The present thesis is an attempt to recognize the sociolinguistic prestige of Received Pronunciation (RP) in contemporary Sri Lankan society, using attitudes, perceptions, and practices of habitual English users in Sri Lanka. Since this study approaches RP from a number of dimensions that are vital in a sociolinguistic study of an accent, this plurality of dimension is reflected in its methodology. The research methods are (a) an attitudinal survey; (b) a series of semi-structured interviews; (c) Observation of participants’ behaviour during interviews; and observation of RP used by Sri Lankans.
RP’s prestige has not changed radically even after 64 years of independence from colonial rule, despite the burgeoning discussion on the suitability of the home-grown standard of English at academic and policy levels. However, Sri Lankan English has surpassed RP as the descriptive standard ,that is, the standard sanctioned by actual use despite RP’s continuous role as the prescriptive and the imagined standard, which is accorded more prestige.
The residual sociolinguistic prestige of RP is initially examined as a matter of language ideologies surrounding the English language as well as language in general. Subsequently, the discussion focuses on the British-orientation of English language teaching in Sri Lanka, particularly the Elocution industry where RP is still promoted as the most appropriate model for teaching English pronunciation.
Finally, the validity of the claim that RP is used by (at least a segment of) proficient English users in Sri Lanka is evaluated. The supposed users of RP in Sri Lanka are considered together as a small speech community that shares common socio-linguistic characteristics among each other. Despite its miniature existence, the community of RP users seems to encompass a complex hierarchical structure, consisting of different layers of membership.
Table of Contents
1. The (Old) Emperor’s New Clothes: Creating a Research Space
1.1. The Territory and the Niche
1.2. Occupying the Niche : A Statement of Purpose
1.3. Measuring Sociolinguistic Prestige
1.4.Habitual English Users in Sri Lanka
1.5. Framing the Boundaries: A Statement of Scope
1.6. Theoretical Framework
1.7. Chapter Overview
2. The ‘English’ of Prestige and the Prestige of English: A Literature Review
2.1. The ‘English of Prestige: the Socio-linguistics of Received Pronunciation(RP) in the UK
2.2. The Prestige of English: English in Postcolonial Sri Lanka
3. The ‘Hows’ of ‘Whats’: Methods and Instruments
3.1. Introduction
3.2. Participants
3.3. Research Design
3.4. Sampling Procedure
3.5. Methods and Instruments
3.5 1. Attitudinal Survey
3.5.2. Semi-structured Interview.
3.5.3. Participant Observation
3.5.4.Observation of RP use by Sri Lankans
3.6. Analysis of Data
3.7. Ethics, Limitations and Problems
4. The Empire Distilled: Re-cognizing RP in Contemporary Sri Lankan Society
4.1. Overview
4.2. Respondents’ Awareness of Sociolinguistic Variation in English
4.3. Attitudes towards English Accents and Pronunciation
4.4. Perceptions of RP and RP users
4.4.1. Perceptions of RP as an accent of English
4.4.2. RP vs. Other English Accents in Sri Lanka
4.4.3. Personality Traits Attributed to Sri Lankan RP Users
4.4.4. Challenges to the Residual Prestige of RP
4.4.5. RP in Use vs. RP in the Minds
4.5. English Accents in Context:
4.6. Accents in ELT
5. The Empire Strikes Back: Making Sense of RP’s Sociolinguistic Prestige in Sri Lankan Society
5.1. Overview
5.2. The Empire within: Residual Prestige of RP as a Matter of Language Ideologies
5.3. More British than the British (?): A Speech Community of Sri Lankan RP Users
6. The Prestige Re-cognized: Some Concluding Remarks
6.1. RP’s current level of prestige
6.2. Reasons for RP’s residual prestige
6.3. Implications for Future Research
Research Objectives and Core Themes
The primary objective of this dissertation is to investigate and re-evaluate the enduring sociolinguistic prestige of Received Pronunciation (RP) within contemporary Sri Lankan society by analyzing the attitudes, perceptions, and practices of habitual English users.
- Sociolinguistic prestige and evaluation of Received Pronunciation (RP) in postcolonial Sri Lanka
- Historical, socio-cultural, and linguistic language ideologies sustaining the preference for British norms
- Comparative analysis of RP against Standard Sri Lankan English (SSLE) and other global varieties
- The role of English Language Teaching (ELT) and the elocution industry in promoting RP
- Identification and structural analysis of the Sri Lankan speech community of RP users
Excerpt from the Book
1.1. The Territory and the Niche
The metaphorical sun of the British Empire is often claimed to have set, but this merely seems to be a political sunset. A more deeply rooted version of imperialism still reigns in the former colonies that are reluctant to abandon their cultural baggage inherited from the colonial masters in the name of la mission civilisatrice. The English language remains part of this cultural imperialism in former colonies like Sri Lanka (see Phillipson, 1999, for discussion). As once noted by a senior politician, the real division in Sri Lankan society is based on language; it falls between those who understand English and those who do not. In this regard, Gunesekera (2005) has noted that English “occupies a peculiar position in Sri Lankan society” (p.11). Since the enactment of the Sinhala-only Official Languages Act 1956, the legal status of English has undergone a dramatic change, yet English continues to reign as a de facto official language of the country, i.e. the language of power and prestige. For the same reason, the nature and role of English in Sri Lanka provides an apt topic for research.
There has recently been a significant focus on Sri Lankan English, “a form of English with a distinct flavour of its own” (Passé, 1955, p.5), “used by Sri Lankans who choose to use English for whatever purpose in Sri Lanka” (Gunesekera, 2005, p.11). Emphasis has recently been placed on speaking Sri Lankan English through the Speak English Our Way campaign, an initiative of the Presidential Task Force to train English teachers. Most importantly, it is often claimed by sociolinguists that a home-grown standard of English has replaced Standard British English as the norm of English in Sri Lanka.
Regarding such circumstances, Professor Colin McCabe stated in his keynote speech at the Sri Lanka English Language Teachers’ Association Conference 2009 that Received Pronunciation (RP) “is alive only in South Asia”( McCabe, 2009). The above statement suggests the need to re-evaluate the sociolinguistic prestige of RP as an accent of English in postcolonial Sri Lanka. Given that the focus today in sociolinguistics has shifted towards new standards and varieties of English vis-à-vis the expanding role of English and as the lingua franca, there seems to be little recent research that focuses on the nature and role of RP.
Chapter Summaries
1. The (Old) Emperor’s New Clothes: Creating a Research Space: Introduces the background and rationale of the study, defining research questions, scope, and the theoretical interface between sociolinguistics and postcolonialism.
2. The ‘English’ of Prestige and the Prestige of English: A Literature Review: Synthesizes foundational scholarship on the sociolinguistics of Received Pronunciation in the UK and examines the socio-historical status of English in postcolonial Sri Lanka.
3. The ‘Hows’ of ‘Whats’: Methods and Instruments: Details the mixed-method methodological framework combining attitudinal surveys, semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and authentic speech analysis.
4. The Empire Distilled: Re-cognizing RP in Contemporary Sri Lankan Society: Analyzes empirical data regarding respondents' sociolinguistic awareness, general attitudes toward accents, and specific perceptions of RP versus local varieties.
5. The Empire Strikes Back: Making Sense of RP’s Sociolinguistic Prestige in Sri Lankan Society: Explores the underlying language ideologies, the British-oriented ELT and elocution industries, and the characteristics of the Sri Lankan speech community of RP users.
6. The Prestige Re-cognized: Some Concluding Remarks: Recaps the main findings regarding RP's current prestige and reasons for its persistence, while outlining valuable implications and directions for future research.
Keywords
Received Pronunciation, Sociolinguistic Prestige, Sri Lankan English, Postcolonialism, Language Ideologies, Elocution Industry, Speech Community, Linguistic Imperialism, Accentism, Phonology, Second Language Acquisition, Standard British English, Language Policy
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this research work?
The dissertation investigates the sociolinguistic prestige of Received Pronunciation (RP) in contemporary Sri Lankan society, examining how an inherited colonial accent maintains its status despite the rise of a home-grown national standard.
What are the primary thematic areas explored in the text?
Key themes include postcolonial language ideologies, the friction between British norms and local varieties (Sri Lankan English), the influence of the elocution industry, and the sociological stratification of English speakers.
What is the central research question or primary objective?
The study aims to determine the exact level of sociolinguistic prestige accorded to RP among habitual English users in Sri Lanka today, and to uncover the historical, socio-cultural, and institutional reasons behind this prestige.
Which scientific and methodological approaches are employed?
The author adopts a multi-methodological and pluralistic approach—incorporating an attitudinal survey of 190 respondents, semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and phonemic analysis of selected speech samples.
What topics are analyzed in the main body of the work?
The main body systematically reviews international and local literature on RP, evaluates survey and interview data regarding public perception and accent discrimination, and analyzes the structural characteristics of Sri Lankan RP users.
Which keywords best characterize the publication?
Prominent keywords include Received Pronunciation, sociolinguistic prestige, Sri Lankan English, language ideologies, postcolonialism, speech community, and elocution industry.
How does the author define "habitual English speakers" within the Sri Lankan context?
Habitual speakers are defined as fluent English users who are exposed to high levels of English-based interaction across private and public domains, functioning effectively as second-language custodians of the language.
What role does the elocution industry play in maintaining RP's status in Sri Lanka?
The elocution and "Speech and Drama" industry heavily promotes British-oriented pronunciation norms, positioning RP as the ideal pedagogical model for clarity, formality, and professional success.
What is the significance of the "we-speak-British-English" mentality identified in the study?
It reflects a common ideological stance among upper and middle-class Sri Lankans who refuse to acknowledge distinct local variations, choosing instead to view their speech as a slight variation of Standard British English.
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- Rusiru Chitrasena (Author), 2014, The (old) emperor’s new clothes. Recognizing the sociolinguistic "prestige" of Received Pronunciation in contemporary Sri Lankan society, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/281006
