Teaching and study · ATLAS 260
Who may speak, and who is heard?
Linguistic forms can enable access, set expectations and distribute recognition. These stations invite a distinction between power, authority and register in concrete conversations.
Which linguistic conditions make reasoned disagreement possible?
Responsible editor: Michael Reich · Prepared: 2026-10-17. Versioned research edition. No DOI or external archival deposit is documented.
Case study
Fictional exercise written for this material. Not empirical data.
An imagined association board plans new opening hours. The chair says: “The experts recommend this, so we all agree.” Two new members remain silent. One member asks about the evidence and requests an explanation without administrative jargon.
Materials and schedule
Worksheet · 45 minutes
Approximately ages 16+, advanced school groups, higher education and adult learning.
Read short specialist texts; distinguish statement, observation and interpretation. Responses may be spoken, written or given as an annotated sketch.
Learning objectives
- Distinguish recognized competence from coercion and prestige.
- Relate register choice to access and situation.
- Separate an observation from its social interpretation.
5 min introduction · 20 comparing two stations · 10 evidence and counterexample · 10 shared reflection
The worksheet contains two selected stations. Read definitions, open sources and separate observation from inference.
Assignment
- Record separately: who can decide, who is recognized as competent, and what agreement has actually been expressed?
- Compare the register and consensus stations. Rewrite the chair’s statement clearly without silently changing its content.
- Design a discussion rule that permits questions and does not count silence as agreement. Identify one possible limit.
Source examination
Open at least one complete Atlas profile and select a reference listed there. Record title, locator where available and documented scope. Separate your inference from what the reference actually supports. A reference alone does not establish every statement in a profile.
Station 1 · AT-091-056
Register
A situation-dependent variety with typical linguistic forms and norms of usage.
Compare two ways of phrasing the same request. Register belongs to the situation, not to a person’s unchanging worth.
Which phrasing helps a new group member participate?
Read the definition and distinctions in the linked full profile. Which statement is supported by its documented reference, and which arises only from your comparison with the exercise?
Sources and references (1)
- ATLAS_091 · Fachquellenzuordnung offen
Sources and references
- ATLAS_091 · Fachquellenzuordnung offen
Full profile and scope of evidence: https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-091-056
Your response, evidence and counterexample
Station 2 · AT-ADD-20261016-0009
Consensus
Consensus is shared acceptance of a judgement or course of action, whose object, extent and conditions must be specified rather than assumed.
Examine how agreement arises and how it can be questioned again.
Which rule prevents silence from automatically counting as consent?
Read the definition and distinctions in the linked full profile. Which statement is supported by its documented reference, and which arises only from your comparison with the exercise?
Sources and references (4)
- Historisches Wörterbuch der Rhetorik, Bd. 4, Artikel „Konsens“; hg. von Gert Ueding, Tübingen: Max Niemeyer 1998. Sp. 1256–1258; PDF-Seiten 634–635
Show scope of evidence
Definition sowie Unterscheidungen von Gültigkeitskonsens und Interessenkompromiss. Die systematischen Positionen der Autoren werden nicht als alleinige Bedeutung des Wortes ausgegeben. | Original Atlas applications remain separate.
- Merriam-Webster: consensus
Show scope of evidence
Lexikalischer Beleg und Wortgeschichte des englischen Lemmas, keine vollständige Disziplingeschichte und keine automatische Übertragung auf deutsche Erstbelege. | Original Atlas applications remain separate.
- Duden online: Konsens
Show scope of evidence
Knappe deutsche Bedeutungs- und Herkunftsstütze, keine neue historische Erstbelegprüfung. | Original Atlas applications remain separate.
- Atlas der Sprache: Vergleichsstand Release 15.8.0 / Sites 352
Show scope of evidence
Arbeitsbasis des zuletzt in diesem Chat veröffentlichten Stands, keine neue vollständige Produktivinventur und kein unabhängiger wissenschaftlicher Beleg. | Original Atlas applications remain separate.
Sources and references
- Historisches Wörterbuch der Rhetorik, Bd. 4, Artikel „Konsens“; hg. von Gert Ueding, Tübingen: Max Niemeyer 1998. Sp. 1256–1258; PDF-Seiten 634–635
- Merriam-Webster: consensus · https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/consensus
- Duden online: Konsens · https://www.duden.de/rechtschreibung/Konsens
- Atlas der Sprache: Vergleichsstand Release 15.8.0 / Sites 352
Full profile and scope of evidence: https://atlasoflanguage.com/concept/AT-ADD-20261016-0009
Your response, evidence and counterexample
Research boundary
A single expression does not establish a power structure. Situated usage, institutional rules and participants’ perspectives require separate investigation.
Citation
Michael Reich: Who may speak, and who is heard?. Atlas der Sprache / Atlas of Language. Material version atlas-260-20261017-04. ATLAS 260; source release 15.9.1. https://atlasoflanguage.com/study/sprache-und-macht. Add access date.
The fixed edition version is linked separately. Source rights apply individually.