Definition and Examples of Linguistic Prestige

In sociolinguistics, linguistic prestige is the degree of esteem and social value attached by members of a speech community to certain languages, dialects, or features of a language variety. Social and linguistic prestige is interrelated, notes Michael Pearce. The language of powerful social groups usually carries linguistic prestige; and social prestige is often granted to speakers of prestige languages and varieties (Routledge Dictionary of English Language Studies, 2007). Linguists draw important distinctions between overt prestige and covert prestige: In the case of overt prestige, the social valuation lies in a unified, widely accepted set of social norms, whereas with covert prestige the positive social significance lies in the local culture of social relations. It is, therefore, possible for a socially stigmatized variant in one setting to have covert prestige in another (Walt Wolfram, Social Varieties of American English, 2004). Examples and Observations: Linguistic prestige is directly associated with power. As [Thomas Paul] Bonfiglio (2002:23) puts it, There is nothing in the particular language itself that determines its worth: it is the connection of the language in question to the phenomena of power that determines the value of that language and that contributes to the standardization process.(Gerard Van Herk, What Is Sociolinguistics? Wiley-Blackwell, 2012) Old English certainly had words for language and female and face, and we could perfectly well have carried on using them [after the Norman invasion], but the much greater prestige of French induced many English-speakers to introduce French words into their speech in the hope of sounding more elegant. This attitude is always with us: French no longer enjoys quite the prestige it once had, but you may perhaps know someone who cannot resist spattering his English speech or writing with such French words and phrases as au contraire, joie de vivre, au naturel, fin de sià ¨cle and derrià ¨re. (R.L. Trask, Language: The Basics, 2nd ed. Routledge, 1999) Prestige in Grammar In grammar, most prestige forms are related to prescriptive norms of standardness or even literary norms. For example, the use of whom in Whom did you see? or the placement of never at the front of the sentence Never have I seen a more gruesome sight might be considered prestige variants in some social contexts. Apart from these somewhat special cases, it is difficult to find clear-cut cases of prestige variants on the grammatical level of language, particularly in the grammar of ordinary informal conversation...For present-day American English, it is clear that the vast majority of socially diagnostic structures exist on the axis of stigmatization rather than the axis of prestige.(Walt Wolfram, Social Varieties of American English. Language in the USA: Themes for the Twenty-First Century, ed. by Edward Finegan and John R. Rickford. Cambridge University Press, 2004) Overt and Covert Prestige A standard dialect speaker of English who intentionally switches to use of social markers such as aint and he dont is said to seek covert prestige. Such prestige is covert because its elicitation will often not, if successful, be consciously noted.Deliberate (as opposed to instinctive) use of taboo words such as fuck and shit, usage which tends to characterize male more than female speech, may also seek covert prestige, but the strength of these as social markers makes this more difficult to achieve. In a contrasting register, one uses unusually formal non-vernacular forms in vernacular contexts. For example, one will ordinarily say Its me to the question Who is it? asked by a familiar interlocutor, but, when asked the same question by one from whom one seeks prestige, the same speaker may say It is I. Similarly, except after prepositions Americans ordinarily say who in preference to whom: Who did you ask?, not Whom did you ask?  but in some circumstances, the latter may be substituted. Such usage is said to seek overt prestige because the often dubious prestige one gets from such usage is ordinarily consciously noted, hence overt. One may use jargon similarly seeking overt prestige, saying, for example, semantics when nothing more than ordinary meaning is intended.(Grover Hudson, Essential Introductory Linguistics. Blackwell, 2000) Labov on Prestige and Gender [American linguist William Labov developed] three principles regarding the linguistic behavior of men and women: 1. For stable sociolinguistic variants, women show a slower rate of stigmatized variants and a higher rate of prestige variants than men (Labov 2001: 266)2. In linguistic change from above, women adopt prestige forms at a higher rate than men (Labov 2001: 274)3. In linguistic change from below, women use higher frequencies of innovative forms than men do (Labov 2001: 292) Ultimately, Labov formulates the corresponding Gender Paradox: Women conform more closely than men to sociolinguistic norms that are overtly prescribed, but conform less than men when they are not.(Labov 2001: 293) All these principles and the Gender Paradox itself appear to be fairly robust findings with almost universal applicability in contemporary sociolinguistics...[E]very language period and every language community must be investigated independently and in its own right (pace Jardin 2000). The actual concepts and functions of class, gender, networks, and, most importantly, norms, standards, and prestige, differ radically in different communities.(Alexander Bergs, The Uniformitarian Principle and the Risk of Anachronisms in Language and Social History. The Handbook of Historical Sociolinguistics, ed. by Juan M. Hernà ¡ndez-Campoy and Juan Camilo Conde-Silvestre. Wiley-Blackwell, 2012) Prestige, Status, and Function What do we mean by status and function? The two terms are often confused with one another and also with another term, prestige. Basically, the essential difference between prestige, function, and status is the difference between past, present, and future. The prestige of a language depends on its record, or what people think its record to have been. The function of a language is what people actually do with it. The status of a language depends on what people can do with it, its potential. Status, therefore, is the sum total of what you can do with a language--legally, culturally, economically, politically and, of course, demographically. This is not necessarily the same as what you do with the language, although the two notions are obviously related, and indeed interdependent. They can also be connected with the prestige of a language. Let us illustrate the differences. Classical Latin has had a lot of prestige but it has few functions. Swahili has a lot of functions, but little pres tige. Irish Gaelic has status, official status, but few exclusive functions.(William F. Mackey, Determining the Status and Function of Languages in Multinational Societies. Status and Function of Languages and Language Varieties, ed. by Ulrich Ammo. Walter de Gruyter, 1989)

Regulating The American Gun Control - 2098 Words

Regulating the American Gun Charles Dennis Eastern Kentucky University Author Note This paper was prepared for English 102, Section 20357, taught by Professor Roman Abstract Gun control has been a political and government issue for decades now, and figuring out exactly the right formula on how many laws, regulations we currently need. While some gun control regulation is necessary; increasing the amount and intensity of gun regulation is problematic because it is an infringement on second amendment rights, it does not deter crime, it allows for the government to have too much power and control over weapons, and proper regulations already exist. A middle ground stance on the issue of gun regulation is important, because if citizens are too far right or left on the matter it will be problematic. Either running into over regulation and over use of government power and if there is no regulation you run into chaos and anarchy from no control. To clarify, I draw a conclusion from the summary of gun regulations currently in place, being enforced today by the ATF today. In conclusion the need for some gun regulations and laws is a much needed necessity but the p roblem we seem to run into as a country is trying to shoot for too much or too little. Keywords: gun control, government, ATF, U.S. Constitution, regulations, amendments, tyranny, self-defense Regulating the American Gun WhenShow MoreRelatedGuns, Ammunition And Its Negative Effects On Society944 Words   |  4 PagesIssue Question: can the availability of guns, ammunition and its negative effects on society be a thing of the past? Claim: An analysis of the United State gun culture reveals their negative effects on society. Thesis paragraph: In the wake of recent killings and mass shooting in sandy hook and other locations across the country and communities, there has been public cries for the need for stricter gun laws and regulations. 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Business and strategic management Samples †MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the Business and strategic management. Answer: Summary The approach of business expansion of UPS in India which was under the supervision of Ms Page had suffered a setback due to various aspect of rural India. The road ways of rural India, as compared to other developed countries where UPS was already functional, was not much developed yet (Jenkins Williamson, 2015). After the analysis of the economic scenario and the company, Ms Page devised getting into alliances would assist in resolving the problem that is faced by UPS in delivering its services in rural India. Making alliances with companies like Jet Air marked first expansion of the brand outside North India. The strategy of DHL could prove to be an effective approach for the business expansion of UPS in India more so in the rural India (Wheelen Hunger, 2017). The evaluation for the problem faced by UPS in delivering services in rural India initiates with the analysis of early history of UPS, common carrier rights, assessments of UPS Airlines, the involvement of aspects of public, synchronization of commerce, application of Hub and Spoke Model, the integration of brand and organizational culture of UPS and insights of transportation sector (Jenkins Williamson, 2015). In order to have business expansion, the company had to make association with Jet Air, second alliance with AFL Private Ltd which is a major holder of business operations in India in this sector. By following the business expansion strategy of DHL which was acquiring the Indian delivery company Blue Dart, clarity in both the segments of domestic and international market along with business operations in rural India can be identified. References Jenkins, W. and Williamson, D., 2015.Strategic management and business analysis. Routledge. Wheelen, T.L. and Hunger, J.D., 2017.Strategic management and business policy. pearson.

Inside A Hindu Temple Essays - Hindu Gods, Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple

Inside A Hindu Temple Inside a Hindu Temple The Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple, located in Lanham, Maryland, is unique in that it houses both an icon to Shiva and an icon to Vishnu. Shiva is represented with a stone lingam and Vishnu is portrayed lying upon a bed of snakes. These two icons are the center of the temple and are housed in inner shrines. About twenty other gods are also represented in icons ringing the temple. These icons were dressed in saris and jewelry. Placed in front of many of these icons were offerings of fruit and rice, as well as the red powder kunkumma. These offerings were likely placed privately by families during worship. The visitor is struck by the bright colors of the ornately decorated interior, tje smells of burning incense and the sound of ringing bells. When we arrived, a puja was being conducted for Vishnu by two temple priests. A puja is a Hindu act of devotion to a deity. Though they may vary considerably, a puja typically is directed towards an icon of the god being worshipped. The icon is bathed, typically with water and milk. The icon is then dressed in a sari and jewelry, and often shown his own image in a mirror. A food offering is made to the icon, accompanied by the ringing of bells. The puja being conducted at the Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple was being conducted by two priests, dressed only in dotis, cloth wrapped around their lower bodies, and wore their sacred thread bandalier-style on their upper bodies. A small congregation was present, reciting from prayer books. The priests rang bells and bathed Vishnu. First they poured water over the icon. Next they bathed him with milk, one of the five nectars. Finally they bathed him with water again. All the while they recited mantras, inviting Vishnu to come down and join them. After bathing Vishnu, the priests closed the curtain to the inner shrine. The puja was to conclude later in the evening, a very lengthy ceremony in contrast to Western Christian services, which only last about as long as several time slots on prime time television. The priests at the Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple reside at the temple, and are Brahmins who have studied the Vedas. They are men who's lives are committed to the worship of the gods, and one marvels at their devotion. Religion