Meaning and Intension of Slang Terms in American Rap Music

A Linguistic Analysis

Studienarbeit aus dem Jahr 2012 im Fachbereich Anglistik - Linguistik, Note: 1,7, Ernst-Moritz-Arndt-Universität Greifswald, Sprache: Deutsch, Abstract: In this term paper, a part of a song by the African American rapper 50 Cent will be analyzed with regard to the use of slang words. Importance will receive the questions what these slang words mean, where they come from and why they are used. It is to find out to whom the rapper speaks and why he does it in this way. Slang is a crucial part of every language. It is used by different groups to send a social signal, to indicate informality, irreverence or defiance, to add humor or to mark someone's inclusion in, admiration for or identification with a social group which is often non-mainstream. A slang word cannot be identified by its pronunciation or construction due to the fact that a word is often just differently used to create a new sense through metaphor, metonymy, irony etc. or part of existing words are differently mixed together. Slang is mostly used by the youth so that it is also an important part in the music scene especially in the genre of Hip Hop and Rap Music. The language used in Rap Music in the United States of America is highly influenced by the African American culture so that a lot of slang words came from the African American language.