This course introduces the systematic study of present-day English sounds, words, sentences, and the contexts of language production. Speakers of a language command many complex levels of structure – many of which they are not even aware. We will look at these structural building blocks of language and become acquainted with the fundamentals of linguistic communication. How do people make meaningful noises? How are words put together? How do words combine to create meaning? How does language function in its social context? This course addresses these questions with particular reference to English. Course work will consist of daily homework, quizzes, one short paper, a midterm and a final.