Imagine your source material is the Maxine Peake article.
here's how you could attempt this...
Within her audition, Peake has clearly encountered some strongly prescriptivist and small-minded attitudes towards regional accents. We can see this when the director says, 'Martha’s been to university, she’s educated.' The proper noun RADA and adjective 'educated' imply a strong correlation for this individual between education and rationality. Dennis Freeborn would describe this as the 'incorrectness view': the belief that better educated people actually use language in a more inherently correct way. This is a view he refutes himself, claiming that prestige for SE is merely down to fashion rather than scientific superiority of SE. Peake's own descriptivist stance can be seen when she says, 'I go ‘I’ve been to Rada and I still talk like this.' The past participle adverb 'still' and present participle verb 'talking', imply that she is proud of her regional variation and has been able to keep it even when surrounded by those speaking SE for a long time. There is also an implication that she has been able to Code Switch during her time in RADA as she must have encountered situation where she had to 'lose' her regional accent in order to converge with those around her
Friday, 13 April 2018
Example paragraphs - STD/NSTD
Ok...
Imagine your given text is the Bill Bryson text. Here is the sort of PGs you could write...
'Bryson appears to find the Devon accent both endearing and irritating within the extract. Firstly, he describes their way of talking using the low-frequency adjective 'quaint' implying that he values its traditional element. However, he then goes on to describe it as an 'Oi be drinkin zoider' accent. Firstly, the non standards spelling of the first person pronoun 'oi' denotes a lack of intelligence, whereas the elided 'g' on the present participle verb 'drinking' implies sloppiness. Jean Aitchison may identify this attitude through the 'Damp Spoon' metaphor, where people believe non-standard variations happen due to laziness. Additionally, the fact he associates their accent with the common noun 'zoider' (cider) implies that Bryson holds quite extreme prescriptivist views, and associates non-standard English with unsavoury social pactices such as excessive drinking. John Honey would argue that it is important to teach young people to rid themselves of these sort of accents for this very reason, otherwise we are 'doing them a disservice'.
Notice how I'm still using lots of terms. I've managed to squeeze in a couple of theories here, but one per paragraph should be more than enough. Also, I've managed to get quite a lot of analysis out of just one quote. You may need more quotes if your analysis is not so in-depth.
here's another PG...
In response to Bryson, we can see that the locals diverge away from Bryson's more standard use of English, possibly as they take pride in their regional individuality. We can see this through the extremely exaggerated prnunications of the proper nouns Minehead and October in the phrase, 'No buses to Moinhead arter firrrst of Octobaaarrr,' It appears the locals sense they have a sense of instrumental power as they know the bus routes but are making their advice difficult for an outsider to understand. In particular, the ommitted 'f' from the adverb 'after' seems to be used deliberately to confuse the American. Later, they use the proper noun phrase 'Scarrrlet Loin' which is not only pronounce in a regional way, but also requires local and pragmatic understanding for it to make sense. Bryson's response is to dehumanise them by describing their speech using the nun 'snort'. Dennis Freeborn would describe Bryson's attitude as 'The Ugliness View' as he seems to have allowed his prejudices about the Devon accent to influence his view of them as pig-like animals.
Again, lots of terms. More quotes used this time, and theory included at the end.
Imagine your given text is the Bill Bryson text. Here is the sort of PGs you could write...
'Bryson appears to find the Devon accent both endearing and irritating within the extract. Firstly, he describes their way of talking using the low-frequency adjective 'quaint' implying that he values its traditional element. However, he then goes on to describe it as an 'Oi be drinkin zoider' accent. Firstly, the non standards spelling of the first person pronoun 'oi' denotes a lack of intelligence, whereas the elided 'g' on the present participle verb 'drinking' implies sloppiness. Jean Aitchison may identify this attitude through the 'Damp Spoon' metaphor, where people believe non-standard variations happen due to laziness. Additionally, the fact he associates their accent with the common noun 'zoider' (cider) implies that Bryson holds quite extreme prescriptivist views, and associates non-standard English with unsavoury social pactices such as excessive drinking. John Honey would argue that it is important to teach young people to rid themselves of these sort of accents for this very reason, otherwise we are 'doing them a disservice'.
Notice how I'm still using lots of terms. I've managed to squeeze in a couple of theories here, but one per paragraph should be more than enough. Also, I've managed to get quite a lot of analysis out of just one quote. You may need more quotes if your analysis is not so in-depth.
here's another PG...
In response to Bryson, we can see that the locals diverge away from Bryson's more standard use of English, possibly as they take pride in their regional individuality. We can see this through the extremely exaggerated prnunications of the proper nouns Minehead and October in the phrase, 'No buses to Moinhead arter firrrst of Octobaaarrr,' It appears the locals sense they have a sense of instrumental power as they know the bus routes but are making their advice difficult for an outsider to understand. In particular, the ommitted 'f' from the adverb 'after' seems to be used deliberately to confuse the American. Later, they use the proper noun phrase 'Scarrrlet Loin' which is not only pronounce in a regional way, but also requires local and pragmatic understanding for it to make sense. Bryson's response is to dehumanise them by describing their speech using the nun 'snort'. Dennis Freeborn would describe Bryson's attitude as 'The Ugliness View' as he seems to have allowed his prejudices about the Devon accent to influence his view of them as pig-like animals.
Again, lots of terms. More quotes used this time, and theory included at the end.
I'm sending you a big load of STD/NSTD case studies now.
Check your emails,
Obviously you don't need to memorise all of these. Just read them. Get a feel for the different things people say about NSTD English, and the different ways in which it affects the way people communicate. Looks at the regional dialects on display and think how you could analyse them using terms and what theories you could apply.
Nick
Obviously you don't need to memorise all of these. Just read them. Get a feel for the different things people say about NSTD English, and the different ways in which it affects the way people communicate. Looks at the regional dialects on display and think how you could analyse them using terms and what theories you could apply.
Nick
COMPONENT 1B - STD/NSTD theories/quotes
Prescriptivism
A attitude towards language which states that there is a correct form (Standard English), which should be adhered to. If individuals do not, they should be corrected.
Descriptivism
An attitude towards language in which thinkers accept that change and variation are natural parts of language and that STANDARD English should merely be seen as a useful tool rather than a strict rule system.
Norman Tebbit - Politican - 1980s (Not a theorist but a useful prescriptivist quote)
Said - 'If you allow standards to slip to the stage where good English is no better than bad English, where people turn up filthy…at school…all those things tend to cause people to have no standards at all, and once you lose standards then there’s no imperative to stay out of crime.'
Donald MacKinnon
Identified - these attitudes which people have towards language:
Language use as correct or incorrect
Language use as pleasant or ugly
Language examples as socially acceptable or unacceptable
Language examples as morally acceptable or unacceptable
Language examples as appropriate or inappropriate in their context
Norman Fairclough
Came up with - CONVERSATIONALISATION - the belief that standards of written writing have slipped as people have become exposed more and more to spoken forms and technologies.
Dennis Freeborn
Identified - these attitudes which people have towards language:
The Incorrectness view - Non-Standard uses of language are incorrect. He refutes this, saying that prestige for Standard English comes through historical fashion rather than anything technical.
The Ugliness view - Non-Standard language forms are UGLY. He identifies that this seems to be based in peoples' social prejudices.
The Impreciseness view - Some accents are seen as lazy or sloppy by society.
Note - these are not HIS view. They are attitudes he identifies in OTHERS.
Peter Trudgill - Descriptivist
Said - 'English speakers should be encouraged to be more tolerant towards the dialects of others, and to feel free to use and preserve their own dialects if they wish'
Said - 'Traditional Dialects and Modern Dialects of England are part of our linguistic environment, and should be protected, just as our physical environment should be protected'
Believes - It is important for cultures to use STD English as a tool and means of communication, but also to preserve and values regional variations/become more tolerant.
A attitude towards language which states that there is a correct form (Standard English), which should be adhered to. If individuals do not, they should be corrected.
Descriptivism
An attitude towards language in which thinkers accept that change and variation are natural parts of language and that STANDARD English should merely be seen as a useful tool rather than a strict rule system.
Norman Tebbit - Politican - 1980s (Not a theorist but a useful prescriptivist quote)
Said - 'If you allow standards to slip to the stage where good English is no better than bad English, where people turn up filthy…at school…all those things tend to cause people to have no standards at all, and once you lose standards then there’s no imperative to stay out of crime.'
Donald MacKinnon
Identified - these attitudes which people have towards language:
Language use as correct or incorrect
Language use as pleasant or ugly
Language examples as socially acceptable or unacceptable
Language examples as morally acceptable or unacceptable
Language examples as appropriate or inappropriate in their context
Norman Fairclough
Came up with - CONVERSATIONALISATION - the belief that standards of written writing have slipped as people have become exposed more and more to spoken forms and technologies.
Dennis Freeborn
Identified - these attitudes which people have towards language:
The Incorrectness view - Non-Standard uses of language are incorrect. He refutes this, saying that prestige for Standard English comes through historical fashion rather than anything technical.
The Ugliness view - Non-Standard language forms are UGLY. He identifies that this seems to be based in peoples' social prejudices.
The Impreciseness view - Some accents are seen as lazy or sloppy by society.
Note - these are not HIS view. They are attitudes he identifies in OTHERS.
Peter Trudgill - Descriptivist
Said - 'English speakers should be encouraged to be more tolerant towards the dialects of others, and to feel free to use and preserve their own dialects if they wish'
Said - 'Traditional Dialects and Modern Dialects of England are part of our linguistic environment, and should be protected, just as our physical environment should be protected'
Believes - It is important for cultures to use STD English as a tool and means of communication, but also to preserve and values regional variations/become more tolerant.
John Honey - More towards Presciptivist, but not too far
Said - 'There is a simplistic argument which says...we should change society to accommodate the characteristics of the child. Those who use this argument to deny children access to any awareness of the implications of speaking with one accent rather than another are doing them an obvious disservice.'
Said - 'So long as accents persist, they will be made the excuse for some people to discriminate against others and belittle them'
Believes - While accents and dialects are important, it is bsolutely necessary to have a standard, and everybody should be taught the importance of using it. It is unrealistic to ever think regional accents will be given prestige in the 'real world' so people need to be honest with young people and get them to learn to speak/write properly.
Jean Aitchison
Identified - these ways of explaining how people see non-standard English:
The Damp Spoon metaphor - A PRESCRIPTIVIST attitude that some member of society have. NSTD English occurs because of LAZINESS.
The Crumbling Castle metaphor - Another PRESCRIPTIVIST attitude. English was once perfect but is slowly being chipped away at by people using NSTD English.
The Infectious Disease metaphor - Again, PRESCRIPTIVIST. NSTD English can be caught and spread like a disease. This is quite worrying as it links quite closely with attitudes to class/race too.
Key Terms
Convergence - Changing your way of communication to make it more like those around you. Can be done subconsciously or subconsciously.
Divergence - Changing your way of communication to set yourself apart from those around you.
Code Switching - The ability to use different levels of formality, dialect or standard English in different contexts or social situations, so that you can 'fit in' with multiple people.
Prestige - The significance or importance which society gives to a form of English. SE has lots of prestige, for example.
Overt Prestige - When a language form has lots of prestige that is agreed upon by the variety of people.
Covert Prestige - When a language form has prestige but in a more local, precise or unspoken way - such as using a broad scouse accent at a football match.
SE - Standard English abbreviation.
Received Pronunciation/RP - The proper pronunciation of SE - like the Queen's accent.
Howard Giles/Accommodation Theory - The idea that there will always be some degree of movement within conversation in order to make the communication more clearly understood. Incorporates idea like divergence/convergence/code switching etc.
Thursday, 12 April 2018
Component 1B - Answering a Standard/ Non-Standard question
So, it's been a while since we've looked at this. Does that mean we stress about it? No!
There's a reason we do non-standard in year 1: it's simple!
Provided you can follow these bullet points to guide your analysis, you should have no problem:
*Expect a short source. This will usually be a transcript of people talking or a short extract from an article where someone gives their opinions about standard or non-standard English.
*You need to find 2 paragraph's worth of stuff to analyse from within this source.
*If it is a transcript, simply identify what is going on with regards to STD/NSTD.
*Are they talking in standard? If so, give examples and analyse using terms. Explain why this is happening.
*Are they talking in non-standard? If so, give examples and analyse using terms. Explain why this is happening.
*Can you identify anything like convergence, divergence, code switching? If so, point it out and explain why it is happening.
*If it is an article or extract, simply identify the attitudes you can identify from the speaker's point of view. Eg, are they prescriptivist or descriptivist? Analyse examples of evidence. Do their views conform to any of the theories you have studied (damp spoon, crumbling castle etc)? Again, analyse the text to show where this can be seen.
*Then, be prepared to talk about 3-4 other case studies where standard/non-standard English is important.
*As I have explained, I will email a lot of stuff out to you tomorrow. However, you can begin to research this by thinking about your own experiences of using NSTD english, and discussing the various descriptivist or prescriptivist attitudes you have encountered along the way.
I will add theories and email out case studied tomorrow-
Nick
There's a reason we do non-standard in year 1: it's simple!
Provided you can follow these bullet points to guide your analysis, you should have no problem:
*Expect a short source. This will usually be a transcript of people talking or a short extract from an article where someone gives their opinions about standard or non-standard English.
*You need to find 2 paragraph's worth of stuff to analyse from within this source.
*If it is a transcript, simply identify what is going on with regards to STD/NSTD.
*Are they talking in standard? If so, give examples and analyse using terms. Explain why this is happening.
*Are they talking in non-standard? If so, give examples and analyse using terms. Explain why this is happening.
*Can you identify anything like convergence, divergence, code switching? If so, point it out and explain why it is happening.
*If it is an article or extract, simply identify the attitudes you can identify from the speaker's point of view. Eg, are they prescriptivist or descriptivist? Analyse examples of evidence. Do their views conform to any of the theories you have studied (damp spoon, crumbling castle etc)? Again, analyse the text to show where this can be seen.
*Then, be prepared to talk about 3-4 other case studies where standard/non-standard English is important.
*As I have explained, I will email a lot of stuff out to you tomorrow. However, you can begin to research this by thinking about your own experiences of using NSTD english, and discussing the various descriptivist or prescriptivist attitudes you have encountered along the way.
I will add theories and email out case studied tomorrow-
Nick
Answering Section B
Remember, whatever topics come up in the 'Language Issues' section, you just have to be very formulaic about how you answer it.
You will be given a source which will be quite short that you have to analyse for about 2 paragraphs, then you have to write about 5-7 paragraphs on your wider reading or case studies.
This formula will never change so, provided you know theories, and provided you revise lots of case studies you should be fine.
You should have a heck of a lot of case studies for power already in your folders. These include the power booklet I gave you (featuring the vet in all those different situations), the police transcript, two courtroom transcripts, the religious ceremony notes we discussed in class, George W Bush appearing on Irish TV, two schoolroom transcripts, Alan Sugar in the boardroom, various different adverts we have looked at, as well as many of the Section A transcripts we have looked at in recent weeks such as the Pharmacy/Monty Python transcripts. You really should not be struggling for material here.
When it comes to STD/NSTD, I will send out a load of case studies by EMAIL tomorrow. These will not be new to you as you had almost all of them in Year 1, but it may be you have forgotten some of them.
Stay tuned.
Nick
You will be given a source which will be quite short that you have to analyse for about 2 paragraphs, then you have to write about 5-7 paragraphs on your wider reading or case studies.
This formula will never change so, provided you know theories, and provided you revise lots of case studies you should be fine.
You should have a heck of a lot of case studies for power already in your folders. These include the power booklet I gave you (featuring the vet in all those different situations), the police transcript, two courtroom transcripts, the religious ceremony notes we discussed in class, George W Bush appearing on Irish TV, two schoolroom transcripts, Alan Sugar in the boardroom, various different adverts we have looked at, as well as many of the Section A transcripts we have looked at in recent weeks such as the Pharmacy/Monty Python transcripts. You really should not be struggling for material here.
When it comes to STD/NSTD, I will send out a load of case studies by EMAIL tomorrow. These will not be new to you as you had almost all of them in Year 1, but it may be you have forgotten some of them.
Stay tuned.
Nick
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