13.816, Media: Language Death: Wall Street Journal

[LINGUIST List]

LINGUIST List:  Vol-13-816. Mon Mar 25 2002. ISSN: 1068-4875.

Subject: 13.816, Media: Language Death: Wall Street Journal

Moderators: Anthony Aristar, Wayne State U.<aristar at linguistlist.org>
            Helen Dry, Eastern Michigan U. <hdry at linguistlist.org>
            Andrew Carnie, U. of Arizona <carnie at linguistlist.org>

Reviews (reviews at linguistlist.org):
	Simin Karimi, U. of Arizona
	Terence Langendoen, U. of Arizona

Editors (linguist at linguistlist.org):
	Karen Milligan, WSU 		Naomi Ogasawara, EMU
	James Yuells, EMU		Marie Klopfenstein, WSU
	Michael Appleby, EMU		Heather Taylor-Loring, EMU
	Ljuba Veselinova, Stockholm U.	Richard John Harvey, EMU
	Dina Kapetangianni, EMU		Renee Galvis, WSU
	Karolina Owczarzak, EMU

Software: John Remmers, E. Michigan U. <remmers at emunix.emich.edu>
          Gayathri Sriram, E. Michigan U. <gayatri at linguistlist.org>

Home Page:  http://linguistlist.org/

The LINGUIST List is funded by Eastern Michigan University, Wayne
State University, and donations from subscribers and publishers.



Editor for this issue: Karen Milligan <karen at linguistlist.org>

=================================Directory=================================

1)
Date:  Mon, 25 Mar 2002 14:44:05 -0500
From:  Doug Whalen <whalen at alvin.haskins.yale.edu>
Subject:  Wall Street Journal editorial/Language Death

-------------------------------- Message 1 -------------------------------

Date:  Mon, 25 Mar 2002 14:44:05 -0500
From:  Doug Whalen <whalen at alvin.haskins.yale.edu>
Subject:  Wall Street Journal editorial/Language Death

   On Friday, March 8, 2002, page W13, the Wall Street Journal
published an editorial by John J. Miller entitled: "How do you say
'extinct'?: Languages die, the United Nations is upset about this."
Miller's basic point is that promoting minority languages entails a
"careless embrace of multiculturalism" that "gives short shrift to
the interests and choices of people in tiny language groups."  Miller
makes many mistakes, including confusing language change with
language death and, by extension, the death of entire language
families with language change.  He is dismissive of native culture,
preferring the "reality" --his word-- "that most people would rather
eat a Big Mac than a fistful of beetle larvae."  He says that the
reason "some languages are disappearing is precisely that their
native speakers don't regard them as quite so precious" as linguists
make them out to be.  He shows no recognition of the many factors
ranged against minority languages, and even against a "decision"
about abandoning a language.
   I have written a response, but it will probably not be published.
If it is not, I may post it here.
   Doug Whalen DhW
-
Doug Whalen (whalen at haskins.yale.edu)
Haskins Laboratories
270 Crown St.
New Haven, CT 06511
203-865-6163, ext. 234
FAX:  203-865-8963
http://www.haskins.yale.edu/

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
LINGUIST List: Vol-13-816