陈建平编著的《语言与社会》将首先对社会语言学的研究对象、研究范围和目标等方面进行概述并对全书的框架作简要介绍，进而从宏观的层面上考察社会与政治对语言使用的影响，譬如，从人们对语言的态度、标准语的形成和官方语言的选择等方面去论述语言与社会的关系；接着从语言变异方面重点观察各种社会因素是如何影响人们选择和使用特定的语言形式，如不同的区域和社会阶层方面的相关因素如何影响人们在不同社会语境中使用语言时的发音、句法和词语等方面的特征以及社会规范是怎样影响不同性别的话语模式和交际风格；在语言与交际的关系方面将进行微观层面的社会与语言分析，讨论特定的社交场合和不同的社会角色如何影响人们的言语交际行为，以及跨文化交际中的话语模式和语用等方面的问题；在语言与文化的关系方面侧重于微观层面的语言文化分析，例如通过在具体的社交情景和不同角色之间的言语交际去概括不同社会和文化的特定语言文化模式和语言价值观，探讨语言与文化的密切关系；最后，对社会语言学在宏观和微观方面的诸多因素对语言教学，尤其是对外语学习的影响进行归纳、总结。

Unit 1 Language, Culture and Society-An Introduction to the Course

 Understanding Language as Communication

 The Study of Language and Society

 The Study of Language and Culture

 The Structure of This Course

Unit 2 Language and Dialect

 Understanding Language and Dialect

 The Complexity of Language vs. Dialect

 Intelligibility vs. Political Boundaries

 The Standard Dialect

 The Structural vs. tile Functional Views

 Case Analysis：Dialectal Differences in Chinese

Unit 3 Language and Nation

 Understanding Language and Nation

 The National Language

 National vs. Official Languages

 Official vs. Working Languages

 Case Analysis：Language and Political Conflicts in the European Union

Unit 4 Bilingualism and Multilingualism

 Understanding Monolingualism vs. Bilingualism

 Prejudices Against Bilingualism and Language Diversity

 Positive Attitudes Favoring Linguistic Diversity

 Academic Models of Bilingualism

 Case Analysis：Discussing the Trilingual Situation in Hong Kong

Unit 5 World Englishes

 Understanding the Main Varieties of English

 British English

 American English

 Second Language Varieties of English

 Models of International English

 Case Analysis：Is There a Variety of Chinese English？

Unit 6 Language and Social Variation

 Understanding Language and Variation

 Language Variation and Social Attitude

 Language and Social Stratification

 Language and Ethnicity

 Language and Identity

 Case Analysis：Language and Social Changes in China

Unit 7 Language and Gender

 Understanding Gender Differences in Language Use

 The Sociolinguistic Studies of Gender Pattern

 The Dominance Approach

 The Difference/Dual-culture Approach

 Alternative Strategies for Language Use in the US

 Case Analysis：Dangerous English

Unit 8 Language Style and Register

 Understanding Stylistic Variations of Language

 Language and Stylistic Variation

 Language and Occupation

 Halliday's Theory of Register

 Case Analysis：The Language of Science and Language of Economics

Unit 9 Speech Acts

 Understanding the Concept of Speech Act

 Classificatign of Speech Acts

 The Notion of Speech Act Set and Its Cross-cultural Studies

 Case Analysis:Different Cultures, Different SpeechAct Sets

Unit 10 Language and Politeness

 Understanding Politeness in the Use of Language

 The Notion of Face and Politeness

 Face and Communication Strategies

 Politeness Strategies of Involvement and Independence

 Case Analysis：Cultural Differences in Expressing Sympathy

Unit 11 Language and Cultural Thought Patterns

 Understanding Different Cultural Patterns of Thought

 The Characteristics of Culture

 Language and Cultural Thought Patterns

 The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

 The Intrinsic Relationship of Language and Culture

 Case Analysis:Cultural Understanding of Lexical Items

Unit 12 Language and Cultural Contexts

 Understanding the Differences of Cultural Contexts

 High vs. Low Cultural Context

 Individualistic vs. Collectivistic Cultural Context

 Case Analysis:Cultural Context and Discourse

Unit 13 Culture and Discourse Patterns

 Understanding Cultural Differences in Discourse

 Culture and Discourse

 Cultural Patterns of Discourse

 Chinese EFL Students' Characteristic Paragraph and Essay Structure

 Case Analysis:How to Tell When Someone l's Saying “No'？”

Unit 14 Learning Language as Communication

 Implications for Foreign Language Learning

 Important Features of Communication

 The Relationship Between Communication and Culture

 Dimensions of Communicative Differences Across Cultures

 Defining a Competent Communicator

 Implications for Language Teaching/Learning Practice

Suggested Readings for the Course

References