English as a global language - Диссертация

Contents Introduction 1. Why a global language 1.1. What is a global language? 1.2. What makes a global language 1.3. Why do we need a global language? 1.4. What are the dangers of a global language? 1.5. Could anything stop a global language? 1.6. A critical era? 2. Why English? The historical context 2.1. Origins 2.2. America 2.3. Canada 2.4. The Caribbean 2.5. Australia and New Zealan 2.6. South Africa 2.7. South Asia 2.8. Former colonial Africa 2.9. South-east Asia and the South Pacific 2.10. A world view 3. The future of global English 3.1. The rejection of English 3.2. Contrasting attitudes: the US situation 3.3. New Englishes 3.4. The linguistic character of new Englishes 3.4.1. Grammar 3.4.2. Vocabulary 3.5. The future of English as a world language 3.6. An English family of languages? Conclusion References Introduction In my thesis I present a lively and factual account of the rise of English as a global language and explore the whys and wherefores of the history, current status and future potential of English as the international language of communication. English has been lauded as the most successful language ever, with 1,500 million speakers worldwide; but my thesis avoids taking sides and tells the story in a measured but engaging way, backed by facts and figures. This work contains extra sections (on subjects including the linguistic features of New Englishes, the future of English as a world language, and the possibility of an English family of languages), footnotes and a full bibliography. There are updates throughout. This is a work for anyone of any nationality concerned with English: teachers, students, language professionals, politicians, general readers and anyone with a love of the language. 1. Why a global language? English is the global language. A headline of this kind must have appeared in a thousand newspapers and magazines in recent years. English Rules is an actual example, presenting to the world an uncomplicated scenario suggesting the universality of the languages spread and the likelihood of its continuation. A statement prominently displayed in the body of the associated article, memorable chiefly for its alliterative ingenuity, reinforces the initial impression: The British Empire may be in full retreat with the handover of Hong Kong. But from Bengal to Belize and Las Vegas to Lahore, the language of the sceptred isle is rapidly becoming the first global lingua franca. Millennial retrospectives and prognostications continued in the same vein, with several major newspapers and magazines finding in the subject ofthe English language an apt symbol for the themes of globalization, diversification, progress and identity addressed in their special editions. Television programmes and series, too, addressed the issue, and achieved world-wide audiences. Certainly, by the turn of the century, the topic must have made contact with millions of popular intuitions at a level which had simply not existed a decade before. These are the kinds of statement which seem so obvious that most people would give them hardly a second thought. Of course English is a global language, they would say. You hear it on television spoken by politicians from all over the world. Wherever you travel, you see English signs and advertisements. Whenever you enter a hotel or restaurant in a foreign city, they will under-stand English, and there will be an English menu. Indeed, if there is anything to wonder about at all, they might add, it is why such headlines should still be newsworthy. But English is news. The language continues to make news daily in many countries. And the headline isnt stating the obvious. For what does it mean, exactly? Is it saying that everyone in the world speaks English? This is certainly not true, as we shall see. Is it saying, then, that every country in the world recognizes English as an official language? This is not true either. So what does it mean to say that a language is a global language? Why is English the language which is usually cited in this connection? How did the situation arise? And could it change? Or is it the case that, once a language becomes a global language, it is there for ever? These are fascinating questions to explore, whether your first language is English or not. If English is your mother tongue, you may have mixed feelings about the way English is spreading around the world. You may feel pride, that your language is the one which has been so successful; but your pride may be tinged with concern, when you realize that people in other countries may not want to use the language in the same way that you do, and are changing it to suit themselves. We are all sensitive to the way other people use (it is often said, abuse) our language. India); some make no special mention of it (e.g. Britain). Without a strong power-base, ofwhatever kind, no language can make progress as an international medium of communication. Language has no independent existence, liv-ing i