Varieties-and-Invented-Languages-3

COGNATE ELECTIVE 2 – Stylistics and Discourse Analysis
Varieties and Invented Languages
I. Learning objectives
At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:
 describe the strategies used to represent a certain language and
dialect; and
 examine the different language variations and how it contributes to
the overall meaning of a text
II. Content Focus
Language Varieties
We all speak in a slightly different style and this style is likely to vary depending upon
the context and purpose of an interaction. Linguistic styles also vary across regional and
social groupings, so an individual’s speech style tends to be influenced by the place(s)
where they live, the nature of their education, and the communities of which they are a
part. Distinctive languages and linguistic styles are referred to in linguistics as varieties.
There are a handful of ways linguists categorize varieties of language; some

definitions refer to word usage and rules, or merely to vocabulary, while others refer to
the way language adapts culturally, in broader strokes. All of these terms, however, can
cover variations in grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation.
 Standard/Polite/Formal. We use the terms standard, polite and formal to refer to

language that sticks to the rules and is essentially presented as the ‘proper’ form
of English. In practice, this is not necessarily practical English, but rather the sort of
English we’d expect to see in formal writing or polite situations. Standard English is
what is generally taught where possible, but alternative forms may be taught in
communities with developed variations.
 Colloquial/Informal. Colloquial language is effectively anything that is not formal,
often described as ‘spoken’ language. It is informal as the aim is to communicate
rather than stick rigidly to rules, so it is where we see contractions and idiomatic
language being used.
 Regional dialect. A regional dialect is not a distinct language but a variety of a
language spoken in a particular area of a country. Some regional dialects have
been given traditional names which mark them out as being significantly different
from standard varieties spoken in the same place. (Bikol Naga, Bikol Legazpi, etc.)
 Social Dialect. Social dialects emerge like dialects, but within a specific class or
culture, instead of a region (though they can be further developed to fit certain
regions). This may also be referred to as a minority dialect, highlighting the
variation is not the predominant use. A major example of this is African American
Vernacular English.
 Lingua Franca. A lingua franca is a common language used between people who
speak different languages. As the full purpose is bridging gaps in communication,
this can be very adaptable and therefore will not necessarily stick to traditional
language rules. English is used as a lingua franca all over the world, more
commonly in fact than it is used by native speakers, and in some cases may even
be taught in a specific form to fit these needs, rather than as standard English.
 Pidgin. A pidgin is a simplified version of a lingua franca, where people trying to
communicate across different languages develop their own form of
communication. Though this technically makes it a lingua franca, it often some
from merging two or more languages together rather than as something true to
one common language. Pidgins can therefore develop their own vocabulary and
rules that can be very independent of the original source languages.
 Creole. A creole is an established form of pidgin, where a language developed

from communicating over two or more languages is taken up by a culture as a
native language. Aspects that make a creole different to pidgin or dialects is that
it has it will have unique rules with a full range of functions, and may be taught as
a mother tongue.
 Vernacular. Vernacular is the term used to describe language as it is used naturally
by a specific people. What it describes can therefore vary depending on what we
wish to specify: we could speak about the vernacular of a country or a smaller
community within a city, or of a certain time and place (for example, we have a
modern vernacular which would include vocabulary that would not be part of the
vernacular of, for example, fifty years ago).
 Jargon. Jargon is the words and phrases that emerge to cover ideas with in a
specific community, often when specialist terminology is required (for example
technical terms in a profession or sport).
 Slang. Similar to jargon, slang is the language that emerges within a subgroup to
describe new ideas, or to assign new words to existing ideas to develop a sense
of identity. As with jargon, this can be exclusionary, though while jargon typically
refers to specialisms, slang is more typically associated with social groups, for
example the language of a younger generation. Extreme forms of slang may be
used specifically to disguise conversation, such as rhyming slang.
Strategies for representing linguistic varieties in writing
Authors often use eye dialect, or nonstandard spelling and phrases in writing, to
convey a character’s speech patterns. Eye dialect is effective in literature when the
writer uses it for a specific purpose, such as characterization or establishing a setting.
 Establish Character. Sometimes a character has a different dialect than those

around them. Having a unique dialect can make that character more interesting
compared to their surroundings. Here is an example of a novel that uses standard
English in their third-person narration, but eye dialect in their characters’ dialogue.
Pygmalion. George Bernard Shaw’s play Pygmalion (later adapted into the 1956
stage production and 1964 film My Fair Lady) uses its characters’ dialects as a
main plot point. In the first scene, Eliza Doolittle chastises Freddy’s mother in her
Cockney accent, which Dr. Henry Higgins overhears.
Ow, eez ye-ooa san, is e? Wal, fewd dan y' de-ooty bawmz a mather should,
eed now bettern to spawl a pore gel's flahrzn than ran awy atbaht pyin. Will ye-
oo py me f'them?
Eliza’s dialect makes her line difficult to read. It translates to standard English as,
“Oh, he’s your son, is he? Well, if you’d done your duty as a mother should, he’d
know better than to spoil a poor girl’s flowers, then run away without paying. Will
you pay me for them?” Shaw notes in his stage direction:
Here, with apologies, this desperate attempt to represent her dialect without a
phonetic alphabet must be abandoned as unintelligible outside London.
Eliza’s dialogue is written in more standard English in subsequent lines, but this line
exists to establish how incomprehensible her accent can be. The majority of the
play’s characters, including Higgins, speak with standard English to contrast Eliza’s
dialect. Higgins takes on the task of changing Eliza’s speech and therefore her
social station, reinforcing the importance of one’s dialect as a character trait.
 Establish Setting. Dialect can be an effective way to bring a reader into the
characters’ world. These stories typically include characters with very similar
dialects. They are typically told in the first first-person perspective, though some
bold stories may carry a dialect into a third-person narration.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. One of the most enduring examples of a story told
in regional dialect is Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In one of the
most famous examples of dialect in children’s literature, Twain famously weaves
several different dialects throughout the story, as explained in his preface.
But as the narrator, Huck Finn himself carries a distinct dialect throughout the entire
story. Here, Huck describes a conversation in which he tells Miss Watson he’d prefer
“the bad place” (hell) to sitting through a spelling lesson with her.
All I wanted was to go somewheres; all I wanted was a change, I warn’t

particular. She said it was wicked to say what I said; said she wouldn’t say it for
the whole world; she was going to live so as to go to the good place. Well, I
couldn’t see no advantage in going where she was going, so I made up my
mind I wouldn’t try for it. But I never said so, because it would only make trouble,
and wouldn’t do no good.
Huck’s restless, boyish perspective carries the reader through his adventures. Twain
limits eye dialect in this case, as too much nonstandard phrasing could be
distracting in the long term. However, when Jim speaks, his dialect as a Southern
slave is much more distinctive:
“Say, who is you? Whar is you? Dog my cats ef I didn’ hear sumf’n. Well, I know
what I’s gwyne to do: I’s gwyne to set down here and listen tell I hears it agin.”
Jim’s dialect represents speech that Twain describes as the “Missouri negro
dialect.” The vernacular was popular in literature such as Gone with the Wind by
Margaret Mitchell and Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. However, it
can be considered stereotypical and racist in modern society.
 Example of Idiolect. While your dialect can be shared by others raised in the same
area, your idiolect represents a speech pattern that is yours alone. It includes your
dialect as well as your life experiences, allusions, preferences, sayings, verbal tics,
and any other element of your speech. Every person – and literary character – has
a unique idiolect.
Finnegan’s Wake. James Joyce, a master of distinctive diction, creates an idiolect

for the speaker of his novel Finnegan’s Wake. Known as his most challenging work,
the book infuses dozens of languages, references, nonsense words, and even the
longest word found in literature into its narration.
The fall
(bababadalgharaghtakamminarronnkonnbronntonnerronntuonnthunntrovarrho
unawnskawntoohoohoordenenthurnuk!) of a once wallstrait oldparr is retaled
early in bed and later on life down through all christian minstrelsy. The great fall
of the offwall entailed at such short notice the pftjschute of Finnegan, erse solid
man, that the humptyhillhead of humself prumptly sends an unquiring one well to
the west in quest of his tumptytumtoes: and their upturnpikepointandplace is at
the knock out in the park where oranges have been laid to rust upon the green
since devlinsfirst loved livvy.
The idiolect here includes Christian gospel (or “mistrelsy”), several brand-new
words, lots of nonstandard spelling, and clever turns of phrase common to Joyce’s
writing (“laid to rust” rather than “laid to rest”). Joyce’s previous works, such as A
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Ulysses, use language and dialect to
firmly establish Ireland as their setting. But the idiolect Joyce created for Finnegan’s
Wake is so unique that it is regarded as almost untranslatable to other languages.
III. Activity/Assessment
Read the story “How My Brother Leon Brought Home a Wife” by Manuel Arguilla.
Create an analysis. Identify what language variation/s are used, explain how it was
used in the piece and how it contributed to the overall meaning.
Note. The analysis must be in paragraph form with introduction, body, and
conclusion. Provide in-text citations.
References:
 (Edinburgh Textbooks on the English Language - Advanced) Alison Gibbons, Sara

Whiteley - Contemporary Stylistics_ Language, Cognition, Interpretation-
Edinburgh University Press (2018)
 (Routledge Handbooks in English Language Studies) Michael Burke - The
Routledge Handbook of Stylistics-Routledge (2014)
 https://englishlessonsbrighton.co.uk/different-language-varieties/
 https://examples.yourdictionary.com/dialect-examples-in-literature.html

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COGNATE ELECTIVE 2 – Stylistics and Discourse Analysis

Varieties and Invented Languages

II. Content Focus

There are a handful of ways linguists categorize varieties of language; some

 Standard/Polite/Formal. We use the terms standard, polite and formal to refer to

 Creole. A creole is an established form of pidgin, where a language developed

Strategies for representing linguistic varieties in writing

 Establish Character. Sometimes a character has a different dialect than those

All I wanted was to go somewheres; all I wanted was a change, I warn’t

Finnegan’s Wake. James Joyce, a master of distinctive diction, creates an idiolect

 (Edinburgh Textbooks on the English Language - Advanced) Alison Gibbons, Sara

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