Routines revisited: Based on the American TV drama, Desperate housewives

Abstract

This paper revisits the traditional definition of routines and suggests a broader definition from a multi-dimensional perspective. Brown (2007) considers a routine to be a stock phrase or sentence without internalized knowledge of the components. Such a definition only takes the linguistic point of view, however. In contrast, this article looks deeper into the reasons for the emergence of routines and analyzes them from social and cultural viewpoints. In order to observe students’ attitude to routines and learning strategies for memorization of routines, three university students participated in an experimental class. Students were told what routines were and how to study with them. After they had translated and discussed the script, they submitted reports about what they had learned, what they wanted to learn further and routines from their own points of view. The findings showed that both student A and B succeeded in connecting routines and the storyline, still practicality seemed to be their priority. However, they admitted that routines based on the storyline are easy to remember no matter how long the sentences are. The result for the student C was disappointing in that she was confused about the notion of routines and refused to accept the new concept of routines.