The Need for Linguistic Creativity in Foreign Language Classroom Discourse
The Need for Linguistic Creativity in Foreign Language Classroom Discourse

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this study is to propose that the concept of linguistic creativity, traditionally applied to aesthetic and literary use oflanguage, should be extended so as to bridge the gap between language and literature teaching. Creativity not only contributes to increasing students’ motivation but also promotes problem solving, a higher order thinking skill. Language learners’ ability to manipulate linguistic and semantic units for fun may be considered as a vital component of metalinguistic awareness. The role that explicit knowledge about language plays in language learning and teaching needs to be clearly identified. The paper intends to deal with a possible relationship between language abilit and metalinguistic knowledge. Since double meaning or ambiguity is a relevant feature of language play and verbal humour, the study also attempts to illustrate how lexical and structural ambiguity, puns and riddles can contribute to developing learners’ language proficiency. The paper discusses some possibilities to develop learners’ linguistic creativity through language play from a psycholinguistic and cognitive aspect.

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