Language and HIV/AIDS

Edited by Christina Higgins, Bonny Norton

Publication date:

04 December 2009

Publisher

Multilingual Matters

Dimensions:

210x148mm
6x8"

ISBN-13: 9781847692207

This volume focuses on the role of language in the construction of knowledge about HIV/AIDS in diverse regions of the world. The collection of studies yields helpful insights about the discursive construction of this knowledge in both formal and informal contexts, while demonstrating how the tools of applied linguistics can be exercised to reveal a deeper understanding of the production and dissemination of this knowledge. The authors use a range of qualitative methodologies to critically explore the role of language and discourse in educational contexts in which various and sometimes competing forms of knowledge about HIV/AIDS are constructed. They draw on various forms of discourse analysis, ethnography, and social semiotics to interpret meaning-making practices in HIV/AIDS education in Australia, Cambodia, Burkina Faso, Hong Kong, India, South Africa, Tanzania, Thailand, and Uganda.

Christina Higgins and Bonny Norton have brought together a remarkably diverse group of scholars who focus on the intersection of language and HIV/AIDS. The result is a stunningly vibrant volume, one that brims with insights based on qualitative analyses of a variety of public and private discourses from around the globe. _Language and HIV/AIDS_ is an outstanding example of the power of applied linguistics to illuminate critical real-world issues. A true treasure!