Transcript work

English Transcript: Speech with further maths “Gods” –(Their words, not mine)

 

 

Ben: so a quarter N squared yeah (.) plus N plus 1 squared(.) plus three lots of half N

Will:  I thought N over two (1) open brackets (1) n plus one closed brackets/

Ben: (Laughs) no that’s the formula you pleb /

Charlie: yeah will that’s the formula/

Ben: its in the book /

Will: (moans) ahh its not in the formula

Ben: (sniggers) (3) then its general knowledge then then you’re a pleb (2)

Charlie: the N isn’t its N over two N plus one (2) so you get a quarter N squared plus one squared/

Ben: (cocky) this kid/

Charlie: (continuing) plus three N over 2 (.) n plus one plus two N

 

 

Analysis:

Apparent in the start of conversation is the use of elision.Ben says "a Quarter N squared" instead of having the word "of" inserted before. This has been used by ben to aid the flow of the sentence and make his speech faster. Secondly, Ben uses referential language in the form of conversational markers. Ben is uses the phrase "yeah" after each statement to check to see if the person he is addressing is understanding what is being asked, this also shows that Will is an active listener. Later on in the conversation there is the use of turn taking, by will speaking after ben has finished, the conversation is able to be shared between each person and adds to the co-operation between the two. However, we get the impression that Ben is the more dominant character as he interrupts will, mocking him with a laugh in the process. Also, ben uses a colloquial term in "Pleb" this informal lexis shows that Ben is not trying to be offensive but is trying to humour the group. Later on In the conversation, will uses a non-fluency feature in "ahh" this slows down the pace of the conversation and allows him to think of his answer, the use of the prosodic feature of moaning emphasises his disappointment in what he got wrong.