PC PRELIMS

• A field in sociolinguistics and applied linguistics that focuses on the socio- and -linguistic description of the global spread of English and (critically) investigates the premises and implications of such spread

• Essentially, it is a field that is premised on the idea that there is more to English than its UK and US versions

Bhatt (2001: 257-258): “The field of study of world Englishes—variety of English used in diverse sociolinguistic contexts—represents a paradigm shift in research, teaching, and application of sociolinguistic realities to the forms and functions of English. It rejects the dichotomy of US (native speakers) vs THEM (nonnative speakers) and emphasizes instead WE-ness...”

Several Shared Premises

Focus on linguistic patterns (e.g. phonetic patterns) based on actual language use

• Investigation of a social element (e.g. geographical background) and its relationship to language use

• Sensitivity to social aspects of language use.

• Use of empirical data as unit of analysis

Approaching English variation

• People can make excellent judgments about speakers of different varieties of English but have limited knowledge of what linguistic information they are using to make those judgments

• People are highly influenced by common social judgments associated with certain varieties of English but tend to not be critical of their own biases

• Our goal: adequately describe and critically investigate what’s going on.

1. World Englishes analysis is linguistic analysis

2. Linguistic is descriptive, not prescriptive

• We linguists talk about “grammatical rules” in a structural sense (e.g. subject-verb agreement)

• We describe, not prescribe

• We study variation, we do not judge variation

• We do not tell people what they should and shouldn’t say

The Generative Approach: Chomsky and friends

• Noam Chomsky and the Generativists

• “Linguistic theory is concerned primarily with an ideal speaker-listener, in a completely homogeneous speech- community, who knows its language perfectly and is unaffected by such grammatically irrelevant conditions, shifts of attention and interest, and errors (random or characteristic) in applying his knowledge of the language in actual performance” (1965: 3)

• Focus on competence, not performance

• Rules and systems

  • Generative linguists care about the system, not variation. Variations are considered unsystematic and are considered as matters of performance, not of competence

  • E.g. –ing

    • Rappers like keeping it real. (“standard”)

    • Rappers like keepin’ it real. (common in AAVE)

    • Free variation: not governed by linguistic rules.

• Some forms may be based on actual language use (performance) but are not legitimate variations of the rules of the system (competence)

• E.g. quotatives (cf. Cheshire and Fox, 2007)

  • Daniella said, “Cassie, you do note you are a fake.”

    • “Said”

  • Daniella was like “Cassie, you do note you are a fake.”

    • “be like” (common in many varieties of English)

  • This is Daniella “Cassie, you do note you are a fake.”

    • “this is + S” (common in inner London)

• Generative linguists argue that the mind of the speaker is where the analysis must be based on because people’s mistakes do not represent how grammars work

  • People may make mistakes but they know what they should say deep inside

  • They rely on grammaticality judgments: data is, more often than not, theoretical

  • Native speakers can just rely on their own grammaticality judgments

The World Englishes Paradigm: Kachru and Friends

• Very much shares the premises of variationist research

• “...diverse sociolinguistic histories, multicultural identities, multiple norms of use and acquisition, and distinct contexts of function” (Bhatt, 2001: 1)

• This variation is obviously based on English, but the principles and lessons we draw from it apply to other linguistic environments

• Key concern: English variation

• Not necessarily about new things

  • English varieties predated WE Paradigm, obviously

  • The interpretive lens is new: commitment to descriptive linguistics, focus on issues like geography, prestige, intelligibility, nativeness, politics

• Appreciation of worldwide concerns: not just US and UK

• Raised awareness at the various forms English takes in this day and age (well, in the 80s)

• Focus on “national varieties”

• Reflects “native” vs “nonnative” dichotomy and somehow mirrors the inequality of that dichotomy

• Postcolonialism is seen as a matter of temporal history, not as a form of struggle or resistance

WE as a study of the continuous development of the English language

• Tracks how English spreads on a global scale and the implications it has on societies and vice versa

• Baggage of colonialism? Opportunities for postcolonial resistance? (more on this next week!)

• “Indiginezation” (Mufwene, 2010) of English everywhere

• Paradox: “the stability and flux [of English use] go side by side” (McArthur, 1998: 2)

Even notions such as “standard” or “native” or “traditionally English” are problematic

• The Queen’s English, a term that refers to the variety of English deemed most acceptable in the UK, is problematic

• Harrington et al. (2000) argue that the Queen’s vowels changed: 1950s vs 1980s

• From more Upper-crust RP (1950s) to more Standard Southern British English (1980s)

A note on terminology

• Many terms have been used historically—WE was a result of the evolution of these terms

• New Englishes (but IndE is older than AusE according to Kachru, 1983)

• World English (but there is more than one; Mesthrie and Bhatt 2008)

• Global English (but it is not standardizing into uniformity; Mufwene, 2010)

Lectal variation

Acrolect: high prestige (e.g. Queen’s English)

Mesolect: mid prestige (e.g. Manchester English)

Basilect: low prestige (e.g. Cockney)

Linear Perspective

Communication is the process or act of transmitting a message from a sender to a receiver, through a channel and with the interference of noise (De Vito, 1986 in Slater, n.d., p.1)

Interactive Perspective

Communication is the activity of conveying information through the exchange of thoughts, messages, or information, as by speech, visuals, signals, writing, or behavior (Velentzas & Broni, n.d., p.117).

Etymological Perspective

The word communication is derived from the Latin word, communis, which means common. The definition underscores the fact that unless a common understanding results from the exchange of information, there is no communication (Lunenberg, 2010, pp. 1-2).

Symbolic Perspective

Communication use symbols to represent things, processes, ideas, or events that makes it possible. These symbols are arbitrary constructions that represent a communicator’s thought (Adler & Rodman, 2006).

Pragmatic Perspective

Pragmatics defines communication as any sign-mediated interaction that follows combinatorial, context-specific and content- coherent rules (Velentzas & Broni, n.d., p.117).

• In some ways, our lifestyles, businesses, factories, music, fashion, and fast food have become more globalized.

• Language varieties exist!

• World Englishes

[In the Philippines] “English is highly believed to be able to increase the status of one who speaks it including respectability and marketability.” (Espinosa, 1997 in Esquivel 2019)

World Englishes exist, and so does Philippine English.

Lexicon – smoothfully, importancy, it was a cake, actually – currently, it’s up yours, GTG

Grammar – She think, The book is on the shelf, The accident was happened last night, informations, vocabularies, black colored dress

Phonology – priend (friend) bulgar (vulgar)

Filipino linguists on Philippine English

Bautista (1997, 2000) identified the phonological, lexical, and grammatical characteristics of PhE and has documented how it deviates from other English varieties in terms of pronunciation, vocabulary, and syntax.

• socio-cultural factors influencing PhE, arguing that it reflects the linguistic identity of Filipinos

Martin (2012, 2014) worked on the standardization and codification of PhE, proposing frameworks for its use in education and formal settings.

Bernardo (2017) proposed a pedagogical strategy for infusing the teaching of English in Philippine ESL classrooms with PhE and WE inspiration.

Language variety - different forms of a language used by various groups of speakers which can be influenced by factors such as region, social class, ethnicity, age, and context (Labov, 1966; Trudgill, 2000; Fishman 1972).

Register - variations in language use depending on the context, situation, or event.

Prof. Braj Kachru

• Indian American linguist

• Jubilee Professor Emeritus of Linguistics, faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Illinois

• At 84, he passed away on 29 July 2016.

The Three Concentric Circles Model (1988)

Inner circle: countries where traditionally monolingual English native speakers come from

Outer circle: countries which have a history of colonialism by English-speaking countries; English usually an official language and has contact with local languages

Expanding circle: English has no official status and mainly used for international communication

Widdowson (1994) emphasizes the importance of recognizing the legitimacy of various language forms and argues against the notion that Standard English is inherently superior.

• Standard English is just one variety among many

• Language and identity

Rampton (1995, 2006) focuses on language, identity, and social interaction:

• Language crossing and hybridity

• Challenging linguistic hierarchies

• Sociolinguistic variation

Both Widdowson and Rampton advocate for a more inclusive view of language that respects and values the diversity of language varieties rather than privileging Standard English above others.

They emphasize the importance of understanding language in its social context and recognizing the legitimacy of all forms of linguistic expression.

Resource Speaker: Rowena Marie Chua

Ethnocentrism - intrinsic superiority of the nation; belief that one’s own is superior.

• High influenced by stereotypes

• Accent bias

  • Accent - linguistic variations

  • Leads to exclusion and discrimination because when people reject an accent, they are simultaneously rejecting speaker’s identity (Lippi-Green, 1997)

  • Kachru’s Three Co-centric Circles of World Englishes

    • Expanding/Norm-dependent - JPN, CHI, THAI

    • Outer/Norm Developing - PHI

    • Inner/Norm Providing - US, UK, AUS

Cross-Cultural Communication

• Misunderstanding - foremost barrier to communication in a multicultural environment (Jenifer&Raman, 2015)

• Communication Styles

  • ERIN MEYER (The Culture Map)

Ethnic Tolerance

• Tolerance to any manifestations of the mentality of the representatives of other ethnic groups (norms, behavior, way of life, features of character…) (Czepil et al., 2019)

  • Family upbringing

  • Positive communication with representatives of other nationalities

  • Cross-cultural knowledge

    • Help tolerate other culture without losing your own identity

  • Traveling

  • Studying at a higher education

Social Media

• Humans can react rapidly with initial impressions (Picard, 2015)

• Information Overload

• Fake News

Active Listening

• Highest and most effective level of listening. Based on complete attention to what a person is saying. Listening carefully while showing interest and not interrupting (Jahromi et al., 2016)

• Hearing vs Listening

• 6 Key Active Listening Skills

  • Pay attention

  • Withhold judgement

  • Reflect

  • Clarify

  • Summarize

  • Share