h can only be studied with constant attention to its social setting (Palmer, 1972). Linguists gather the meaning of utterances from their use in social situations, using observable behavior and recorded vocal discourse to determine the relationship between culture and language. Palmer (1972, p. 382) states "every language embodies a certain system of ideas that involves a particular articulation and structure of the world." The resulting world view is not static, but is constantly developing as humans in society come to grips with their changing environment. This phenomenon is evident in the examination of changing patterns of vocal discourse and the continual emergence of new words or phrases to connotate new attitudes and behaviors.
Gerry Philipsen (1992) has discussed the ethnography of communication at some length. He compared the language patterns of urban working class Chicagoans in a community known as "Teamsterville," and college educated Americans living in Southern California and the Pacific Northwest. He called this latter group "the Nacirema," and noted that this group appears to make a greater effort to facilitate the expression of unique feelings and thoughts. It is his thesis that even within a particular culture with a shared language, verbal discourse is dramatically shaped by the subcultural or group value and belief systems. In comparing the Teamsterville and Nacirema populations, Philipsen (1992) suggested that the Nacirema emphasize that each person is unique and the verbal speech patterns of the group not only reflect that belief but also serve to make it true.
Philipsen (1992) identifies a cultural code of speaking which consists of a socially constructed and historically transmitted system of symbols and meanings pertaining to communication and rules for using speech. The assumptive foundation of his theory is that speaking is structured, distinctive, and social. Cultural ways of speaking prov...