Section C; langauge variation Flashcards
Introduction
Language is a powerful tool in social interactions; the capacity to make choices about the most appropriate variety for a given context is critical in contemporary Australian society. Although Standard Australian English is considered to be the “dominant dialect” (Australian Voices, Macquarie University), and a “benchmark of excellence” (Burridge), it would be inaccurate to assume that it is the most, and only valuable variety. Within Australian society, in some contexts and for particular purposes or audiences, non-standard varieties, such as Teenspeak or ethnolects are more suitable, as these varieties are part of the ever-changing social dynamic and serve important identity and solidarity functions. SAE is paramount in a broad range of contexts, but despite this, it is not sufficient to reflect the diversity and complexity of contemporary Australian society and as such is undoubtedly not [ the appropriate variety to be used in all scenarios]
Standard 1st half
In more professional, authoritative and serious circumstances, SAE characteristically brings more clarity and precision to a discourse while displaying overt prestige. In certain circumstances, language users will make deliberate choices about the language they employ. For instance, in the context of a news program aired in the public domain, and given the professional identity of the news reader, they may employ the standard, elevated adjectives “inebriated” and “intoxicated” when describing a drunk person, whereas, in a conversation between close friends, a speaker may choose to employ the non-Standard and dysphemistic adjectives “munted” or “pissed” which would reflect their closer tenor and build rapport, but for a broader audience may breach negative face needs and be confusing.
Standard 2nd Half
Similarly, in a media statement released in April this year, Prime Minster Anthony Albanese acknowledged the life and passing of Galarrwuy Yunupingu. Demonstrating his deeply rooted reverence and admiration for this significant Yolgnu indigenous rights activist, Albanese employed the initial metaphoric declarative “Yunupingu walked in two worlds with authority, power and grace and he worked to make them whole - together”. The compound structure enables Albanese to effectively list the abstract nous and creates end focus on the adverb “together”, simultaneously underscoring the metaphor of “walked in two worlds” and reinforcing his relentless efforts to achieve harmony within Australia. The careful construction and crafting of this utterance exemplify both its formal, Standard nature and Albanese purposes to pay tribute to this estimated First Nations figure while upholding negative face needs. The use of SAE “reflects [the] serious subjects, elavates [the] style of discourse, and lend[s] dignity, weight and authority to [the] communication” (Pam Peters). Ultimately, SAE as demonstrated by Prime Minster Albanese or the lexical choices of news reporters upholds the expectations of the audience while ensuring mutual intelligibility.
Teenspeak (algospeak section)
Although within particular contexts SAE can be considered to be more appropriate, teenspeak or youth language, incorporating digitally mediated discourses, is an essential variety through which group solidarity and membership is signalled. Despite some prescriptivists holding strong negative attitudes against it, teenspeak is a valid variety that young people use “as a code, a way of excluding others’ (McCrindle), and as a way of expressing their ideas and values. Algospeak, a subset of teenspeak is becoming increasingly common in young people’s online language as they seek to bypass content modification filters on social media platforms such as TikTok, Youtube and Instagram. For Instance, the compound noun “sewer slide” will often be used in place of the moderately taboo noun “suicide’ and the noun “accountants’ is commonly used to reference those who work in the sex/pornography industry. As Algospeak begins to assimilate into youth language, its use serves an important identity and solidarity function, while upholding positive face needs between its users.
Teenspeak 2
Similarly, whilst exploring the subtleties of social media language and writing conventions among young people, Marrisa Kings, Edutopia.org, examined the role of tone, grammar and register in texts and social media captions. For example, online language users will often employ the non-Standard adverb “yass” in place of “yes” to demonstrate enthusiasm and excitement, futher, the repetion of the s grapheme in the interjection “thanksssssss” is used to create a sarcastic tone, and the use of full stops in a standard way is often used to convey a passive agrressive attitude. King suggests that young writers are able to “code-switch” between the formal standard language required for some contexts, and informal, non-Standard language that allows for communication of nuanced tones and purposes. Ultimately, non-Standard conventions of social media language and teenspeak are an important “expansion of [young people’s] linguistic repertoire” (Mcwhorten) that enhances their purposes and expressesion of identity.
Ethnolects BP3 P1
Just as youth language is a means through which young people express their identity, ethnocultural varieties and Aboriginal Englishes reflect the diverse accents, dialects and backgrounds of multicultural Australia. Ethnocultural Varieties of AusE differ across the subsystems depending on the influence of the language users L1. Often most evident in terms of phonology, through the addition or ellison or phonemes, and changes in stress patterns or voicing. For example, speakers of ethnic board (Horvath) Italian English may add phonemes on consonants ending lexemes in noun phrases such as “thisa girla”, insert a schwa between syllables in lexemes such as “break/ə/fast”, or voice voiceless consonants in lexemes such as the verb “lizen” opposed to “listen”. Although ethnolects may be a minority dialect of Australian English, seen by some prescriptivists as low status and improper, they are a valid marker ethnic group membership, and “a dynamic symbol of identity and culture” (Felicity Cox)
Ethnolects BP3 P2 (AbE)
Parallelly, Aboriginal Englishes are an important part of contemporary Australian society. In a recent episode of “AWAYE” on radio national, Rudi Bremer spoke with Pedro Wonaemirri, a Tiwi artist and winner of the NATSIAA award for indigenous art. In explaining his win, many features common to AbEs are evident. Wonarmirri explained that “Dis years art in NATSIAA I pud fightin’ sticks, also ceremonial ornaments dat ol’ people use to use a long time and still do today”. In these clauses, sound change from /nj/ to /n/ is evident in the adjective “fightin’” alongside substitution of /d/ for /ð/, seen in the determiners “Dis” and “dat”. Additionally, Pedro employs the noun phrase “long time” to reflect the cultural importance of his ancestral connections to these objects demonstrating that Abe can be “a powerful vehicle for the expression of Aboriginal identity” (Diana Eades). Notably, within first nations communities, the use of SAE is often looked down upon with it being referred to as “flash language” and those who use it being seen as arrogant. Ultimately, despite the negative attitudes some associate with ethnolects and AbEs, they are essential and important in reflecting group identity and covert prestige within the communities they originate from
Conclusion
SAE coexists with a range of other varieties of AusE, all “equally good for the purposes they serve” (Burridge and Mulder). While SAE undeniably carries more covert prestige and is more influential in the public domain, the identity functions of the cluster of non-Standard varieties ensure that they are crucial and appropriate for particular groups in particular contexts. As a consequence of the intended purposes of a language’s users, (reworded question disagreeing or agreeing)
