Diese in englischer Sprache abgefasste Arbeit befasst sich auf der Grundlage einer vom Verfasser selbst vorgenommenen kleinen empirischen Erhebung mit den Einstellungen von Glasgowern der Mittelschicht gegenüber Glasgow speech als einer Variante des Englischen.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
1.1. Scotland - A Voice Reclaimed ?
1.2. Glasgow - From Clydeside to the Bright Side
2. Macaulay’s Glasgow Survey
2.1. The Purpose of Macaulay’s Study
2.2. Macaulay’s Informants and Methods
2.3. Attitudes Towards Glasgow Speech
3. Investigating Attitudes Towards Glasgow Speech in 2000
3.1. Informants and Questionnaire
3.2. A Few Critical Comments
3.3. Attitudes Towards Glasgow Speech
4. Summary and Outlook
Research Objectives and Themes
This essay explores how recent socio-political transformations and shifts in Scottish identity have influenced people's attitudes toward their own speech, specifically focusing on the Glasgow accent in the year 2000 compared to previous studies.
- Evolution of Scottish identity and language perception
- Re-evaluation of Glaswegian speech and stigmatization
- Impact of socio-economic status on language prestige
- Correlation between regional accents and professional opportunities
- Role of educational policies in shaping linguistic attitudes
Excerpt from the Book
1.1. Scotland - a Voice Reclaimed ?
“Often over the years home rule had seemed like that mythical Highland village [Brigadoon] - unrealistic, out of reach, a figment of wistful imagining,“ writes Kenny Farquharson, the Scottish political editor, in The Sunday Times of May 9th 1999 about the Scottish efforts to gain devolution. Confidently he goes on: “Not now. Not today. In the bracing air of Friday morning there was no myth: Scotland’s parliament was being born“ (Farquharson, 1999: I). How supportive this change in Great Britain’s administrative structure must have been to the self-esteem of the Scots cannot be fully understood yet. For 300 years Scotland had been without an autonomous administration, which it had lost to England with the Act of Union in 1707. Consequently, England provided the developing British Empire with its values and norms not only in politics, but also in language matters. Old Scots and its varieties, as the language of the Scottish nation - along with Gaelic in the Highlands-, went through a long process of anglicisation and was transformed into what is called today Scottish Standard English or the less anglicised Broad Scots. Baugh summarises the development when he says (Baugh, 1976: 383):
(...)[W]hen by the Act of Union in 1707 Scotland was formally united to England, English was plainly felt to be standard, and Scots became definitely a dialect. (...) English is taught in the schools, and cultivation of English has, rightly or wrongly, been taken as the first test of culture. The ambitious have avoided the native dialect as a mark of lowly birth, and those who have a patriotic or sentimental regard for this fine old speech are apprehensive of its ultimate extinction.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: This chapter provides the historical context of Scotland's path toward devolution and the subsequent long-term process of language anglicization that marginalized traditional Scottish speech varieties.
2. Macaulay’s Glasgow Survey: This section reviews R.K.S. Macaulay’s 1973 survey, detailing his methodology, his focus on linguistic variables, and his findings regarding the social stigmatization of the Glasgow accent.
3. Investigating Attitudes Towards Glasgow Speech in 2000: The author presents a new small-scale study conducted in 2000, analyzing contemporary attitudes among a sample of Glasgow residents and employers regarding the prestige and use of the local accent.
4. Summary and Outlook: This final chapter synthesizes the research findings, confirming that the Glasgow accent remains stigmatized, and suggests that while some tolerance is growing, linguistic insecurity remains a challenge.
Keywords
Glasgow, Scotland, Sociolinguistics, Language Attitudes, Scottish Standard English, Broad Scots, Language Standardization, Linguistic Insecurity, Identity, Social Class, Accent Stigmatization, Devolution, Employment, Phonology, Education.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this research paper?
The paper examines the attitudes of native Glasgow speakers toward their own local accent and evaluates how these perceptions have evolved in light of recent political and social changes in Scotland.
Which key linguistic topics are addressed?
Key topics include language standardization, the social stigma associated with "Broad Scots" and "lower working-class" accents, and the impact of language on social and professional mobility.
What is the main research question?
The study seeks to determine to what extent the recent transformations in Scotland’s political and social landscape have influenced the attitudes Glaswegians hold toward their own regional speech variety.
What methodology does the author utilize?
The author conducts a small-scale, qualitative survey based on semi-structured interviews with ten adults, mirroring aspects of Macaulay’s earlier 1973 study to facilitate comparison.
What aspects of the Glasgow accent are analyzed in the main body?
The main body analyzes whether residents consider Glaswegian a distinct accent, their opinions on "slang" and "lazy" speech, and how these views correlate with professional decisions in hiring.
Which terms best characterize this work?
The work is characterized by terms like sociolinguistics, linguistic insecurity, language attitudes, and the tension between traditional regional dialects and standardized English.
How does the 2000 study compare to Macaulay's 1973 findings?
The author observes that while accent tolerance has slightly increased since 1973, negative attitudes toward lower working-class speech, often associated with a perceived lack of education or intelligence, persist.
What conclusion does the author reach regarding the "lower working-class" accent?
The author concludes that this specific variety remains significantly stigmatized, which negatively impacts opportunities for upward social mobility and reinforces linguistic insecurity among its speakers.
- Arbeit zitieren
- David Ronneburg (Autor:in), 2000, Attitudes towards Glasgow speech, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/45508
