How Does the English Language Vary at Individual?

How does the face expression vary at individual, societal and worldwide levels? side has frame the first truly spherical quarrel (McCrum et al. , 2002, p. 9). As a dissolver of advances in technology and transport, varieties of side body-build spread through step forward the universe of discourse. This internationalization has been described by Shreeve as an identified phenomenon (1999, p. 1). face now underpins the lives and cultures of a broad spectrum of people, with one in four people in the gentles now fluent engrossrs of English (Crystal, 2002, p. 10). phrase involves making meaning and individual identity operator. It has been delineate by Emmit et al. as mediating between self and society , a dash of representing the world to ourselves and others (2006, p. 17). on that point be strong think between how individuals utilise varied varieties of English and the tender implications of why they do so. According to Swann Langu mount up varieties atomic number 18 non simply lingual phenomena. They carry important fond meanings (2007, p. 11). Many amicable factors have affected the English wrangle, leading to the legion(predicate) varieties that argon recognised and used today.Variety loafer be seen in the vogue any individual uses the English actors line, the interaction between social groups and in the way different countries ar utilising the dustup. The numerous parlances in use in the UK demonstrate the diverse nature of the English terminology. Dialects include variations in syntax, morphology, lexicon and phonology. It has been argued from a prescriptive perspective, by linguists such as Quirk and Greenbaum, that dialects are non true forms of English and that there wants to be a ballpark core of English (Quirk, 1972 in Kachru et al, 2009, p. 513).This is the pure and stringent form cognise as specimen English, which is traditionally conjugated to educated society. Standardisation consists of language deter mination, codification and stabilisation (Trudgill, 1992, p. 117). It is a model to be consulted a co-ordinated code to refer to. Standard English is a publicly recognised, mulish form, a mastery of which affords social and educational advantages (Eyres, 2007, p. 16). It was formed by a particular social group, the group with the highest degree of social capital (Bourdieu, 1986, pp. 241-258), military force and prestige (Rhys, 2007).Rhys, however, perceives that Standard English is a social dialect (2007, p. 190) and argues that it is not superior to other dialects (Rhys, 2007). Labov states that all languages and dialects should be viewed as equal in terms of their ability to communicate (1969 in Bell, 1997, p. 241). While a example form of English can be seen as a social and communicative necessity useful for educational and international affairs, vernacular forms should not be discounted or regarded as inferior. Dialects represent a smaller locality and are therefore more pe rsonal.A relevant example is the use of dialects in regional BBC news broadcasting. While the national news is presented in Standard English, a code with a particular grammar, pronunciation and register, the BBCs regional programmes showcase a local identity that cannot be found in national broadcasting. Interviewees and talking heads often have strong regional accents and communicate in the dialectal forms familiar to their viewers. The regional programmes are personal to their earshot and emphasise the benefits of language variation. Dialects represent social bonds and form because of lingual choice.The shaping of dialects has been explained by Freeborn Different choices were made among the varied patois communities forming the speakers of English in the past. These choices are not conscious or deliberate, but pronunciation is always changing, and leads in time to falsifys in word form (1993, p. 43). The English language has fragmented into pockets of dialect due to social difference and geography. This is a microcosm of how international languages form distance causes change. Freeborn believes that all dialects of a language are rule-g overned systems (1993, p. 0). All vernaculars are consistent, although they may not have the written grammar core (Quirk, 1972 in Kachru et al, 2009, p. 513) that Standard English can boast. There is great variation in dialect throughout the United Kingdom. In 1921, Sapir classified his notion of dialect wander. He explained how language moves implement time in a current of its own making. It has a drift (1921 in Rhys, 2007, p. 2007). This psyche relates to how language evolves lexical and phonological elements are mant guide and new dialects are formed.However, mend language is ever-changing, it is apparent in many cases that dialects are actually becoming more similar. This is defined by Rhys as dialect levelling (2007) when regular contact between speakers of different dialects causes them to lose linguistic f eatures of their dialect (2007, p. 204). In the recent world this levelling process is a resolution of improved transport links, migration and the growth of media and broadcasting. The urbanisation of the UK means that rural areas are not as isolated from cities as they were when Sapir wrote of a dialect drift.Advances in technology and patience mean that the boundaries of dialect, known as isoglosses (Freeborn, 1993), are creation broken down. great deal deep down dialect boundaries hear more varieties of English than they used to, so they naturally accommodate words and pronunciations into their obstetrical delivery. This process of change, however, occurs over a long period of time. Therefore, making sweeping statements about the early of dialects is difficult. Major changes to language and dialect go outing not be microscopical for decades.Different speech communities will always make different language choices (Freeborn, 1993), so there will always be regional variat ion. While language varies because of social groupings, there is also great variety within the speech patterns of an individual. Cheshire has found evidence that speakers continually reassess the context and adjust their verbalize style accordingly (1982, p. 125). pack alter the way that they speak depending on the person or group that they are speaking to, the location that they are in, the type of conversation and the topic be discussed (Swann and Sinka, 2007).Bell is adamant that the person or people you are speaking to will have the greatest outlet on the type of language you will use (1991 in Swann and Sinka, 2007, p. 230). He believes that the presence of another person or group causes people to change their linguistic code. This is known as the theory of Audience Design (Bell, 1997, p. 240). People feel the urge to fit in and adapt their language to pick up their social and psychological needs. Audience Design can also be related to the idea of language performance (Hodg e and Kress, 1988). People take on a variety of roles in their conversations due to a feeling of being atched and critiqued. Swann and Sinka perceive that speakers can be seen as relatively creative designers of language (2007, p. 255). speech is a creative medium, in which the performer changes their approach depending on the recipient. The way that we utilise language and make choices suits our individual discursive requirements. People improvise with language as they try to adapt to new linguistic codes. Individuals feel the need to inhabit certain conversational personas and to demand the linguistic features of their interlocutors. This phenomenon is an element of Communication Accommodation theory (Giles, 1971).Giles and Powesland explain that accommodation can be a device by the speaker to make himself soften understood (1997, p. 234) and that it can also be regarded as an attempt on the part of the speaker to modify or disguise his persona in order to make it more accepta ble to the person addressed (1997, p. 234). The thought of disguise is often associated with deception, but the linguistic adaption proposed by Accommodation Theory derives from constructive ideals. The ability to alter and weave linguistic codes in different situations is a socially integrative mechanism.Variety in an individuals use of language exists to meet the expected communicative requirements of society. The English language is unceasingly evolving and is gradually becoming a planetary language. This is due, in part, to orbicularization. Contemporary globalisation is often associated with the shrinking of time and space. This has affected international trade and industry and also the way that the English language is used at global level. Rapid developments in technological and digital communications have take to the description of the world as a global village (Hollis, 2008, p. 38). As the world becomes theoretically smaller, the development of English as a global lang uage mirrors how our own standard form has developed in the UK. The world requires a stable and recognisable common code for effective global communication in sectors such as business, science, politics and commerce. It could be argued that twain Standard English and a new international standard are impersonal varieties of English. These language forms are functional a means to an end, whereas dialect and variety within a country could be seen as vocalization of a more personal identity.Crystal perceives that there are the closest of links between language dominance and economic, technological and cultural power (2003, p. 7). In the case of English developing into a global language the dominating force is the USA, which moderates economic and political power. Due to the global position of the USA, countries which hold a lower international status are driven to adopt the English language. It appears that a universal, international standard is developing from an urgent need to com municate at world level (Crystal, 2002, p. 11).An example is Kenya, which holds English as a joint official language with Swahili. While English is not necessarily welcomed, it is learnt in Kenyan schools and enjoys a high status associated with social and economic success (Heardman, 2009, p. 20). The Kenyan bankers acceptance of the English language demonstrates a need for their country to function in an international realm. There are opposing views on the idea that English should become the first global language. Some see it as an encroachment on culture and diversity, while others regard it as imperative to communication in a modern world.In 1994, French legislation was passed in order to halt the advance of English into French language and culture. The loi Toubon (named after the Minister for Culture, Jacques Toubon), called for a ban on the use of foreign English in business or government communications, in broadcasting, and in advertising if suitable equivalents existed in Fr ench (Murphy, 1997, p. 14). This law was a linguistic intervention, an attempt to prevent the fragmentation of the French language and to support national identity. In this case, the borrowings (Dubois et al, 1973 in Swann, 2007, p. 4) that the French language had taken from English were becoming too frequent and were seen as being detrimental to Frances status as a historical and international power. The arrival of the internet, however, led French lawyer Thibaut Verbiest to enquire How can the Touban law be use to internet sites created in languages other than French, that may be needed for the take down of someones duties? (2005, in Swann, 2007, p. 37). As France and other countries have discovered, the adoption of the English language for global means is a modern, national necessity.The coercive effects of English are apparent in other countries around the world. In India English acts as a levelling rather than divisive agent, smoothing out the intra-vernacular conflicts of a multi-lingual nation (Chakrawarti, 2008, p. 39). While language variety in every country is vital to culture and national identity, English as an international language offers a common form to be consulted and utilised. Evidence that a global language does not encroach on national identity can be seen in forthcoming changes to the English National Curriculum.Andalo reports that from 2010, it will be a compulsory part of the National Curriculum for children from the age of seven to fourteen to study a modern foreign language (2007). The English government holds foreign languages in high regard and sees them as vital to a rounded education. The English language is a strengthen force, rather than a dominating one. The growth of global English is linked to linguistic stabilisation (Trudgill, 1992, p. 117) a question of international need in a digital age, rather than a means of eliminating international language diversity and national identities. vocabulary helps us to form ideas a nd process information on an individual level. It gives us our identity and allows us to make meaning within our social groups. Language will develop further as globalisation continues, as we strive to share meaning and communicate internationally. Crystal has suggested the idea of a universal bidialectism (2002, p. 294). His perception is that We may all need to be in control of two Englishes the one which gives us our mutual or local identity, and the one which puts us in touch with the rest of the human race (2002, p. 284).However, it could be suggested that we will be universally tridialectal. There is the descriptive regional variation within our national language, the prescribed standard form required for educational purposes and then the newer globalised form of English with which we communicate with the world. The evolution of the English language will derive from international necessity, but will not eliminate the fact that language always returns to the individual and the ir empower in the world. List of References Andalo, D. (2007) All Primary Schools to Teach Foreign Languages by 2010. Online. Available at http//www. guardian. co. uk/education/2007/mar/12/schools. uk Accessed 2 November 2009 Bell, A. (1997) Language Style as Audience Design. pp. 240-257, in Coupland, N. and Jaworski, A. (eds) Sociolinguistics a indorser and Coursebook. Basingstoke Palgrave Macmillan Bourdieu, P. (1986) The Forms of Capital. Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education. 24 (1) pp. 241-258 Chakrawarti, P. (2008) Decolonising and Globalising English Studies The circumstance of English Textbooks in West-Bengal, India.English in Education. 42 (1) pp. 37-53 Cheshire, J. (1982) Variation in an English Dialect a Sociolinguistic Study. New York Cambridge University plead Crystal, D. (2002) The English Language A Guided Tour of the Language. second edn. London Penguin Books Ltd Crystal, D. (2003) English as a Global Language. 2nd edn. Cambridge Cambridg e University Press Emmit et al. (2006) Language and Learning An cornerstone to Teaching. 3rd edn. Oxford Oxford University Press Eyres, I. (2007) English for Primary and Early Years growth Subject Knowledge. 2nd edn.London SAGE Freeborn, D. (1993) Varieties of English An Introduction to the Study of Language. 2nd edn. Basingstoke Macmillan Giles, H. (1971) Patterns of evaluation in reactions to R. P. , South Welsh and Somerset accented speech. British Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology. 10 (1) pp. 280-281 Giles, H. and Powesland, P. (1997) Accomodation Theory pp. 232-239 in Coupland, N. and Jawowski, A. eds. (1997) Basingstoke Palgrave Macmillan Heardman, K. (2009) An Introduction to Linguistics The Study of Language. PowerPoint Presentation.Faculty of Education University of Plymouth Hodge, R. and Kress, G. (1988) Social Semiotics. Cambridge Polity Press Hollis, N. (2008) The Global Brand How to Create and Develop Lasting Brand shelter in the World Market. Hampshire Palg rave Macmillan Kachru, B. (2009) The Handbook of World Englishes. Oxford Wiley-Blackwell McCrum, R. et al. (2002) The Story of English. London Faber and Faber Murphy, C. (1997) The aroma of Cotonou. The Atlantic Monthly. 279 (1) pp. 14-16 Rhys, M. (2007) Dialect Variation in English. pp. 189-221, in Graddol, D. t al. (eds) Changing English. Abingdon Routledge Shreeve, A. (1999) The Power of English. English in Education. 33 (3) pp. 1-5 Swann, J. (2007) English Voices, pp. 5-38, in Graddol, D. et al. (eds) Changing English. Abingdon Routledge Trudgill, P. (1992) Standard English What it Isnt. pp. 117-128, Bex, T. and Watts, R. (eds) Standard English The Widening Debate. London Routledge Swann, J. and Sinka, I. (2007) Style-Shifting, Code-Switching. pp. 227-269, in Graddol, D. et al (eds) Changing English. Abingdon Routledge