LL-L "Language varieties" 2010.04.06 (04) [EN]

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L O W L A N D S - L - 06 April 2010 - Volume 04
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From: jmtait <jmtait at wirhoose.co.uk>

Subject: LL-L "Language varieties" 2010.04.03 (03) [EN]



Andy wrote:


From: Andy Eagle <andy at scots-online.org>
Subject: LL-L "Language varieties"



>Perhaps teenagers wish to identify more with popular Anglo-American culture
such as rock music in general, popular television and cinema etc. and
speaking English allies them with that. Something which is particularly easy
to do since the education system is geared to do exactly that.

>Scots, or what's left of it, certainly in urban areas, now tends to be
spoken by the 'working class'. As you say, referring some young 'working
class' people as 'neds' is now common. They are more likely to express their
youth culture through the use of what Scots they still have. Perhaps because
their culture is thought to be less sophisticated than the 'alternative' or
'indie' influenced rock and goth etc. culture of middle class, more
academically orientated youth which is generally expressed through English.
Perhaps as a consequence the more Scots speech of the 'neds' is then
considered unsophisticated too, and then referred to as 'ned speak'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/scotland/tv/chewinthefat/neds/neducation.shtml,
something then to be avoided if one does not want to be associated with the
'unsophisticated', further fueling the cycle that marginalises the use of
Scots in general. Will 'sophisticated' teenagers who prefer English in the
in-group, but grew up speaking Scots revert back to it once they have passed
their teenage years when they no longer feel it necessary to identify with
what they see as the sophisticated in-group? Or will they remain English
speakers who've put their unsophisticated past behind them?


Most likely the latter, I would say. I can't think of any reason why anyone
would revert to speaking Scots under those circumstances, especially as, in
areas such as Shetland and the North East, it is rapidly ceasing to be a
community language.

 >That perhaps depends on changing such perceptions of Scots as being
somehow less sophisticated. Something that's not likely to happen soon since
some involved in promoting Scots, as you say, seem to think that the
language should stay at a less than disreputable level.



Yes. My head is unable to accomodate the contradiction of promoting Scots
with one hand and trying to maintain its down-town connotations on the
other.



>>most Scots don't have a concept of 'Scots' at all, and simply react
against people speaking in a down-town or inappropriate manner. This view
has been reinforced by the postmodern era in education where the traditional
teaching of Scots verse - usually Burns -
all but disappeared in the 60s or 70s, with the result that the succeeding
generations are mostly completely unaware of it.

>Perhaps that's the result of most educational decision makers no longer
being Scots speakers themselves. Scots verse or literature of any kind is no
longer part of their culture so its not something that would occur to them
to teach.



And therefore they not only have no concept of it, but no idea of what it
is, sounds like, or looks like. So practically anything  - 'Many mickle make
a mackle' - can be represented as 'Scots.'



>Public displays of Scots are perhaps only acceptable if they fulfil at
least one of the following requirements.

1. It has to be humourous
2. It has to rhyme
3. Best if both 1 and 2

'Dunna Chuck Bruck' is a perfect example, it fulfils 1 by fulfilling 2. I
bet if a purely transactional and wholly Shetland phrase for 'Please don't
litter' was used it would have met with derision. Non Shetland and non
standard English or informal chuck likely having been chosen because of its
humourous connotations and because it rhymes with bruck.

 Well, as you can see, it met with derision in some quarters anyway!

John M. Tait.


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