As it was written in the former chapter, African American slang developed with the African American culture. Slang could be treated as one of the most characteristic features of the culture of African American people. At the beginning, slang was a slaverya slavery thing. However, nowadays, it is characteristic feature of all the people who belong to the Black nation, especially the hip- hop subculture. A lot of people try to define the notion of slang and there are some of definitions that are presented below. According to the Dictionary of English language and culture (Summers D., 1992), slang could be determined as a language that is informal. It is a group of words, phrases and so on. Their denotations and meanings are new and they are …show more content…
It says that slang is the kind of language that is typical for the peculiar group of people. In the dictionary it is also treated as a some kind of jargon and is determined as a set of vocabulary that is prepared for a group. The explanation of the term is adapted briefly, but in understandable way. Another definition is included in Cambridge International Dictionary of English (Aguilar A., et al., 2000). It is very similar to the first definition and it tells that a slang is a kind of language that is not formal. It contains vocabulary and interpretations that are not clear for people who are not users of the slang. Moreover, such phrases might appear in a particular group for a very brief time. Such language is used among people rather in speaking than in written language. The dictionary also presents the term slanging match, which means that somebody uses very rude and uncontrolled kind of language. In the Merriam- Webster Dictionary (www.merriam-webster.com) , it can be found that slang again is treated as a language that is characteristic for a peculiar group and jargon and argot also belong to the slang. The dictionary characterized it as an informal vocabulary that is not standard for common speakers that are prepared in an extravagant way of …show more content…
It claims that slang is a cant characteristic for a particular group in a given environment. It comes from criminal environments. The language is used in peculiar cultures in order to hide the purpose of the conversation by using the vocabulary that is widely difficult or impossible to understand. According to that dictionary, slang is frequently used among youth. In spite of appearances, the slang used by the young is much more rude than slang used among prisoners. The dictionary claims that children try to show their false
Diction is the author’s word choice. The magazine, “Feeding Frenzy”, from Sports Illustrated by Richard Hoffer shows many types of diction. The magazine is about Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield’s boxing match in 1997. The three types of diction that stood out to me was violent, circus, and sarcastic. The author, Richard Hoffer, uses these three types of diction to show how violent, circus like, and how sarcastic the fight was to the people who saw it.
Black Vernacular is “any of the nonstandard varieties of English spoken by African Americans. It is also called Black English, Black English vernacular.” In the “Black Vernacular” article, it states that “African- American dialects tend to drop the [t] from words like rest and soft. They likewise tend to drop the [r] in words like bird, four, door, and father.” In the novel, Janie said, “Ah wants things sweet wid mah marriage lak when you sit under a pear tree” (24).
The constant changing of technology and social norms makes difficult for different generations to understand one another and fully relate to each other. Diction and slang change as years pass and what is socially acceptable may have been prohibited in the previous generations.
The language has been used in writing before and many books use this type of language so they can build a connection to the real world. It is vital for teens especially in 8th grade and above to learn how important it is to stray away from these potentially hurtful words and how this type of language can set a certain tone to a
diatribe, is popular in schools country-wide. In its way, this is a tour de force of black English and underworld slang, as
In the essay if Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What is? by James Baldwin and Mother Tongue by Amy Tan both shows idea of uses of slang and language in different context. In the essay if Black English Isn’t a Language, Then Tell Me, What is? Baldwin states that how language has changed and evolved overtime, Baldwin describes how black English were used as white English, in civil rights movement where blacks were treated as slaves and the used slang language to communicate so that the whites won’t understand. This slang was taken from black language and now everyone uses to make the communication short. In the essay Mother Tongue Tan explains that how language could affect people from different culture. Tan states that how Asian students in America struggle in English. Tan also states that her mother is smart but she couldn’t communicate in English. Tan thinks that’s a big disadvantage for her mother and people coming from different countries cannot show their talent because of their weakness in communication.
Since the 1930’s until now, studies show that about 64% of kids and teens have been using slang terms in their school work. It is amazing what some of them are. Slang is used all of the time by almost all people and has changed a lot over the past decades. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses a child’s perspective to show how slang has changed from the 1930’s until today.
(Carlin, 1977) The introduction to Carlin's monologue listed those words and repeated them in a variety of colloquialisms or (dialect): I was thinking about the curse words and the swear words, the cuss words and the words that you can't say, that you're not supposed to say all the time. I was thinking one night about the words you couldn't say in the public, ah, airwaves, um, the ones you definitely wouldn't say, ever. Bastard you can say, and hell and damn so I have to figure out which ones you couldn't and ever
Our world is full of different cultures and languages. Many of these different languages are mainly used in schools. Most of the time none english speaking students have a hard time transitioning between english and their native language. This could be a reason why school boards have provided programs like ESL, to help students adapt and learn american standard english. Recently one of the main languages that have been giving students problem to succeed in their education is African American Vernacular English (AAVE). Recent studies have been conducted to bring AAVE in schools which will result in higher test score, however people are disagreeing with the idea because they don't want their children to learn “slags”, but AAVE is not a slang, just like standard english AAVE is a language.
William Lutz in “the world of doublespeak” states that jargon is the specialized language of a trade, profession, or similar group, such as that used by doctors, lawyers, engineers, or educators” (391). Also to someone not associated with a specific group and their language jargon will not make sense. It is often used by individuals who wish to sound more intelligent or important. As mentioned in “the world of doublespeak” by Lutz that “jargon as doublespeak often makes the simple sound complex” (391). For example, when the news says intruders instead of bad people or execution instead of killing or when lawyers use the term “involuntary conversion” of property when discussing the loss or destruction of property that is considered using jargon. Lutz finds mainly doctors, lawyers and high educators that are responsible for the spread of jargon
Slang is the key reason words take on new meaning. A teenage girl may say a guy is hot! This does not mean he is sweating, it means he is good looking. This is an example of slang. People familiar with slang will understand this meaning, while those unfamiliar will not. As our culture changes so does our slang and words take on new meanings. Let’s take a closer look at the word burn. Some of the definitions may surprise you.
African American Slang has had many other names: Ebonics, Jive, Black English, and more. The Oxford English Dictionary defines slang (in reference to language) in three different ways: 1) the special vocabulary used by any set of persons of a low or disreputable character; language of a low and vulgar type 2) the special vocabulary or phraseology of a particular calling or profession; the cant or jargon of a certain class or period 3) language of a highly colloquial type, considered as below the level of standard educated speech, and consisting either of new words or of current words employed in some special sense. Whatever one’s perspective on slang, it is a natural and inevitable part of language. In this paper I will discuss examples of current slang being used that some people may not understand.
Black culture in our society has come to the point where it is allied with pop culture. The most popular music genres, slang terms, to dance forms it all comes from black culture. Hip hop emerged from black culture, becoming the soul of it that is seen in the media. Hip hop helped the black community by creating new ways of expressing themselves, from breakdance, graffiti, rap and other music, to slang. This culture was rooted in their tradition and created from something new. Hip hop created a new form of music that required the use of turn tables, ‘cuts’, loops, rhythm, rhyme, stories, and deep-rooted emotions, but also incorporated black oral forms of storytelling using communal authors.
The movie industry has its own set of unique jargon that both the actors, directors, and crew members need to learn in order to understand the trade and make the production run smoothly. Everyone on the set has a specific role to play, whether it be the lead actor to someone holding the boom during filming, and each group has developed their own language in order to make their lives easier. This lingo originally established in Hollywood allowed for cast and crew to assign each other different tasks in preparation for the next stage of production, while not mixing up any of main scene for filming at hand. The language itself has remained predominantly inside of the movie industry, but a few terms have managed to become infused into mainstream
Not only is hip-hop a way of expressing ones feelings or views, but is a part of the urban culture and can be used as a communication tool. Slang originally came from hip-hop music and has become a very popular use in today’s society, especially the urban parts.