Linguistic Prejudice and Stereotyping

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• What constitutes linguistic prejudice? • Where does linguistic prejudice stem from? • What characteristics of language do we value? • What can this be associated with socially/culturally?

What constitutes linguistic prejudice? • This refers to the unfair treatment of an individual based solely on their use of language. This use of language may include the individual's native language or other characteristics of the person's speech, such as an accent, the size of vocabulary (whether the person uses complex and varied words), and syntax. • Opinions based on social signals we find in peoples speech. How hearers jump to conclusions about a persons personality, culture or background based on the way they speak. These conclusions can be positive, negative or accurate.

Where does linguistic prejudice stem from? • The group we see ourselves belonging to reflects what we value to be linguistically appropriate. This can be culturally, socially, regionally or due to family relationships. • From when we are young linguistic prejudice is imposed upon us with suggestions of how to write, how to speak properly, how we should spell words, how we should pronounce words and of course what constitutes bad speech in comparison to that. Again this raises the issues of prescriptive thought v descriptive thought.

What characteristics of language do we value? • Again this is really based on the group you see yourself belonging to. But if we had to answer this question, the general population values: • Excellent Grammar • Correct spelling • Diction and Elocution: Correct pronunciation based on the cultural context and accent. • Full sentences • Refrain from using slang and shortenings

What can we associate this with socially/culturally? • Judgements made on a speaker/writers use of language can often be associated with honesty, reliability, friendliness, toughness and intelligence. • We can make assumptions on the persons personality and this can quite easily lead to stereotypes. This in particular with speech and accent. For example the broad australian accent is very much associated with a stereotypical persona. The way in which some African Americans speak immediately invokes a cultural and social stereotype. Just as it does with an individual sporting a cockney accent.

• An overt prestige dialect is generally one that is widely recognized as being used by a culturally dominant group. • A covert prestige dialect, on the other hand, is one that is generally perceived by the dominant culture group as being inferior but which compels its speakers to use it to show membership in an exclusive community

• Take a look at each of the videos. Write down what linguistic prejudices may be made against these characters. • The complete question 18, 19, 20 of your textbooks.