Language and Society: Accent and dialect Lesley

Transcript:Language and Society: Accent and dialect Lesley:
Language and Society: Accent and dialect Lesley Milroy-Belfast Studies William Labov- The Social Stratification of English in New York City. 1966 Workman studies 2008. People’s perceptions of different accents Peter Trudgill- Norwich studies-1974 Negative and positive connotations of RP. Convergence and divergence. Difference between accent and dialect. Attitudes towards different accents and dialects (identify positive/negative). How people change accents & dialects. Why people might take elocution lessons etc. Ideas around overt and covert prestige Key Terms To Memorise Accent Dialect Standard English Non standard English Convergence Divergence Covert prestige Overt prestige Received Pronunciation Sociolect Idiolect How is identity created? ‘One of the most fundamental ways we have of establishing our identity, and of shaping other people’s views of who we are, is through our use of language.’ Joanna Thornborrow (2004) Learn this quote Regional dialects and accents Q: What’s the difference between accent & dialect? A: A dialect is the variation in WORDS and STRUCTURES associated with a particular geographical region. Accent is the variation in PRONUNCIATION associated with a particular geographical region. Q: What about sociolect and idiolect? A: Sociolect is variation in language use associated with membership of a particular social group. Idiolect is variation in language use associated with an individual’s personalised ‘speech style’ How many different accents/dialects do you know? What Varies? Phonological variation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yqi35Adbbks https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4RkddWPVRs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyyT2jmVPAk IPA vowels The Queen’s Speech Affected RP: the Queen, aristocracy and upper middle class /æ/ /e/ RP is considered an accent http://www.bl.uk/learning/langlit/sounds/case-studies/received-pronunciation/ http://www.bl.uk/learning/langlit/sounds/case-studies/received-pronunciation/vowel-sounds-rp/ Speak Like a… Regional and Social Variation I’m so happy I could marry you /ajm so hæpi aj kʊd mæri ju/ Replace the /æ/ with /e/ in happy and marry Replace the /æ/ with /you choose/ in happy and marry Q: What are the prejudices, issues and debates around accents and dialects? RP: Received Pronunciation What are the common links between these definitions? A pronunciation of British English, originally based on the speech of the upper class of southeastern England and characteristic of the English spoken at private boarding schools and at Oxford and Cambridge Universities. Until the late 1900s, it was the standard form of English used in British broadcasting. Also called Received Standard. noun: received pronunciation; noun: received standard the standard form of British English pronunciation, based on educated speech in southern England, widely accepted as a standard elsewhere. "Although the BBC does not, and never did, impose pronunciations of its own on English