Language And Social Class Research Paper

Surname 1

Name

Professor

Course

Date

Language and Social Class

Introduction

The world in which we live has been driven by hierarchy for a long time. The hierarchy

has been driven by such factors as economic status and upbringing, William Labov carried out a

study on the change and variation in language which heavily relied on the class concept as a critical

factor in actuating change in language. Some of the factors that define class are family background,

economic status, and upbringing. The relationship that exists between social class and language

has been an issue of concern in sociolinguistics and applied linguistics. Varieties of language exist

which are called social class dialects. The type of vocabulary that people use can give us a hint of

their class in the society. There are also different in the accents of people from different social

classes. As such, internal differentiation in human societies can be reflected in the language that

these people use. People of different classes in the society use linguistic varieties that differ. This

paper will discuss the way language is used among people of different social classes and the effects

that language has on the society.

Surname 2

Literature Review

I. Different Forms of Spoken Language

Bernstein states that particular forms of spoken language are associated with the

organization of social groups. Besides dialect, there are linguistic differences that exist in the

society, and it is possible to tell one’s social class by their form of speech. Bernstein states that

where there is a huge gap between the socioeconomic levels of the people, the difference is more

pronounced. This difference in language between the different classes in the society results from

the different speech modes found within the lower working class and the middle-class. The reason

for the arising of the two different language use forms is the different emphasis that is placed on

language potential in the different social classes. Upon the placement of this emphasis, the

resulting language use form orients the speaker to different relationships to people and objects,

regardless of one’s level of intelligence. The only role that is played by intelligence here is to

enable the speaker successfully exploit the possibilities that are symbolized by the language use

forms that are socially determined (Bernstein 271). The typical speech mode of the people of the

middle class is where speech is an object of perceptual activity and there is a sort of theoretical

attitude towards the sentence organization structural possibilities. This mode of speech makes it

possible to elaborate subjective intend. For members of the lower working class, they are limited

to a certain form of the use of language which allows for many possibilities but provides a form

of speech that discourages the elaboration of subjective intend by the speaker, progressively

orienting the user to concepts that are not abstract but descriptive (Bernstein 271).

Surname 3

II. How Social Class Influences Language

a. Attitudes

Weinreich, in his explanation the sociocultural and psychological factors concerning

language contact, states that attitude is a crucial extra-linguistic factor. Every speaker has their

own interest in a language, and such an attitude may get a stereotype effect. Another factor that is

shown to influence language is the attitude of a speaker towards a give culture (Weinreich 2-3).

There are groups of people that are not proud to have the regional accents of the variety of the

language that they speak. Other groups treasure their native accent because they feel it is very

important in helping them to preserve their identity. Such attitudes are expressed through the way

one behaves (Language Attitudes, 2014). Those who hold on to their local accents do not seek to

abolish it even when they come under formal situations. Slangs, which are inappropriate for use in

language that is formal, may be considered by the young a code that asserts their loyalty to the

community in the way they communicate (Spolsky, 1998). As such, their attitude to use this form

of language differs from that of other people in the society.

b. Education

Education is one of the major factors that leads to variations in the kind of language

different groups of people in the society speak. Variations in education bring about variations in

the language that people speak. People of the high class in the society send their children to good

school where they get quality education and are able to see the differences between standard

accents. It is in the schools that these children get the opportunity to practice standard language,

which they continue to sustain. The people of the lower classes in the society will send their

children to public schools where it is likely they will not get a chance to receive a standard accent.

Surname 4

However, these children will be educated and they will have a lot of vocabulary that they have

learnt from school. Poor children of the working class many not consider getting an education

because they have to support their families by generating some income. They, therefore, get into

work instead of going for a formal education. Parents who earn a little income do not worry about

whether their children get educated or not. They are ignorant of the availability of educational

scholarships and are hesitant to enroll their children in any institutions that offer education because

they lack money (Lott 652). Therefore, the social class of the parent determines where their

children go to school. In turn, the educational environment of the children is a major determining

factor in their use of language.

c. Consciousness

The terminology that Labov (1972) uses reflect the theory that stylistic variation results

from different degrees of attention to speech. He argued his speakers gained more awareness of

the way they spoke as the activities of the interview became more formal. In a casual style, people

tend to be less attentive to the way they speak. However, if they are in a formal situation, they pay

more attention to their speech (Coupland 36). There are many circumstances under which language

awareness among the different classes in the society differ. There are linguistic norms that are

specific for particular social situations. For instance, upper-class people take dialects or language

that is not standard in formal situations to be an insult. Therefore, in such situations, the language

consciousness of these people defines what sort of language they consider to be appropriate. On

this issue, Spolsky found out that there are three factors in communication which are the topic,

place, and the relationship between the people who are conversing. The choice of language that

one chooses in particular discourses reflect the relationship between him and the person being

addressed. If the situation is formal, people will be more conscious to use the standard or

Surname 5

prestigious variety (Spolsky 34). As such, the middle-class people tend to use the standard

language more as they are more proximal to the upper-class people and tend to be like them in a

number if things. This is why in their conversations, they prefer the standard language. Fishman

(19720 advances the inter-group multilingualism theory which characterizes language preferences

among people of different social classes. Shifts in the speech of a person take place less commonly

and their language variety is likely not to change, especially when talking to the people of his

community. This is what is called intra-group communication. In contrast when they are talking

to people from a different group other than their own, they shift from the regular variety and use

specific registers so that their conversations can flow more smoothly. This is inter-group

communication (Spolsky 244). The people of the upper class or the middle class in the society are

more associated with this language consciousness. The people from the lower class lack this sense

of social norms and are less concerned and unconscious about this issue. Being language conscious

also gives one a sense of language that is appropriate under the right circumstances. Many

languages have some specific words that are considered profane. It is the language consciousness

that provokes the people to only use such words under specific situations.

d. Profession

A person who speaks like they are educated has a higher chance of getting a job that is

more prestigious and well-paying. The power to hold a decent job is again dominated by language

varieties that are socially classified. The city areas are known to provide jobs that are better.

Therefore, the people from the other regions migrate and reside in the cities. As such, it is very

common to find speech varieties in the city, and this is a good proof of the fact that language

determines the social status of a person. It is in the city that the people who speak the standard

language are given the best jobs that are prestigious and well-paying. This causes the people who

Surname 6

move to the cities to avoid their regional languages and strive to use the standard dialects. At times,

the frequent use of the standard language makes them permanent users of the standard variety of

the language. This causes their subsequent generations to adopt this language. In contrast, the

people of the high class derive no advantages in switching or developing their languages. So that

their livelihoods can be better, the people from the rural areas and who lack formal education, one

they come into the city, involve themselves with the working sectors where less importance is

placed on formal languages. Spolsky argues that people tend to speak like the people with whom

they deal more frequently. Because of the differences in social classes, some people get involved

in standard jobs and get an opportunity to get rid of their dialect accents. There are also people

who speak the same language even after they have changed their place of residence.

e. Convergence and divergence

Under the language accommodation theory, two of the most important processes are

convergence and divergence. People who come from different social background use different

language varieties. However, from their conversations, Spolsky argues that it can be seen that the

percentage of their use of certain specific features tends to converge. In contrast, divergence takes

place when people decide to move their modes of language use away from the other parties. People

from different parts come to the city to get an education or to search for jobs. It is possible to find

many people that still hold on to the regional accents of where they come from although they have

stayed in the city for a long time. This is because of the divergent attitudes of these people. Soon,

people may get accustomed to the speech tendencies of those they interact with in the city. The

reason several dialects exist in one area is the divergent attitude of people.

Surname 7

f. Crossover effects and Linguistic Insecurity

Holmes, Janet, and Wilson (210) state that in the Great Britain and in the United States,

people who are subordinate in the society think they do not speak well. Linguistic insecurity is a

common fact which causes people to produce a variant of language that is prestigious so they can

present themselves in a desirable manner. Language insecurity is more common in people of the

middle class who are educated. People of the lower middle class tend to use the language of the

next higher class to theirs. This is called the cross-over effect (Meyerhoff 2006). They want to feel,

not like who they really are, but who they want to become. As a consequence, they sometimes use

vocabularies that are better than those used by the people immediately above them in the social

ladder. People in a particular social class may use a more standard language than other people in

the same class because they aspire to be in a higher class in the society. This is called class

aspiration. Accroding to Coupland (2007), a uniform and regular shift to a prestigious language in

speech that is careful is evidence that linguistics do change in progress. Cross-over effect may also

occur at times because of social mobility. The social hierarchy of people changes when they get a

better position. These people tend to fix the language they use by balancing it with their new

position.

Conclusion

One’s class in the society is a major determining factors of the language that they use.

People from different classes are likely to use different forms of the same language. The language

that is considered to be right for the people of the lower class may seem to be insults for people of

the higher class. The varieties of language that exist between the people of different classes in the

society are called social class dialects. As such, by use of these dialects, the type of vocabulary

Surname 8

that the member of a society uses can be used to determine tow which social class they belong.

The people of different classes in the society also tend to have different accents of the same

language. Therefore, the language that people use is a reflection of internal differentiation in

human societies. The idea of divergence and convergence shows that people from different areas

can adopt and use the same language or retain their original accents. It has also been shown that

the people that make use of the standard dialect are more likely to land decent jobs than people

who use slang and language that is considered inappropriate in a formal setting.

Works Cited

Bernstein, Basil. "Language and social class." The British journal of sociology 11.3 (1960): 271-

276.

Coupland, Nikolas. Style: Language variation and identity. Cambridge University Press, 2007.

Holmes, Janet, and Nick Wilson. An introduction to sociolinguistics. Routledge, 2017.

Language Attitides. Retrieved from m http://www.sil.org/languageassessment/language-attitudes.

Web May 3 2018.

Lott, Bernice. "The social psychology of class and classism." American Psychologist 67.8 (2012):

650.

Spolsky, Bernard. Sociolinguistics. Vol. 1. Oxford University Press, 1998.

Weinreich, Uriel. Languages in contact: Findings and problems. No. 1. Walter de Gruyter, 1979.

Place new order. It's free, fast and safe

Paper type

Deadline

Page count

550 words

Total price: $ 15.00

Our customers say

Jeff Curtis

USA, Student

"I'm fully satisfied with the essay I've just received. When I read it, I felt like it was exactly what I wanted to say, but couldn’t find the necessary words. Thank you!"

Ian McGregor

UK, Student

"I don’t know what I would do without your assistance! With your help, I met my deadline just in time and the work was very professional. I will be back in several days with another assignment!"

Shannon Williams

Canada, Student

"It was the perfect experience! I enjoyed working with my writer, he delivered my work on time and followed all the guidelines about the referencing and contents."

Language and Social Class Research Paper

Place new order. It's free, fast and safe

Our customers say

Jeff Curtis

Ian McGregor

Shannon Williams