"Say, Say, My Playmate": Music and Language Socialization in Children's Clapping Games
Date
2020
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Swarthmore College. Dept. of Linguistics
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en
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Abstract
This thesis uses the framework of language socialization to investigate the socializing potential of
children’s clapping games. Adapting Schieffelin and Och’s 1986 definition of language socialization to
refer to music, I establish that 1) music socialization is the coincidence of socialization through music and
socialization to use music, and 2) music learners are active contributors to their own socialization. I
reinforce these claims by drawing connections between a number of practices and terms — routine,
variation, improvisation, evaluation, and common vernacular — in both linguistic and musical settings.
My analysis of data borrowed from Curtis (2004), Hubbard (1982), Marsh (1995, 2006), and
Merrill-Mirsky (1988), shows that routines, variations, and musical features in clapping games are
evaluated and acted upon jointly by multiple members of a given group, demonstrating the performers’
reliance on a common musical and cultural understanding. I conclude that music socialization is a
tangible and active process, and that a detailed comprehension of its principles would benefit researchers
and educators alike.