Metalinguistic Consciousness in Internet Discussions

This article introduces a complex core and peripheral structure of metalinguistic consciousness in online discourse. The research covered 50 metalinguistic comments published in an online community dedicated to the issues of the modern Russian language. The discussion focused on the grammatical gender of the word tiul (curtain lace). A set of standard and specific methods showed that the fragment of native speakers’ metalinguistic consciousness consisted of a distinct core and periphery. The core included linguistic conservatism, which manifested itself in the tendency of native speakers to preserve the original orthology and reject new standards. In general, linguistic conservatism occurs when a linguistic personality strives to maintain linguistic stability. The periphery included myth-generated linguistic theories identified through a quantitative and content analysis of online comments, which either promoted the norm or introduced new interpretations of the word. Aligned with relevant research on metalinguistic consciousness, the study covered online metalinguistic speculations made by native speakers. The material provided a deep insight into the way metalinguistic consciousness manifests itself in online discussions of linguistic issues, thus providing access to the metalinguistic consciousness. 

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