Summary Of Should Writer's Use They Own English

I walk over to the nine-year-old boy sitting across the room as I reach for my pen and sheet of paper. As I approached him, I halted. Quietly, I asked him what he needed help with. Looking confused, he asked me what the word bough meant. I froze. I didn’t know what the word meant. Embarrassed of not knowing a fifth grade word, I asked the teacher for some assistance and after she told me what the word meant I understood and was then able to explain to him that a bough is just a synonym for a branch. Noticing that David was still confused as to what he was reading, I sat beside him and allowed him to read the passage out loud to me. While I defined the words that he didn’t know and listened to him read the passage, I was able to classify him as an English learner who just wanted to be just as good as the other kids.

In my city we have our own type of language or “slang” that we use on a day by day basis that many may never have heard before. Baltimore isn’t just known for our famous blue crabs or our flag colors; we’ve been known for our city accents as well. The speculation of most Baltimore natives just simply being uneducated is merely false and just an opinion, we say things how we understand when talking to each other. For instance we took the word “Dog” and pronounce it as “Doug” or refer to one another as “Yo.” This doesn’t make us uneducated this makes Baltimore city because without our own way of speaking we wouldn’t stand out.

There are pros and cons when it comes to whether or not one should speak in either vernacular or standard English with one of those being the location and environment are two major considerations. Sadly, that is what it has all come down to and it is noted by June Jordan “...as an endangered species...” meaning it is rather difficult to find people that speak vernacular English, nowadays, without conforming themselves to the oppressor’s ways. Her statement is agreeable in the sense that slaves were brought to the United States not knowing the language and were forced to learn, what they called, “the oppressor’s language.” They might have been stripped of their

It seems that dialects all boil down to early childhood language development and who a child’s first influences are when they learn to speak. These influences primarily come from a child’s immediate care giver which is usually their parents. The New York dialect therefore is passed down from one generation to the next in a traditional sense. I will make a mental note to resist correcting other people’s English, which is a bad habit of

Standard American dialect is necessary in academic writing for three key reasons. First, the ability to use standard American dialect is a skill that people living in America should obtain because it is the most spoken and written language across the country. Having the knowledge to use standard American dialect will be helpful in many different situations, such as in the classroom and business world. In addition, being able to write using this dialect, will guide in writing a stronger, clearer paper, as well as ensuring unity between all academic writing. I disagree with the following statement from “Students’ Right to Their Own Language”: “We affirm strongly that teachers must have the experiences and training that will enable them to respect diversity and uphold the right of students to their own language” (3). Teachers should not have to go through an immense amount of training

In his paper, “Should Writer’s Use They Own English?” Vershawn Young, author of Your Average Nigga: Performing Race, Literacy, and Masculinity, argues that writers should not have to conform to one style of writing, Standard English, but that writers should be able to use colloquialism and native dialect in academic writings. It is becoming increasingly common to see speakers, professors and even government officials use slang terms and informal sayings, but Young argues that all people, even students, should be able to “mix the dialect they learn at home with whateva other dialect or language they learn afterwards”(111). I agree with Young's argument because I believe times are changing, and everyone should be able to mix dialects without facing prejudice regardless of social stature.

United States of America, small in history but large in diversity continues to face new challenges with language as time continues to turn. In the documentary “Do You Speak American?” Robert MacNeil analyzes the English language and reveals many dialects that culturally defines us. Regional dialect is one of the many strongholds of all cultures and now it has reached its’ zenith and today it is slowly declining because it does not possess the human nature of advancement. Optimistically, it allows people to learn how to cooperate with each other. In order to advance and adopt a person has to change; I believe that the acceptance of cultural adaptations, diversity, and industrialization can prove that the decline of speech does not cause a

People who speak NAE and other languages have a fewer job and financial opportunities. If you are not local or speak with a dialect, it is more likely that you will have difficulties finding a job or be remunerated less than people who speak SAE. According to Carbonell (2016), if you have an interview and use inappropriate words or expressions, it is more likely that you will not get the job, or they will give you fewer benefits questioning your credibility about education that you have (para. 8). In the video “Discrimination Not to Hire Based on Dialect or Accent?”, David Pakman gives an example how a person from South with a very deep accent can have difficulties in finding a job in Boston. Not because he is not speaking the proper English language, but because of his accent (min.2:21- 2:45). This example shows that the way you speak English is related to your future financial prosperity. If you use dialects it is not viewed as intellectual, so the employer might doubt how qualitative work can be done because of the accent. There are also beliefs that proper English is the one that it is used in a

The United States of America is one of the world’s most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations. Even though there is not an official national language, most Americans speak Standard American English (SAE). However, the most prevalent native English vernacular dialect in the United States is African American Vernacular English (AAVE). According to Sharon Vaughn, AAVE is “a dialect used by some African Americans” (110). In order to examine AAVE, one must explore the origins, grammatical features, and prominent resolutions, which created a precedent for educating students that speak dialects other than Standard American English.

The debate of instituting English as the official language in the United States is a debate that has been going on for centuries. Many people believe that English should be the official language because we are American, and Americans speak English. However, many of those people fail to realize that we all come from different heritages and corners of the world. Language should be an art of expression, one where people of all heritages and backgrounds can speak in the language that they have learned. Implementing English as the official language in the United States would be to essentially ignore and disrespect all of the heritages, nationalities, and religions that make the United States a unique place to live. The United States is

I am from Salisbury, MD, so I never thought I had a different dialect from the rest of Maryland until I came to Towson. My friends tease me at times because I “sound so Southern.” Due to the fact that some of my family is from Alabama, I have picked up on a few of those southern traits. My father tends to say “warsh” instead of “wash,” and a lot of my family members tend to leave out the “g” in words that end with “ing.” Instead of asking, “Are you guys going to the store?” I would ask, “Are y’all goin’ to the store?” Although I speak differently, I wouldn’t say that my dialect has damaged my communication skills. People still understand what I mean when I’m speaking to them.

School has always been a place of business, in my opinion. A place where we are educated and prepared for life, essentially. And the proper way of doing so, as I believe most people have been taught, is to enhance all skills such as vocabulary, grammar, mathematics, etc... This is why we are taught so many subjects, being tested and guided to follow whichever path we feel most comfortable or skilled at doing. During the process, is where skills are established and developed. The product that is intended after having gone through school is to shape a well skilled, educated, and productive person that can benefit society as a whole. In limiting the teaching of Standard American English, we would be limiting the amount of people that can fulfill their potential, raise the difficulty for teachers, and accept mediocrity. In keeping this dialect, students will gain new skills and learn the language of business to prepare them for any encounters along the way. There is no need, in my eyes, to minimize or put an extent to teaching the English dialect and that is what I will personally support in this essay.

When I started meeting people and becoming friends with them, my English improved. I was still making mistakes and I still do, but they were not making fun of me. If I did not understand something or when I said something wrong they would stop me and correct me, so I would not make same mistakes again. Unfortunately, I am still unable to meet the standard of writing perfect English. Every time when I got my assignment back from teachers, there is always a line at the bottom that says, “You need to work on your English writing” which really frustrates me. Sometimes I feel that no matter how hard I tried, I would never get there. But I do remember that everything needs patience and practice.

Response-American English is Standard English but also is language variety. There are different dialects and accents that American use in different parts of the country, Including Appalachian, Cajun, R less or R dropping dialects, California, Texas and Midwest accent. Every American thinks that they don’t speak with an accent but as you’re exposed to more cultures you will understand that not one variety of language is perfect or the right standard of English. In my experience I was told I had an accent from somebody from Chicago I never noticed cause the people I was around all spoke in the same accent and from the area and were exposed to the same culture and so you really wouldn’t notice if you have an accent unless you’re exposed to different cultures. Also one of my friends from high school went to Tennessee for about two weeks when shall came back she had the Appalachian accent. Where she would say “yall” she was exposed to a different culture for a while and started to pick up their English cause of the exposure to a different culture.

When talking with friends or people that you’re just comfortable with in general, most of the time you may say some things you wouldn’t dare say in front of a parent or teacher. However, for this assignment we had the chance to have free reign over the topic, how we expressed ourselves and the extent that it was taken. The conversation flowed like running water and was never stagnant. We were able to have lengthy discussions about real issues that mattered to us, and not talk about something from a tired school curriculum. Dialect definitely varies depending on the person, or the group for that matter. Most teenager’s dialect changes according to their environment. To increase their probability of getting a job they may speak more academically or to be understood by their friends they may speak more in their own personal vernacular with prominent usage of slang words. Differences in dialect can be seen in the way people react when they talk to each other, their choice of words, their subject topic, and how comfortable they are when speaking to the other people in the conversation.