 When we define ourselves through discourse or language use in particular COP or multiple COP, the next question before us is, how that meaning is strengthened? How that meaning is supported or reproduced or reinforced? This module will explain this point. Individual and social categories are reproduced by choosing different vocabulary and different accents or pronunciations. So this is what we mean by language use that we have repeatedly used in the previous modules. Now we are opening up this relationship of language use with our social identity, social cells. It is a routine of speakers, language users that language users make a range of choices. They choose different words and different accents according to where they are talking, with whom they are talking, at what time they are talking, etc. But the static use is significant. We can opt for different styles of talking, a range of talking according to the context of talk. But that use of talk matters a lot where we show our purpose preference and that we do more than average. This strategic use is significant. How? Labels are used to divide and rewrite. Because when we use particular words, particular labels, particular vocabulary, there is some strategy behind that. That strategy or intention is that we want to use these labels and words to divide people and to divide them. When we divide, we associate these labels, certain meanings and on the basis of those meanings, we divide them, we ridicule them, we make fun of them, a certain sex and class. On the basis of these labels, we divide people into classes and we divide them into males and females on the basis of these labels, males and females of particular kind. People of different classes, but people of different kinds. So this is done through vocabulary. The choice of words attracts specific connotations, social meanings. These meanings are not word meaning. These meanings are associated with the words by society, by social uses. That's why we call them connotations or social meanings. They are additional meaning of a word. So when we use particular words to describe particular sex or to describe particular class, gradually with the passage of time, these labels get meaning, social meaning. For example, meanings are like this. Anti-D, Druggy, Hippie, Pony, Rigid, Snob, School, Conservative are P&U in our own Punjabi language. These meanings are reproduced. They are repeated over time. They come in use again and again. This is what we mean by reproduced. We mean micro-social activities, person-to-person level activities, person-to-person level interactions. The meanings and labels of the powerful class or powerful gender, usually in some societies, males are regarded more powerful than women. Now the labels and the meanings associated with those labels, if they are introduced by powerful people, they create the power difference in the COP. We cannot control these meanings, but we should take care of their consequences. We can control their ill effects, but we should control their consequences. Means, are we willing to accept the implied changes in society or not? Because how do we reach such a higher level just by use of certain words and labels and their meanings? Actually, when these labels get meaning and people are judged and assessed according to those labels, they are regarded as rigid fanatics, liberals, etc. What happens? The COP sees differences among people, divisions among people. And one COP is like other such COPs. These differences are found everywhere. Now COPs together form institutions and institutions together form social society. The process triggers from individual activities in COPs leads up to the larger levels of society. And when it reaches up towards the society, it can bring with it certain ideological changes. It can change thinking of the people. It can change ideas of the people. So we should allow people to give labels, to attach them with social meanings they like. This can't be stopped. This is part of social practice. But we should at least give attention to the consequences, the reserves of such labeling and social meaning. Pronunciation. This is also part of language use. Through difference in pronunciation, we introduce different accents. They are also used to maintain social class and gender differences. Working class leads in sound changes and especially young females. The innovations in pronunciations and sound changes, they are done mostly. This is result of a research that was conducted in US that usually pronunciations changes are started from working class females. And then they gradually creep into middle class and then to the upper class. Middle and upper class, they don't accept these changes easily to keep working class at a distance. So working class females, they are associated with sound or pronunciation changes. See how pronunciation changes are linked in this way with a particular gender and particular class. These changes are given meanings such as presence or absence of loyalty to class and identity. These are not simple associations between accent and gender or accent or class. Now, it is associated with social ideas like the person is loyal to the class or not. The person is committed to the identity of his or her class. Words and sounds, they change and these changes have no direct link with gender and class separately. From this previous point, we have noted that accent changes directly affect both gender and class. They don't exclusively affect gender or exclusively affect the class, social class. They affect both. However, such choices have strategic meaning only when we see gender and class together and then we relate accent changes with them. For example, there was a study in America in which it was noted that a social category that they called in the research Jots, they used pronunciation like cuff as cow and butt as bot. Cuff as cot and butt as bot and there was an other social category. They used to pronounce words like file as foil and line as loin. From these pronunciations, the researchers concluded that the first pronunciation that is concerned with Jots is social category. Actually, this pronunciation has nothing to do with only social class or category. It is an issue of identity. Jots don't want to become like others. They want to keep their identity. Similarly, in the second case where the pronunciation is like file and foil and line and loin, this pronunciation is related with females. But which females? This is not directly linked with gender. As we have said earlier, females of working class, they introduce changes in pronunciation. So definitely this is not related only with gender. With gender class identity is also associated. That's why the researchers conclude and we conclude at the end of this module that the language use is not exclusively linked with gender, are separately linked with sex, are separately linked with social class. It is linked with both via identity.