause they're completely full.// |
| F746 |
Yeah.
th- that's annoying.
mm |
| F745 |
So, did you go away anywhere during the summer, or did you go back home? |
| F746 |
No, I haven't, well, I went back home to do my dissertation for about a month,
well, just to do the research
//for it and interview// |
| F745 |
//mm// |
| F746 |
people and things, so tha-, yeah that was kind of my being back home for the summer, and I haven't been home since then.
I'm just working, basically.
So, yeah, em,
I'm doing, like, erm, William Hill,
Bookmakers. |
| F745 |
[laugh] oh right. |
| F746 |
[laugh]
It's actually alright though, erm
I was kinda thinking, "hm, little bit dubious", when I got the job but, yeah, no, it's actually fine; it's quite interesting. |
| F745 |
Right, I didn't quite manage to get a job. I was sort of half-heartedly looking but now that, you know, I've got into this big panic about my dissertation I'm just, |
| F746 |
Yeah, well even the fact
//like you have to// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
do your dissertation, I
//mean// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.//
//[inaudible]// |
| F746 |
//it's not really compatible [laugh] with work.//
So, |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
| F746 |
But yeah, no, I was helping out with, like, a conference earlier in the summer at the uni, that was
//quite cool.// |
| F745 |
//oh right.// |
| F746 |
Like, colour studies,
I don't know, if you heard
//about it.// |
| F745 |
//oh yeah,//
yeah.
erm, yeah, she told us about it in the tutorial but, you know, I thought, "You have to pay to go and hear stuff that you can hear in tutorials, no thanks". |
| F746 |
oh no, I didn't have to pay cause I was kinda
//helping out and volunteering and stuff, so// |
| F745 |
//oh right, [laugh]// |
| F746 |
no, it was quite cool actually; it was really really interesting. |
| F745 |
Yeah, I mean, I did like the stuff we did about colour semantics, erm,
although some of it I found a bit too scientific [laugh].
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//oh right.//
[inhale] |
| F745 |
But I liked the things about, erm, well, what we talked about in the tutorial about, erm, the connotations and, you know, "Why is black associated with death?", that kind of thing,
//I found it quite// |
| F746 |
//mm// |
| F745 |
interesting.
But the things about hue and s- eh tones and stuff I found that a bit difficult. [laugh]
//And you know,// |
| F746 |
//I had// |
| F745 |
she gave us all these
you know, erm, sheets of wee graphs and stuff, [laugh]
[laugh] I don't think I really looked at it.
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//oh right.//
I don't know I think cause, erm, I've got the whole, like, sciency background thing, I quite |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
| F746 |
like that sort of thing.
I mean it's like the phonetics; I quite like
//all the sciencey bit of phonetics.// |
| F745 |
//Yeah that's, that's why I didn't//
do any phonetics papers,
//because// |
| F746 |
//oh right.// |
| F745 |
I thought "Too sciency; take it away!" [laugh] |
| F746 |
oh right. |
| F745 |
But, ehm, I did History of English and that does involve some phonetics so I was glad that I'd done a bit of it
//at least// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
you know, so that I could understand what they were telling us. |
| F746 |
Yeah, it's really good actually, the first and second year that you kind of do a bit of absolutely everything, I think. |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
| F746 |
Like I'm, like I've done mainly modern papers but I'm planning to do, erm, [cough] Germanic Philology. |
| F745 |
Yeah, I was thinking about doing that one. |
| F746 |
Might be quite interesting.
Yeah, aye, I think I'm going to do that one anyway.
I think it's the last year that they're having that paper,
//according// |
| F745 |
//oh right?// |
| F746 |
to my friend [CENSORED: forename] anyway; [laugh] I don't know whether that's totally accurate or not,
//but,// |
| F745 |
//Well,//
I don't know, could be.
I suppose we should do it then just to, you know, [laugh] make sure some people are in the class.
erm, yeah, I think the historical papers really struggle, it's, well, it seems so to me anyway because, erm,
when I did, erm, Old English Literature there was only, like, six people in the whole entire class
and so the tutorials were, like, two and three sort
//of thing.// |
| F746 |
//oh right.// |
| F745 |
I mean, it was qu- in a way it was quite good to have such a small class,
you know, it meant you could spend more time more things and stuff like that,
//but,// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
it's a shame that not more people want to do it. |
| F746 |
I know, I think Onomastics there was only, like, about twelve or thirteen or something,
maybe slightly more than that but
but that's, I don't know, that's definitely my subject, I think, I'm quite into that. [laugh] |
| F745 |
Yeah, I didn't, I don't think I really liked that one when we di- well, you know, we only did a wee bit of it in second year but, don't know why I didn't, think it was very good, don't know.
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//[laugh]//
[laugh] I know it is strange, like, some people just get into certain things; I suppose it's like me absolutely finding Engineering the dullest thing ever,
//and yet,// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
other people in my class just found it fascinating so,
So do you have one subject that you just think, "Right, that's my thing", or, |
| F745 |
erm
Well, I quite, you know, I quite liked Old English Literature, I suppose, because it was, erm,
you know, translation and stuff like that, because I was used to doing stuff like that, whereas other people found it quite hard,
like [CENSORED: forename], I don't know if you know her? |
| F746 |
oh right.
//Yeah.// |
| F745 |
//ehm//
she dropped out of it because she, she th- was more interested in the literature side of it, which there was less of
because we had to spend a lot of time on the translation itself. |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
erm, but I thought that was goo- [laugh] I thought it was great, the translation, because I had a background in languages, so I found it a lot easier than some people.
So, yeah, I suppose I quite liked that, and Grammar, that's why I did the dissertation. |
| F746 |
It is strange cause I, I think, when I revise Grammar more, I'll like it more, [laugh] if
//you know what I mean?// |
| F745 |
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
[inhale] I don't know.
Yeah, it's something I'll have to definitely do more of this year
cause I think it's something I'm kind of lacking, [laugh] |
| F745 |
Yeah, I heard a lot of people wanted to do a dissertation in Grammar because
//they didn't// |
| F746 |
//[inaudible]// |
| F745 |
want to do it in the exam. |
| F746 |
Yeah,
//quite a lot of people said that to me.// |
| F745 |
//[unclear] that's a bit of a weird//
//reason [laugh]// |
| F746 |
//[inhale]//
Yeah. |
| F745 |
And I actually
//wanted to do it,// |
| F746 |
//it is quite strange.// |
| F745 |
because, you know, because I already thought I want to do something to do with Second Language Acquisition. |
| F746 |
mmhm |
| F745 |
erm, and that was why I picked it. And I was like, "I hope", you know, because I knew that a lot of people were picking it and some people weren't going to get it and I thought, "I hope some of these people who are just doing it because they don't like it, don't get my place!"
//[laugh]// |
| F746 |
//oh I know! [laugh]//
Cos an awful lot of people did that, from what I heard anyway,
//a lot of people// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
were telling me.
But, yeah, with Onomastics I just figured, "Right, just do something you really enjoy, cause you're going to spend, like, what, two, three months on it",
//so,// |
| F745 |
//Yeah.// |
| F746 |
might as well do something
//that you like.// |
| F745 |
//Yeah, I mean//
that's the thing; I don't know why
//people want// |
| F746 |
//[cough]// |
| F745 |
to do it if they don't like it, cause really you've got to spend a lot more time on it than you would for preparing for the exam, I would have thought anyway. |
| F746 |
Well, exactly, so,
Yeah, it makes sense.
[cough]
[cough]
[inhale]
I don't know, it quite appealed to me doing something that no one else had really done before as well,
cause, I mean, there was, like, so little secondary material that I could go on, I basically just had to go out and do it myself and
I don't know; there was something about that that just appealed to me. |
| F745 |
Yeah, I suppose it must be quite nice doing something that's new, [laugh]
//and// |
| F746 |
//Yeah.//
But then again, same with yourself, doing the research. |
| F745 |
Yeah, but, I mean, I suppose there already is a lot, I mean, you know, not a lot written about the specific thing that I was doing but, I mean, there is a lot of things written about second language acquisition or first language acquisition,
so, there was a lot to look through [laugh] as well. |
| F746 |
Yeah. |
| F745 |
erm |
| F746 |
Aye, in a way that probably helped me; I didn't have to, kind of, spend a month just looking through books and things.
I think I found, like, two articles which were specifically on what I was talking about and not even in the area of Uist, kind of thing.
//I think one// |
| F745 |
//Right.// |
| F746 |
was written in Lewis in the early eighties, and one was in Sutherland in the sixties, or something, and that was literally all I could find on this particular thing, so,
[cough] |
| F745 |
Wow, that's weird because I found, like, so many books, you know, just searching for, I found, you know, so many books and you obviously can't look through them all because there's just not enough time and then some of the ones you get are just [laugh] not very useful, |
| F746 |
uh-huh right. |
| F745 |
or a a lot of them were just sort of theories and stuff.
You only need to know so much of that.
What I really wanted to see was, you know, studies that other people had done, so I could
//see what kind of// |
| F746 |
//mmhm// |
| F745 |
methods they used and stuff like that and that was a lot harder to find. |
| F746 |
Did you manage to find any
//or// |
| F745 |
//Yeah, I//
I did find, erm, a couple eventually, but,
I, I don't know why it was so hard to find because obviously the people that write about theories are basing it on studies that people have done but no one actually, I d-, I don't know, the studies themselves were quite difficult to find. |
| F746 |
oh, that's really strange, cause you'd think people would find the studies, like, really quite interesting as well, do- |
| F745 |
Yeah, w-, yeah, they were a bit more interesting than the,
just the whole theoretical side of it. |
| F746 |
Yeah, a bit, little less, kind of dry and academic. |
| F745 |
Yeah. |
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