This paper will discuss the phonetic, phonological and morphophonological features of Indian English and compare them to the speech of the actor Kunal Nayyar in episode four of season three of The Big Bang Theory, called “The Pirate Solution”. I will focus on the standard variety, as defining all the regional variations would exceed the purpose of this paper. Firstly, I will describe the realization of the consonants, monophthongs and diphthongs by IndE speakers examined in contrast to Native English, abbreviated NE. Secondly, morphophonological and prosodic differences will be discussed. The following chapter analyzes the similarities and the dissimilarities between the specified characteristics and the language produced by Nayyar. Finally, I conclude that Nayyar shares many features of standard Indian English, though, he often violates rules. So, his speech becomes similar to NE. Nevertheless, it is still an accurate example of standard IndE.
The American sitcom The Big Bang Theory has been one of the most popular television shows over the last couple of years. The show is set in Pasadena, California, and it portrays the lives of four scientists, who struggle with the challenges of everyday life, and their good-looking neighbor Penny. One of them is the Indian astrophysicist Rajesh Koothrappali played by the native Indian actor Kunal Nayyar. Typical for him is his authentically sounding Indian English, short IndE. Spoken by 125 million people as a second language, according to the 2001 Census of India figures, IndE represents a fairly new variety of English. Even though, it is only the native language of 200 thousand, it is widely used in India. Intranational communication via books, newspapers, reports, television shows is held in this language. Furthermore, IndE is the main medium of science and technology. This variety is also present in the media of the United States or Great Britain, e.g., in the sitcom The Big Bang Theory. However, there are few studies concerning the representation of IndE in the Western media.
Table of Contents
1 Transcription
2 Introduction
3 Phonological features of Indian English
3.1 The consonants of IndE
3.2 The Monophthongs and Diphthongs of IndE
3.3 Specific phonological and morphophonological features of IndE
3.4 Prosodic features of IndE
3.5 Other aspects of connected speech
4 Analysis of IndE in The Big Bang Theory
4.1 Consonants
4.2 Vowels and Diphthongs
4.3 Specific phonological and morphophonological features
4.4 Prosodic features
5 Conclusion
Objectives & Key Topics
This paper explores the linguistic representation of Indian English (IndE) within the American sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" by analyzing the speech patterns of the character Rajesh Koothrappali in a specific episode to determine the authenticity of his accent compared to standardized features of the variety.
- Phonetic and phonological characteristics of Indian English.
- Analysis of consonants, vowels, and diphthongs in television media.
- Evaluation of prosodic features including stress and intonation.
- Comparison between theoretical standard IndE and the performance of actor Kunal Nayyar.
Excerpt from the Book
3.1.3 Fricatives
The fricatives /s, z, ʃ, ʒ, θ, ð, f, v, h/ are articulated with a continuous airstream which creates friction by passing through a narrow opening (Bieswanger & Becker, 2010). The inter-dental fricatives /θ/ and /ð/ are often substituted with the Indian dental plosives /t̪, t̪h, d̪/. In order to articulate these consonants the tongue touches the back of the teeth before the air is suddenly released. As they exist in most Indian languages, those sounds are familiar to Indian speakers and easier to produce than the inter-dental fricatives (Sailaja, 2009). According to Sailaja (2009), /θ/ is sometimes articulated, whereas /ð/ is almost non-existent. Gargesh (2008) describes the substitution of these sounds differently than Sailaja. He claims that the voiceless fricative is replaced by [t̪ʰ] and the voiced by [d̪]- in words like thin [t̪ʰɪn] and then [d̪en]. Furthermore, Gargesh (2008) describes the distinct substitution of / θ/ with /t/ in South India.
In conclusion, these consonants are fairly challenging to produce for native Indian speakers and as a result they are generally replaced with various sounds. /ʃ/ and /ʒ/ also vary in articulation. Despite some regional variations, the voiceless /ʃ/ is generally equivalent to the fricative in NE. In contradiction, the voiced fricative /ʒ/ usually surfaces differently. Possible substitutions are /j/, /z/ or /dʒ/ as in [plaɪjər], [ple:zər] or [ple:dʒər] for pleasure (Gargesh, 2008). In Standard IndE, the labio-dental phoneme /f/ is realized the same way as in NE, except for speakers with a Gujarati or Marathi language background. They are likely to replace /f/ with [pʰ] – as in fish [pʰɪʃ] (Sailaja, 2009). The same phenomenon occurs with /v/ which is uttered as [bʰ] in Bengal or Orissa (Gargesh, 2008). Additionally, there is a tendency amongst non-standard varieties for /v/ and /w/ to merge into one sound – the labio-dental approximant /ʋ/ (Pandey, 2015).
Summary of Chapters
1 Transcription: Provides a phonetic transcription sample in Received Pronunciation (RP) as a linguistic baseline.
2 Introduction: Outlines the socio-linguistic context of Indian English and establishes the scope of the analysis regarding the sitcom The Big Bang Theory.
3 Phonological features of Indian English: Systematically details the phonetic, phonological, morphophonological, and prosodic rules defining Indian English.
4 Analysis of IndE in The Big Bang Theory: Compares the actor’s speech in a specific episode against the theoretical phonological standards established in chapter 3.
5 Conclusion: Summarizes findings, noting that while some features deviate, the representation of Indian English in the sitcom remains authentic.
Keywords
Indian English, Phonology, The Big Bang Theory, Kunal Nayyar, Consonants, Vowels, Prosody, Word stress, Morphophonology, Linguistic variation, Sitcom, Accent analysis, Standard variety, Intonation, Speech rhythm.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary subject of this research paper?
The paper focuses on the phonetic and phonological representation of Indian English (IndE) as portrayed by the character Rajesh Koothrappali in the television show The Big Bang Theory.
Which linguistic components are central to this study?
The central fields of study are phonetics and phonology, specifically examining consonants, vowels, diphthongs, prosody, and morphophonological traits.
What is the main objective or research question?
The main objective is to compare the actual speech performance of actor Kunal Nayyar in a specific episode against the established linguistic standards of Indian English to assess its authenticity.
Which scientific methodology is applied?
The author uses a comparative analysis method, evaluating specific speech samples from the sitcom episode against established theoretical frameworks regarding IndE provided by linguists like Gargesh and Sailaja.
What topics are discussed in the main body?
The main body covers the theoretical foundation of Indian English phonology, including articulation of stops, nasals, and fricatives, followed by an empirical analysis of the actor's performance in the episode "The Pirate Solution".
Which keywords characterize this work?
The study is characterized by terms such as Indian English, phonological features, IndE, prosody, word stress, and media representation.
Why did the author specifically choose the episode "The Pirate Solution"?
The episode was chosen because the character Rajesh Koothrappali plays a major role with significant dialogue, providing ample material for a detailed phonetic analysis.
Does the author find the actor's accent to be perfectly accurate?
Not entirely; the author notes that while the performance is authentic, the actor often violates standard IndE rules, resulting in speech that is somewhat closer to Native English than a typical IndE speaker.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Julia Holleber (Autor:in), 2016, The Representation of Indian English in the Television Show "The Big Bang Theory", München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/889174
