No Better English

English Dialects: A Linguistic Variation

English is no different from any other language in terms of linguistics. Even if two individuals speak the same language, their accents may differ. The term “dialect” refers to this linguistic variation and describes the distinctive speech patterns of any area or social class.

The Diversity of American English

The primary goal of this piece is not to analyze the various varieties of English spoken in the United States or the immigrant community, whose speakers occasionally violate grammatical conventions and pose speaking difficulties. (Abrams, M. H). Many people used to think of the American dialect as from the North, South and general American but in the real sense, there is nothing like general American English, however, there is a distinction between the North and the South American. What we are experiencing in the change of American English is as a result of mixture between people recently fuelled by the highest rate of immigration. Another thing that is equally notable when it comes to American English is that it has been largely been influenced by Black English spoken mostly in the New York side.

Black English

Since the domestic racial movement of the 1960s in the United States, Black English has played a very crucial role in the contemporary sociolinguistics. For many years now, there have been debates and theories concerning the origin and the development of the Black English. However, despite the lack of common grounds, most of the linguists came to a certain degree of consensus that some features of the Black English can be systematically distinguished from Standard English in terms of its phonology and grammar. On top of that, many scholars have rejected the idea that Black English is bad or inferior to the so-called American English. So is Black English below standards or is it really wrong?

The Myth about Black English: The Copula

The most popular myth about the Black English is that it involves misuse of the copula or rather it is carelessly omitted or used incorrectly out of ignorance. But, on the positive side, if I can try to untangle the jumble of falsehoods that are commonly bruited about, the copula is never omitted when it is infinitival and has a base form of be. Few English speakers are aware that Russian, Hungarian, Arabic and many other languages have rules that permit them to omit the copula. Clearly, black Americans are in full control of the Standard English and at the same time, they still retain the culture (Kranz, Rachel).

Misconceptions and Stereotypes about Black English

Sometimes people tend to think that Black English is below standards, the white people think they have their own kind of English and the black have their own. That is why if today a black person spoke in a different manner likely to suggest or seem like white English he will be corrected or people will give them some side looks. There is also the misconception that Black English speakers are middle class and their accent enhance their own image’s that’s why in her work Rachel Jones gives an example of 21 year old who was bullied in school due to his proper or rather white English.

Political Significance of Black English

Black English is even associated as a political instrument with some people like James Baldwin defending it by saying it had added vitality to the language.

Setbacks of Black English

But despite all the positive attributes associated with preserving one’s culture like the Black people do with their English, it is equally indispensable to note that balancing between their writing and speech is very crucial. Clearly, if one was to write how they speak, it would look ridiculous. It is good to have good knowledge of Standard English when it comes to writing. Full command of Standard English is important and mastering it through knowledge will not take away their blackness and that is why famous people like Martin Luther King made it to the top, they did not achieve their eloquence, grace, and stature by using only Black English in their speech but they also had a good command when it came to writing. The world is evolving and the level of competition in high positions is limited for the most articulate persons and it is heartening to hear young adults use all the time Black English (Moody, Simanique). One thing for sure is that Black English won’t get anyone a job and rather than having the mentality that their black identity being stripped, they should embrace by practicing not the white English but the right English.

Mexican English

Another commonly spoken and mistaken English in the American soil is the Mexican English. This unlike Black English has been associated with the high rising number of Mexicans entering American borders. The Mexican English also known as Chicano is heavily influenced by contact with Mexican Spanish and as a result, it is different from mainstream American English in terms of sound, stress patterning, intonation, and prosody.

The Influence of Mexican Spanish on Chicano English

So different to the extent that Chicano English speakers are most of the times mistaken for having a Spanish accent by the general public and that is stereotype. Although Mexican-American English has undoubtedly originated historically from Spanish interference, it has been mistakenly been taken for granted that all Mexican-Americans who speak with an accent do so because of Spanish interference (Ullman, Char). Many speakers of Chicano English are monolingual and among Mexican, today, not only native speakers of Spanish but also many native speakers of English speak the language with a notable influence from Spanish phonology. Due to the increase in the number of speakers, many scholars have argued that Mexican American English should indeed be recognized as a dialect. As Arthur, Farrar stated, the variety of English spoken by Mexican Americans raised in Barrio areas may not necessarily represent an unsuccessful attempt of native Spanish speakers to produce English but rather the successful attempt of native speakers to produce the dialect of English characteristic of their speech community. In fact after a thorough investigation of American English paper presented to the conference on college English and the Mexican American, pan-American University, Edinburgh concluded that a language shift was in progress among Mexican Americans in urban centers and that, consequently, the study of Mexican Americas English, as well as Mexican American Spanish, should be emphasized (Ullman, Char).

Challenges Facing Mexican American English

Therefore it is clear that as the shift progresses, the language problems of urban children will not be those of Spanish interfering with English, but rather of a nonstandard dialect of English conflicting with Standard English.

Perception and Identity

Thirty years ago, Barker had observed that Mexican American bilinguals manifested a feeling of inferiority with respect to their Mexican accent in speaking English. Despite their inferiority, they categorically stated that it is never about what they were doing but rather who they are. This same scenario was experienced when Arizona banned the Mexican-American studies program.

Summary

Sociologists and linguists probably will ascertain that a person’s developing language skills are more influenced by peers, the people around an individual. Say for example the immigrant’s families in the US, their children are most likely to speak the right English with no grammatical errors if they integrate with other children at school. The society and peer play a large role in shaping the language of the child. In fact, in a previous investigation, Carranza and Ruan had elaborated the traditional evaluate reaction task to allow multidimensional investigation of attitudes toward Spanish and English. The results for 64 bilingual Anglo American and Mexican American adolescents indicated for both groups a definite preference for English in a school context. The only variance was the accent but that did not mean they don’t have a command of English.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the accent should not be used to judge an individual’s level of English speaking. Just like any other language, English is primarily meant for communication and if the conversation is flowing with no grammatical errors, then there is effective communication. Therefore there is no “better” English.

References

Abrams, M. H. The Norton Anthology Of English Literature. New York, Norton, 1974,.

Kranz, Rachel. The Biographical Dictionary Of Black Americans. New York, Facts On File, 1992,.

Moody, Simanique. “New Perspectives On African American English: The Role Of Black-To-Black Contact”. English Today, vol 31, no. 04, 2015, pp. 53-60. Cambridge University Press (CUP), doi:10.1017/s0266078415000401.

Ullman, Char. “Consuming English: How Mexican Transmigrants Form Identities And Construct Symbolic Citizenship Through The English-Language Program Inglés Sin Barreras [English Without Barriers]”. Linguistics And Education, vol 21, no. 1, 2010, pp. 1-13. Elsevier BV, doi:10.1016/j.linged.2009.12.002.