Attitudes to language change

English Language

Chapter 16 English Language Book

Page 217

Standardisation is a gradual process, in English it started as early as 14^th century. English is a hybrid language, made up of different dialects and this resulted in a language that was highly inconsistent. The need to establish a standard became important if English was to be taken seriously as a national language.

Haugen 1966 identifies a four stage process to standardisation-

 

                                                          Selection

-          Language selected- variety selected is usually a prestigious one

                                                          Codification

-          Reduction of internal variability, establishment of norms of lexis, grammatical structures and spelling

                                                     Elaboration

-          The selected language is developed for a variety of purposes. This may involve expansion of linguistic resources

                                                  Implementation

-          The standard language must be given currency by making texts available in it, encouraging users to develop priced and loyalty

(Milroy and Milroy, 1985) standardisation, therefore, is an on-going process and ideological struggle

Attitudes towards language change-

English Language has taken centuries to develop, it is now an established language that is used on a global scale, and should we try and protect and maintain it? Or should we continue to change and develop it.

 Prescriptivism – language should be preserved and fixed. We have seen attempts to fix the language and impose rules of usage since the 16^th century with Swift’s proposal for a language academy, Johnson’s dictionary and the work of grammarians such as Lowth. Even today, those holding a prescriptivist viewpoint continue to make judgements about ‘correct’ usage , identifying ‘good’ and ‘bad’ examples of language.

Descriptivism – describing language use without judgement and recording change as it happens

16.7.3 More attitudes towards language change

The linguist Jean Aitchinson (2013) used a set of metaphors to describe peoples anxieties about language use.

Damp Spoon Syndrome- language change is caused by laziness, the kind of sloppiness you get with a damp spoon being left in the sugar bowl

Crumbling Castle- English language is a beautiful old building which needs to be preserved; the English language has been gradually and carefully created until it has reached the pinnacle of splendour

Infectious disease- we ‘catch’ change from those around us

Attitudes towards language change- Donald Mackinnon in 1996

He suggested that language can we seen as:

1. -          Correct or incorrect
2. -          Pleasant or ugly
3. -          Socially acceptable or socially unacceptable
4. -          Morally acceptable or morally unacceptable
5. -          Appropriate or inappropriate in their context
6. -          Useful to us or useless

Makinnon’s model is useful for exploring attitudes towards language uses over time

Why does change happen?

External factors play a significant role in language change. As society develops, the language  needs to adapt  to keep up with these changes.

The changing social climate

• From the time of the Norman Conquest, England followed a strictly feudal system

• From the late 15^th century, feudalism began to decline but clear division of class remained

• The industrial revolution saw increased urbanisation and the emergence of a new middle class

• The middle classes were conscious of their language. Many dictionaries, pronunciation guides and grammar guides were published during the 18^th and 19^th centuries, advising members of this new social group of ‘correct’ language usage

• The Elementary Education Act of 1870 was passed, providing compulsory education for all children aged between 5 and 12; thus literacy greatly improve

Additional external factors-

• -          Increased contact with a worldwide community:

• -          -the 20^th century has seen two world wars, both of which exposed the language to contact with countries from around the world, including America and colonial and post-colonial countries such as Australia, Canada, India.

• -          Post- war affluence has led to rise in travel and increased contact with other cultures and experiences, resulting in extensive borrowing

• -          The rise in technology has resulted in communication on a global scale

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