What advantages' disadvantages might there be in having such linguistic repertoires in the context of globalization?

Authors Avatar

Socialinguistics suggest that in any community there are distinguishable varieties available and these are used in different social contexts. What advantages’ disadvantages might there be in having such linguistic repertoires in the context of globalization?

The term ‘variety’ refers to any set of linguistic forms which patterns according to social factors i.e. language in context. It can be used under specific social circumstances (Holmes, 2001, p. 6). The range of varieties from which people select in monolingual communities takes the form of different styles and dialects. In a bilingual or multilingual community e.g. Singapore, it takes also the form of different languages, depending on the participants, setting, topic and function. A speaker may use different varieties for different domains such as at home, towards friends, in church, or at work. In an informal setting, one usually uses the low variety than the standard or high variety. E.g. in a class gathering, a Singaporean usually speaks CSE (Colloquial Singapore English) instead of SSE (Singapore Standard English), which is normally spoken in a formal setting. Thus, no one uses the high variety in daily conversations (Holmes, 2001, p.27). As globalization takes place, there are inevitable worries that the languages and cultures of minority groups may be displaced by more dominant languages and their cultures. Yet on the other hand, globalization sets a new purpose for others.

According to Janet Holmes, a person’s linguistic repertoire in Malaysia may include two varieties of English, two different dialects of Chinese and different styles within these, as well as standard of Bahasa Malay and a colloquial variety known as Bazaar Malay (Holmes, 2001, p. 7).

On the other hand, in Singapore, there are two high varieties and number of low varieties. Both Mandarin and SSE are considered high varieties alongside different low varieties. Mother tongue languages, such as Mandarin and Tamil, function as high varieties in relation to at least two low varieties, e.g. Hokkien and Cantonese. CSE is a low variety alongside the more formal SSE. E.g. Meilin may use CSE to her friends since it is the code commonly used by young people and they feel positive about since it is also used in school. On the other hand, she uses Cantonese to the food vendor since she wants to emphasize on their common ethnicity.

Join now!

Globalization embraces both economic and cultural spheres, and that expresses the increasing interdependence of geographically diverse countries (Goodman and Graddol, 1996, p. 206). The use of English evokes connotations associated with its status as an international language in the domains of trade, travel, science, education, technology and even advertising. For example, in Japan, English is used in television commercials not because it is widely understood by her people, but because of its association with ideas of modernity and social status. In Singapore, being able to speak and write English is necessary both for job employment and success. It is ...

This is a preview of the whole essay