28 August 2020--
"Other indexical signs include pronouns and words such as 'here' or 'now' because they are connected to (indeed, cannot be understood without knowledge of ) particular elements of the context." (Ahearn, 39)
IMMEDIATEREL//JC@CMD-CTRL./TTYP
Anthropology 281.1003: (from syllabus)-- This class will focus on some essential aspects of language to explore some of the basic topics and questions of modern linguistic anthropology. In order to examine these aspects of language we will consider evidence from the spoken word and from video and audio clips of people going about their daily lives or participating in interviews. Students will be expected to provide analysis on the communicative behavior of those around them, as well as think reflexively about their own language use patterns in day-to-day life.
Discussion 2: Come up with your own example-either from your own or someone else's experiences or a fictional one you make up yourself-and explain what the language use, as you present it, indexes in terms of social relations, identities, or values
Ahearn's description of CS Pierce's index with respect to "here" and "now" can be found in film titles such as "From Here to Eternity" (1953, dir: Zinneman) and "Apocalypse Now." ( 1979, dir: Coppola)
The phrase "from here to eternity" actually came from a Rudyard Kipling poem, "Gentlemen-Rankers." The context elements in the film appear vague, but are clear in the poem. One might guess that in the film, it refers to any of number of characters who in some way were important persons in civilian life, possibly Prewitt (Montgomery Clift), the prize boxer, an Army private "cruelly punished for not boxing on his unit's team." (IMDB)
"If the home we never write to, and the oaths we never keep, And all we know most distant and most dear, Across the snoring barrack-room return to break our sleep, Can you blame us if we soak ourselves in beer?" (Kipling, 1892)
Translating the title of the film, as with the novel by James Jones, (Wikipedia) the story diverges enough between the two that both obfuscate the intended indexicality of "here."
Yet another rather dismal attempt to relate the meaning of a title to a film is "Apocalypse Now" (1979, dir: Francis Ford Coppola) Again, one might search the web and find conflicting reports on the origin of the title. One thing is clear, the film was released nearly a decade after the Vietnam War ended, and certainly not the "now" as was hoped in the title.
Cited
Ahearn, L, Living Language, Digital Edition, Wiley-Blackwell, UK, 2012
From Here to Eternity, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045793/
Apocalypse Now, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0078788/
The Dirty Dozen, https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061578/
Apocalypse Now image, https://www.slashfilm.com/apocalypse-now-final-cut-release-date/
Dirty Dozen image, https://deadline.com/2019/12/the-dirty-dozen-remake-david-ayer-warner-brosozen-remake-1202810595/
IMMEDIATEREL//JC@CMD-CTRL./TTYP