Language and Social Context - Assignment Example

Language and Social Context Name: Course: Instructor: Date: Language and Social Context Question 2: Language maintenance and shift Shifting of language occurs when societies that have the same mother tongue discard it and all of them shift to use another language altogether. One of the things that contribute to this is multilingualism. It is very hard for an individual to start using another language having not learnt the same. Some of the factors that encourage language shifting include demographic, political, attitude, social, and economic factors (Holmes, 2007). Demographic factors influence language shift. When a group of speakers moves to an area where their language is not spoken, they will always tend to shift to the new language. Whenever an immigrant learns the new language, he tends to pass the same to the children (McKay & Hornberger, 1996). The second factor that influences language shift falls under formation of negative attitude towards a language. Whenever people undermine a certain language and fail to recognize it as identity symbol, there is always a tendency of shifting from that language. Teenagers have been recognized as the people who normally shift at a high rate. Language shift can be influenced by economic reasons. Researchers deduce that, those who are looking for jobs normally see the benefit of getting familiar to a new language, which is commonly used, in business transactions (Holmes, 2007). Most industries are looking for employees who can speak English fluently and incase one does not know how to communicate in English, he or she is taught. Eventually, one is forced to speak a new language. There are factors that contribute to language maintenance. Firstly, if the language is recognized as a vital symbol to a given group, there is a high possibility of maintaining the same for a long time. For instance, the Greeks have stuck to their language in countries like America and Australia. Another factor that can lead to maintenance of a language is the frequency at which one is in contact with his or her motherland. When one keeps on visiting his or her home, a motivation of using the language is created. The third factor lies in the pattern at which the language is used. If there are more domains that allow the language used by minority to be used, then there is a high chance of maintaining the language (McKay & Hornberger, 1996). Question 3: Standard and vernaculars The emergence of text messages has brought transition in the way individuals write articles and talk, with most people terming it harmful. However, in some countries, texting has even been allowed in exams. Texting has led to the emergence of a new language so much so that, some teachers have been complaining that the quality of essays being written by most students has declined. Therefore, instructors are experiencing a hard time trying to control this habit. For instance in the United States, some English words have been Americanized. David crystal in his book, the Gr8 Db8, deduces that some of the commonly used words in texting are ‘gr8’, ‘u’, and ‘lol’. The use of these words has brought a new vernacular and the standard language has widely been affected. Texting has brought more creativity in the English language where people have been given opportunities to develop abbreviations and slangs (Harmer, 2007). This kind of freedom has brought excitement to people making writing of texts popular and easy for communication. A recent study shows that, the vernacular language, which has been created through texting, has led to teenagers using the same in formal writings. The new vernacular is only suitable in informal writing. The new vernacular has been established as a result of most people looking for quick ways of typing information and to save time. However, this has become rampant and it has led to emergence of a new vernacular. The new vernacular has helped in saving time; it makes the message brief and is less expensive to send. The standard language that most people are familiar with has been threatened by the influx of the new vernacular (Holmes, 2007). Question 4: World Englishes English language has a dominant position in postcolonial nations where it is used as national and official language. In these nations, the national identities are based on them. English is a compulsory language for native speakers and it is also used as the language of instruction in most learning institutions. Countries in East Africa have adopted English language as part of their socio-cultural basement. For the native speakers in these countries, English language has a wide history of establishing naturalization. Thus, English in these countries is used in communication at international level and it provides an opportunity to establish cultural identity. Whenever English is used in establishing cultural identities, it creates an opportunity for it to be accepted in areas where it is used. The native speakers therefore improve their status through English language from a cultural point of view. The life of English native speakers has been improved financially through the use of English language. It is hard for a person who is not familiar with English language to secure employment. Two business people who come from different countries can only understand each other if both of them are using English. International organizations use English in all their operations. For native speakers, it becomes easy to seek help from organizations such as international monetary funds, and World Bank among others. Question 5: Language planning and policy Efforts of making a language pure are not valid because all languages are full of borrowing. In addition, most languages are developed through contacts and mixing of the same. However, by maintaining purity of a certain language, it earns a special status in the society. For an average speaker of French, language purity helps in discarding elements, which might not be useful. This is particularly the case with standard language like French (Harmer, 2007). These reasonable actions are likely to exhibit impact because the language may be perceived as symbol of identity and therefore the French will always strive to maintain it instead of shifting to another language. Purifying a language is moving towards a direction of minimizing legitimate type of meaning and declaring other dimensions out of bound. Any language aims at unifying people and therefore it should be seen as such. When people are exposed to a new language, they appreciate the speakers of that language and they are brought into contact through language. Purifying a language is attacking diversity, which should be given a chance to improve the society. By purifying French, it is an attempt to get rid of foreign influence thereby maintaining its value. Those who attempt to purify language normally target a given foreign language but in most cases, they embrace some words from English language. However, although language purism has received worldwide criticism, it is important to note that it is a vital element of creating consciousness in linguistics (Harmer, 2007). References: Harmer, J. (2007). The practice of English language teaching. (4th ed.). Harlow: Longman. Holmes, J. (2007). An introduction to sociolinguistics. (3rd ed). Harlow: Pearson Longman. McKay, S. L., & Hornberger, N. H. (eds.) (1996). Sociolinguistics and language teaching. Cambridge Read More