The Role of Language in Social Construction of Race - Essay Example

? THE ROLE OF LANGUAGE IN THE ARGUMENT THAT ‘RACE’ IS SOCIALLY CONSTRUCTED The Role of Language in the Argument that ‘Race’ is Socially Constructed Race refers to the classification of people on the basis of the differences and the similarities in the biological traits, and the genetically transmitted physical attributes that they share. These traits have to be deemed by the society to have some social significance. People can be classified as belonging to the same race when they share common characteristics such as a common history, a common nationality or a similar geographic distribution. A racial group considers itself a distinct unit. Race forms a fundamental aspect of people’s world view. Language on the other hand refers to the human capacity to acquire and use complex systems of communication. This communication is done through the use arbitrary signals that include written symbols, voice sounds, and gestures. Race is often said to be a social construct. Language plays a big role into this argument. This is because race can be seen as a social phenomenon in which the various social systems serve as the connections between people. While people are different in terms of their physical appearance and genetic attributes, the differences between people indicate social implications. Race can therefore be a cultural unit that shares a common history, culture and a common language. This is how language then comes to be used to classify race as a social construct. Language can be said to have a setting. This means that the people who speak a given language belong to a given race and culture as it is not possible for a language to exist without a culture. The social construction of race means that race is based on the basis of human interaction as opposed to being considered under the aspects of natural differentiation. Race is a social construction because being social beings, human beings interact on its basis and as a result of the interaction, the abstract significance of race is constructed. A person therefore has the ability to construct his racial identity in many aspects of his social and professional life. Race as a social construct is volitional. Language is a social practice that shapes the interactions between the different people in the society. People may identify with others as a result of a subjective belief in the sharing of a common descent. Belief is central to the formation of racial groups. Racial identity therefore becomes negotiable where an individual declares his racial identity and goes ahead to demonstrate the accepted racial markers of the specific race. These racial markers include language. The individual therefore uses the language that is the accepted marker of the given race to express their racial self. Language can therefore be learned so as to achieve racial authenticity. The link between race and language is also enhanced when the racial groups under consideration are polarized. Initially, language and race were seen to have a direct correlation (Baugh 1999, p 7). The changes in language have however taken place rapidly when compared to the stability of the racial groupings. Speech communities of the predominant languages such as English have now become multiracial. Language is integral to human life and it determines one’s identity. This identity includes the racial identity. The theory of linguistic races was developed by Renan (Harris & Rampton 2003, p45). He asserted that the biological definitions of race were inaccurate as there are no ‘pure’ races. Race indeed is used to refer to either a physical race or a cultural race. Language is therefore fundamental to race as it plays a dominant part in the formation of a particular culture. Race can therefore be determined by the presence of a separate language. As a social construction, it can be said that a people’s spirit and the people’s language are closely interconnected. The people create the language which is then used to define them as a separate social group. The grammatical processes of a language can be seen to be as a result of the way a given race interacts with different ideas. These complex ways then interact with the geographical and historical experiences of the speakers of the language. Slavery was a form of forced labor where people were held against their will and forced to work in plantations that were producing cotton, tobacco, and rice, among others. Most of these slaves had their origin in Africa. By the time slavery was coming to an end, there were very few of the slaves that had been born in Africa. This is because the importation of slaves from Africa had officially come to an end in 1808. The slaves that were in the country prior to the declaration of the official end to slavery were the descendants of those who had been brought to the country in the years prior to the ban. The slaves therefore shared a racial identity. The practice of slavery was officially ended in the 1860’s. The abolition of slavery was mainly following the civil war. Slavery was seen as the means through which the economy of the country would be preserved. This was used as a reason to justify the denial of the rights of the slaves of African origin, and protect the right of the whites to own slaves. The end of slavery however saw the beginning of the contentious nature of the race relations that have existed in the society from then henceforth. The contentious relations have persisted a long time after the end of slavery. Slavery and race are connected as it was the black people who were enslaved by the white people (Finkelman 2001, p 61). Slavery was based on the supposed racial inferiority. The black people were considered inferior to their white counterparts and this gave the white ownership rights. The practice was sanctioned by all sectors of the society, including from the religious sector. While the practice of slavery was sanctioned for economic reasons, its main ideology was racism. The abolition of slavery however did not mean that the racial inferiority problems were solved. The discrimination against the blacks continued (Riss 2006, p 30). Following the abolition of slavery, people with black origin continued to face discrimination. The attitude that had been held that the blacks were inferior continued to be held. While the outlawing of the ownership of slaves should have brought an end to racial discrimination, it did not as the inhumane treatment of blacks had already become engrained in the people’s way of life. It was this that eventually led to the civil rights movement that people of the African American race engaged in. This clamor for equal rights brought a change to the way the blacks were treated as through it, they came to gain their rights, and the opportunity to engage in the same activities as their white counterparts. Despite the gains that were made by the civil rights movement, the legacy of slavery continued through the oppression of the black people. It continued to be manifested in the different institutions in the country. These include educational institutions, access to primary social institutions and in the political institutions. This oppression is evidence in the substandard quality of services such as healthcare that are available to the black people. It can also be seen in the discriminatory application of the justice system. The opposition to the discrimination on the basis of race continues with religious groups and churches joining in the advocacy of non discrimination (Stampp, Abzug and Mailish 1986, p171) As earlier stated, the abolition of slave trade did not automatically lead to a correction of the race relations. The differences in race continued to be expressed in different ways. One way in which the racial differences were expressed was through the popular culture of the day. The forms of popular culture through which racial ideas were expressed in the late 19th century and the early 20th century include music, advertising, film, poetry, and sports among others. The popular culture can therefore be analyzed in terms of its production, the content of its text and the audience that consumes it. In most cases, the content of the various forms of popular culture is a reflection of the social environment. This is because popular culture is made popular by the general public, and its content is based on the perception of the current situation. It is a reflection of the people, and of the people’s reality (Forbes and Mahan 2005, p 6). It can be said that the most common form of popular culture was music and poetry. This was the means through which most people sought to express themselves. The late 19th century and early 20th century saw a rise in the number of African American music performers. This period saw the rise of performers such as Scott Joplin who was an African American classical composer during this time period. Genres like jazz gained popularity as forms of expression during this period. Jazz music developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The music had a rich West African influence as seen in the writing and performance of the music. Poetry also formed an important part of the popular culture. Most poets of this period used their poetry to express their views on racial relation. Most used their poetry to protest the unfair discrimination of the black. One such poet is Claude McKay who composed many poems discussing race relations such as ‘If We Must Die’ , ‘Enslaved’, ‘The white city’ and ‘Lynching’ was inspired by the lynching of African Americans that was going on at that time (MacGowan 2004, 189) There were also different movements that formed part of the popular culture during this period of time one such movement was the women rights movement. This was formed to address issues of inequality for women. There were however issues of racism in the women rights movement. (Back and Solomon 2000, 378) There was also the emergence of film as a form of popular culture. Films were also used to show the experiences that the black immigrants were facing. The first movie to use sound was ‘Te Jazz Singer’ which explores the issues that faced the immigrant families. The movie also explored the relationship between the immigrants and the African Americans (Murrin et al 2010, p 540) In the mass media, the print media was an important element of the popular culture following the advancements in the print media to the point where there was full color printing. The print media was used to serve different purposes including the expression of racial thought and ideas. The newspapers at this time were an essential part in the formation of public opinion, and this included views on race and racial differences. In their application of racism, the Nazis argued their ideas from the scientific point of view. They used science to justify their racist policies. The application of these racist policies was the cause of the Nazi holocaust. They based their argument on the Darwin theory. Their racism was based on the idea that the human gene pool can be improved if selective breeding is applied. Their policies were therefore designed to protect what they termed as ‘superior races.’ For the superior races to be protected, they had to be protected from ‘contamination’ from the inferior races. The notion of the superior race was based on the theory by Darwin that there exists inequality between groups and that there is survival for the fittest. The solution for the Nazis to avoid contamination from the inferior races was to exterminate the Jews and other considered to be inferior races. The belief from which their policies were based asserts that survival is for the fittest and superior individuals. This means that there are differences between species, and these differences cause some members of the species to have superior features. These members are the ones who are most likely to survive. The superior individuals who have acquired the traits necessary for survival pass on the traits to their offspring. These traits continue to increase in number, and the inferior and weaker individuals who do not acquire the traits eventually die off leaving only the superior and strong individuals. The theory also asserts that if all the members of a given species had the exact same traits, then natural selection would not occur because the similarities would mean that there was nothing to select from. Survival for the fittest therefore demanded racial purity and the elimination of the racially inferior people (Jackson and Weidman 2005, 123) The Nazis therefore believed that scientists could control evolution. To them, biology had evolved and as a result the less evolved people should be actively eradicated by aiding the process of natural selection. The Nazis therefore put in place measures to eradicate those they considered as underdeveloped. These plans aimed at reducing what they considered to be the parasitic growth or the inferior races. The Jews were specifically referred to as ‘bloodsucker’ meaning they would destroy the racial purity of other races (Hitler 1943, p 310). If this was not done, then the inferior races would end up destroying the superior race which was referred to as the Aryan race. . Basing their arguments on science, the Nazis went ahead to select what was considered the superior races. These were the races that had the ideal traits. These ideal traits according to Fest (1970, 100) incude ‘blond, tall, long skulled, pronounced chins, narrow noses, and pinky-white skin color.’ Those who did not have these features therefore belonged to an inferior race and had to be eliminated. One of the prominent scientists dealing with race in Germany was Eugen Fischer who asserted that classification of race that was based on the physical characters and other matters like language was racially unsound. This was because according to him, the exterior characteristic alone was not enough to determine race, and that racial differences had deeper levels that were biological. This then created a basis for the creation of ‘racial purity or racial hygiene’ (Fischer 1931, p185). The racist policies in Germany were put in place with the support of the scientists. The German physicians performed sterilizations forcefully on the inferior races to prevent them from having children who would further ‘pollute’ the country. The physically and mentally ill were also forced to undergo the sterilization. The belief was that racially inferior people produce racially inferior children. Even when a racially superior person has a child with a racially inferior person, the child produced is more likely to be racially inferior (Hitler 1943, p 284) Racism based on science was erroneous and a result of oversimplification of different theories. It was based on the incorrect assumption that the formation and the evolution of species is the same thing as the evolution and formation of races. Such an assumption would mean that all men do not belong to the same species. Most of the traits passed on are also not as a result of single genes as the theories applied had suggested. Such features such as intelligence and personality are as a result of many different genes and the interaction of the individual with the environment (Cartwright 2000, 323). In addition, it is not always possible to predict the genes that will be passed on through the interaction of racially different parents. The different ideas on race are sometimes used as a basis for the way people interact with those who are racially different from them. It is therefore important to understand the various aspects of race to avoid forming wrong assumption of people of different races based on unfactual assessments. It is also important to ensure that people are not discriminated on the basis of race. Bibliography Back. L, & Solomon, J., 2000. Theories of race and racism: A reader, London, Routledge Baugh, J. 1999, Out of the mouths of slaves: African American language and educational malpractice, Austin, TX, University of Texas Press. Cartwright, J. 2000, Evolution and human behavior: Darwinian perspectives on human nature, Cambridge, MIT press. Fest, J., 1970. The Face of the Third Reich, New York, Pantheon. Finkelman, P., 2001. Slavery and the founders: race and liberty in the age of Jefferson, New York: M.E. Sharpe Fischer, E., 1931. Human Heredity: Section II - Racial Differences in Mankind, London, Unwin Brothers Ltd. Forbes, B., Mahan, J., 2005. Religion and popular culture in America, California, University of California Press. Harris, R. and Rampton, B., 2003. The language, ethnicity and race reader, London, Routledge. Hitler, A. (1943), Mein Kampf, Massachusetts, Houghton Mifflin Company. Jackson, P., and Weidman, N., 2005. Race, racism, and science: social impact and interaction, California, Rutgers University Press. MacGowan, J., 2004. 20th century American poetry Malden MA, Wiley-Blackwell Murrin, Johnson and McPherson et al, 2010. Liberty, Equality, Power: A History of the American People: Since 1863, Boston MA, Cengage Learning Riss, A., 2006. Race, slavery, and liberalism in nineteenth-century American literature, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press. Stamp, K., Abzug, R., & Maizlish, S., 1986. New perspectives on race and slavery in America: essays in honor of Kenneth M. Stampp, Kentucky, University of Kentucky. Read More