"sort of" is elitist? (now with data)

[Clai Rice]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Arnold M. Zwicky [mailto:zwicky at CSLI.STANFORD.EDU]
> Sent: Wednesday, October 06, 2004 7:15 PM
> Subject: Fwd: "sort of" is elitist? (now with data)
...
> that is, suppose there is a social concomitant to "sort of" vs. "kind
> of", and "sort of" is the "higher" variant, and there is an actual
> bush/kerry difference, and it has bush with more "kind of" and kerry
> with more "sort of".  this is a hell of a lot of supposing, but we
> still don't have an interpretation of the (very hypothetical)
> data:

My reasoning was headed in the opposite direction, more like a literary
interpretation. If the two speakers are perceived as (assumed to be)
conforming to particular stereotypes, then one can ask what characteristics
of speech create or support each general stereotype. The distribution of the
adverbial, hedging forms of kinda/sorta, being so absolute in this case,
would appear to support the general stereotypes. A person viewing the debate
and thinking that Kerry seemed a little pretentious might be excused for
thinking, especially in view of the opposition that Bush represents, that
'sort of' is a pretentious form.

Naturally, though, what items people *believe* characterize a style and what
*actually* characterizes that style are two sets that do not necessarily
intersect and the discovery of which, as research goals, entail entirely
different methodologies.

--Clai