Language Change

what is standardisation

the process of establishing and maintaining a dominant, authoritative version of the language which includes regulating its spelling, grammar and vocabulary

what is the standard version of English

British Standard English (BSE)

What is the British standard English

Received Pronunciation - RP

What is the attitude that there is a standard variety of English which has rules that should be followed

prescriptivism

examples where BSE is more likely used

journalism, legal documents, job interview

examples where BSE is less likely used

text messages, social media posts, conversation in English between non-native English speakers

In a geographical area i which lots of speakers use slightly different varieties how might the standard variety be decided

the version that the most powerful or important people use

who or what decides what the version that the most powerful or important people use

the dictionary writers, print n press writers

how are the rules of the standard be established at maintained

SECA

Selection

Elaboration

Codification

Acceptance

what is selection (seca)

the step that involves choosing which varities and forms the standard will be based on

what is elaboration (seca)

expanding the language to be appropriate for use in all necessary contexts or filling any gaps that exist in the variety that was selected

what is codification (seca)

the process that ultimately establishes what is correct and what isnt in the standard

what is acceptance (seca)

the recognition and acceptance of the standard by all its users

benefits of standard english for education

sets students up for success

ensures fairness in exams giving every student the same reference point and standard to mark against

benefits of standard english for the law

consistency across cases and documents

international cooperation

everything done in the same way so is fair

benefits of standard english for occupational contexts

shared language helps colleges from different backgrounds communicate smoothly

global communication

benefits of standard english for ordinary people

clear communication in daily conversation - makes public situation easier

social mobility

avoiding misunderstandings

what’s the problem with linguistic subordination (deficit approach)

people are judged quite harshly by the way that they speak

suppression of linguistic diversity (problems with standardisation)

standardising a language minimises its variations which can lead to the suppression of authentic regional and social differences

social and psychological harm (problems with standardisation)

speakers of non-standard varieties may develop feelings of inferiority, questioning the value of their own language while the standardised form is seen of superior

practical and ideological problems (problems with standardisation)

remove or complicate functional parts of the language that are well understood and usual for users

consequences for language vitality (problems with standardisation)

a rigid focus of consistency can hinder innovation and the natural evolution of language preventing it form adapting to new needs and expectations

snell and cushing (research)

2023 - how attitudes to non - standard english manifest in school ofsted reports

criticised teachers who didnt ‘correct’ pupils use of non standard english

‘we done’ and ‘we was’

the school was in an area of high economic depravation serving largely black african black and black Caribbean pupils

concluded that these ideologies unfairly disadvantage students from lower social classes and from minority ethnic backgrounds

should we abolish the apostrophe - yes

complicates things for new english speakers

doesnt add anything to the language

we cant hear them

people miss them out anyway

used to judge people

speed/ease

should we abolish the apostrophe - no

‘were’ and ‘we’re’ - can completely change the meaning of a word

indicated omitted letters

demonstrates a certain level of education

used for a long time

provides clarity

who’s the organisation who wants to protect the apostrophe

Apostrophe Protection Society: Defending the Apostrophe

what do people view the misuse or omittion of the apostrophe as

a decline in standards

other non-standard usage that is often viewed as a decline in standards besides the apostrophe

common misspellings - their there and they’re

lack of capital letters

lack of full stops

lack of comma usage

double negation

pronunciation features - uptalk, th fronting etc

slang increase

the use of like as a filler

declinism/the crumbling castle

negative attitudes towards language change - declinism

Jean Atkinson - crumbling castle analogy

a once perfect structure - english is like a beautiful castle that was gradually and perfectly constructed at some point in the past

decline and decay - language is now slowly crumbling and falling into ruin due to changes and innovations that are seen as degradation

Jean Aitchison’s views on the crumbling castle

implies the castle of english was gradually and loving assembled until it reached a point of maximum splendour yet no year can be found when language achieved some peak of perfection nor have those who claim that english is ever declining ever suggested what this date might have been

examples of random things that were changed for political correctness

hertfordhsire recruitment agency boss could not use words like reliable in order to not offend unreliable people

the ‘mean witch’ in rapunzel was renamed a ‘kindness impaired person’ inn a modern adaptation

what is political correctness

creating rules about language in order to not offend

what is political correctness also known as

benign prescriptivism - kind or harmless prescriptivism

example of political correct terms

eskimos now know as inuits because

pinkers euphemism treadmill

making language politically correct results in a ‘euphemism treadmill’ (words/phrases are constantly changed') and actually fails to change attitudes

FOR EXAMPLE special needs - special educational needs - learning needs - individual needs

Arguments in favour of politically correct language

Arguments against politically correct language

what is functional theory - halliday

language changes in response to the needs of its users

language adapts to express new concepts and social realities

what is a neologism (functional theory in action)

new words are needed to name things that are new or to alter meaning

what is a neologism

a new word

what is regularisation (functional theory in action)

an irregular word changes to follow regular rules so its more logical and easy eg spelt is now spelled

what is blending (neologism)

parts of words are blended to create a new one eg pleather

what is compounding (neologisms)

whole words are stuck together eg breakfast

what is borrowing (neologisms)

words are taken from other languages eg sushi

what are acronyms (neologisms)

initial letters of phrases create a new word eg NATO

what are abbreviations (neologisms)

words are shortened eg telly

what is affixing (neologisms)

prefixes/suffixes are added to root words eg sexism

what is lib-fixing (neologisms)

parts of words are ‘liberated’ to create a suffix or prefix eg -zine

what is narrowing (neologisms)

a word becomes narrower in it meaning eg meat used to just mean all food

what is broadening (neologisms)

a word become broader in its meaning eg dog used to mean only one breed

what is amelioration (neologisms)

words become more positive eg sick

what is pejoration (neologisms)

words become more negative eg attitude

what is Americanisation (functional theory)

british english is evolving to become more similar to american english eg film becoming film or recognise to recognize

how does Americanisation meet the needs of british english

utilise british tech without having to buy british version/change the settings

the british comsume alot of american media

examples of textspeak

emojis, acronyms, initialisms, non standard spelling, flooding

aitchison and the damp spoon metaphor

she characterised the view that textspeak is lazy with a damp spoon metaphor taken from a newspaper writer who stated the distaste felt towards textspeak is the as when you see a damp spoon dipped in the sugar bowl

(JEAN DOES NOT FEEL THIS WAY BTW SHE JUST SAYING IT)

why is textspeak viewed as lazy or sloppy

involves shortening words, disregarding standard rules, emojis are the lazy option

what is beign prescriptivism

controlling langauge for a moral reason

what was the plain english campaign (benign prescriptivism)

fight against gobbledygook and misleading public information

aims to redefine power imbalances between mainstream and minority groups

what is change from above

a conscious, top-down process where new linguistic forms are adopted and promoted by individuals or institutions in positions of authority or prestige

conscious and deliberate - change from above feature

purposeful attempt to influence or reform language rather than a sudden linguistic shift

authority and influence - change from above feature

driven by influential figures or institutions such as grammarians, schools or language authorities

standardisation - change from above feature

the process is closely linked with the historical rise of standard language ideologies and the deliberate implementation of a single prestigious variety

top-down diffusion - change from above feature

he change typically starts in higher social classes and spreads to lower classes

social prestige - change from above feature

the new linguistic feature is associated with a higher social status, power or education

what is a fantabulous example of change from above

them apostrophe protection society peeps or silly Gillian Shepard telling teachers to stop kids using EE

what makes a change successful - change from above

becomes standard english

all speakers/writers use it

previous version no longer used

what makes a change unsuccessful - change from above

doesnt become standard english

speakers/writers dont use it

previous version still used

whats a way to determine is a change is successful

the s-curve model

what is the s curve model

a graph developed by matthew chen which determines the success of a change

what is the steepest part of the s curve model

when the spread has become more rapid and more speakers/writers are using it

what does the s curve model levelling off represent

when most people have adopted the new change

what is functional theory

language changes in response to the needs of its users

who came up with functional theory

halliday

neologisms as a functional theory example

sometimes language needs a new term to label something new

sometimes they are completely new words or they are existing words that are altered

regularisation as a functional theory example

an irregular word changing to follow regular rules for example the past tense version of the verb to sneak going from snuck to sneaked

what is blending (making a neologism)

2 parts a word blended to make a new word (spork, smog, pleather)

what is compounding (making a neologism)

whole words are stuck together (laptop, breakfast, waistband)

what is borrowing (making a neologism)

words that are taken from other languages (baguette, sushi, balcony)

what is affixing (making a neologism)

prefixes/suffixes are added to words (sexism, pre-drinks, unalive)

what is lib-fixing (making a neologism)

parts of words are ‘liberated’ to create a suffix/prefix (-zine, -gate, -tastic)

what is narrowing (making a neologism)

a word becomes narrower in it scope (meat used to mean all food now its just dead animals)

what is broadening (making a neologism)

a word becomes broader in scope (cool used to only refer to jazz music)

what is pejoration (making a neologism)

a word becomes more negative in its meaning (attitude, sick, discreet)

what is amelioration (making a neologism)

a word becomes more positive in its meaning

ways to make neologisms

blending, compounding, borrowing, acronyms, abbreviations, affixing, lib-fixing, metaphor, narrowing, broadening, pejoration, amelioration, euphemism

americanisation as an example of functional theory

british english is evolving to become more similar to american english for example spelling of recognise to recognize and movie replacing film

how does americanisation meet the needs of british english

1. it can utilise american produced tech without having to buy a specific british version/change the settings

2. british english users consume so much american media

3. technology has made communication between countries in different parts of the world easier and more common

what are affordances (when it comes to technology)

the opportunities and functionality afforded by a particular technology

what are constraints (when it comes to technology)

the limitations and lack of functionality afforded by a particular technology

what is a synchronous discourse

discourse (conversation) that is reliant on everyone being present at the same time

what is a asynchronous discourse

discourse (conversation) that is not reliant on everyone being present at the same time