Table Of ContentMAKING SENSE OF “BAD ENGLISH”
Why is it that some ways of using English are considered “good” and others are
considered “bad”? Why are certain forms of language termed elegant, eloquent, or
refined, whereas others are deemed uneducated, coarse, or inappropriate? Making
Sense of “Bad English” is an accessible introduction to attitudes and ideologies
towards the use of English in different settings around the world. Outlining
how perceptions about what constitutes “good” and “bad” English have been
shaped, this book shows how these principles are based on social factors rather
than linguistic issues and highlights some of the real-life consequences of these
perceptions.
Features include:
• an overview of attitudes towards English and how they came about, as well
as real-life consequences and benefits of using “bad” English;
• explicit links between different English language systems, including child’s
English, English as a lingua franca, African American English, Singlish, and
New Delhi English;
• examples taken from classic names in the field of sociolinguistics, including
Labov, Trudgill, Baugh, and Lambert, as well as rising stars and more recent
cutting-edge research;
• links to relevant social parallels, including cultural outputs such as holiday
myths, to help readers engage in a new way with the notion of Standard English;
• supporting online material for students which features worksheets, links
to audio and news files, further examples and discussion questions, and
background on key issues from the book.
Making Sense of “Bad English” provides an engaging and thought-provoking
overview of this topic and is essential reading for any student studying
sociolinguistics within a global setting.
Elizabeth Peterson is an Associate Professor at the University of Helsinki, Finland.
MAKING SENSE OF
“BAD ENGLISH”
An Introduction to Language
Attitudes and Ideologies
Elizabeth Peterson
First published 2020
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2020 Elizabeth Peterson
The right of Elizabeth Peterson to be identified as author of this
work has been asserted by her in accordance with sections 77 and 78
of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Peterson, Elizabeth (Professor of linguistics) author.
Title: Making sense of ‘bad English’: an introduction to language
attitudes and ideologies/Elizabeth Peterson.
Description: London: New York, NY: Routledge, 2019. | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019025824 (print) | LCCN 2019025825
(ebook) | ISBN 9781138237469 (hardback) | ISBN 9781138237476
(paperback) | ISBN 9780429328343 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: English language–Social aspects. | English
language–Usage. | English language–Variation. | English
language–Errors of usage.
Classification: LCC PE1074.75.P48 2019 (print) | LCC PE1074.75
(ebook) | DDC 427–dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019025824
LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019025825
ISBN: 978-1-138-23746-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-138-23747-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-429-32834-3 (ebk)
Typeset in Bembo
by Deanta Global Publishing Services, Chennai, India
Visit the eResources: www.routledge.com/9781138237476
To my students and educators
who are often one and the same
CONTENTS
List of illustrations xii
Acknowledgments xiii
Rationale for this book xv
Terminology used in this book xix
Introduction to Part 1: Making sense of “Bad English” 1
1 English speakers in outer-circle and expanding-circle settings 3
1.1 The English language sandwich 3
1.2 Comparing attitudes about English 7
1.3 “ Bad English” in the outer circle 11
1.4 “ Bad English” in the expanding circle 13
1.5 Conclusion to Chapter 1 14
Acknowledgments 15
Discussion questions for Chapter 1 15
Notes 15
Cited in this chapter 16
2 Where does “Good English” come from, and what does it
have to do with Santa Claus? 17
2.1 Standardizing English 18
2.2 Where does the notion of Standard English come from? 19
2.3 Here comes Santa Claus 23
2.4 Folklore, fact and tradition: “Good English” 25
2.5 Conclusion to Chapter 2 25
Acknowledgments 26
viii Contents
Discussion questions for Chapter 2 26
Suggested reading 27
Cited in this chapter 27
3 “Bad English” in inner-circle settings 28
3.1 Youth, young women, foreign influence 28
3.1.1 The role of young women 29
3.1.2 Foreign influence 30
3.1.3 Social class 30
3.2 Talk like us, think like us 30
3.3 The top-down approach to language 33
3.4 What’s “bad” is relative: US vs UK 34
3.5 When “bad” really means “foreign” 39
3.6 What does “Bad English” mean? 39
3.7 Conclusion to Chapter 3 40
Discussion questions for Chapter 3 40
Acknowledgments 41
Note 41
Suggested reading 41
Cited in this chapter 42
4 How “Bad English” works against us: Linguistic
discrimination in the USA 44
4.1 Introduction 44
4.1.1 What can you take for granted? 45
4.2 What’s with the attitude? 46
4.2.1 Is it race, or is it language? Or is it race and language? 47
4.3 A ccess to education 50
4.3.1 Ann Arbor Decision 51
4.4 The (in)justice system 53
4.4.1 The hallowed halls of justice 53
4.4.2 Wrap-up of the justice system 57
4.5 The workplace 57
4.6 Conclusion to Chapter 4 59
Acknowledgments 59
Discussion questions for Chapter 4 59
Note 60
Suggested reading 60
Further references on Chicano English 60
Cited in this chapter 61
5 Why does “Bad English” still exist? 62
5.1 Introduction 62
Contents ix
5.2 A ccess and isolation 64
5.2.1 Historical ties 65
5.2.2 Social segregation 66
5.2.3 Geographical segregation 69
5.2.4 Reason 1: Why do people speak “bad” varieties?
Access to standard language culture 70
5.3 Covert prestige 71
5.3.1 Reason 2: Why do people speak “Bad English”?
Covert prestige 73
5.4 Identity and language 74
5.4.1 R eason 3: Why do people speak “Bad English”? Identity 76
5.5 Conclusion to Chapter 5 77
Acknowledgments 77
Discussion questions for Chapter 5 77
Recommended reading 78
Cited in this chapter 79
Introduction to Part 2 81
6 Acquisition of English as a mother tongue 85
6.1 The study of first language acquisition 86
6.1.1 How do children learn their first language? 87
6.1.2 The Critical Age Hypothesis 88
6.2 Stages of acquisition 89
6.2.1 Stage one: Babbling 89
6.2.2 Stage two: One-word stage 90
6.2.3 Stage three: Two-word stage 91
6.2.4 Stage four: More than two words 91
6.3 A cquisition of linguistic features 92
6.3.1 Acquisition of phonetics/phonology 92
6.3.2 Acquisition of morphology 93
6.3.3 Acquisition of syntax 94
6.3.4 Acquisition of vocabulary 95
6.3.5 Acquisition of pragmatics 95
6.4 Conclusion to Chapter 6 96
Discussion questions for Chapter 6 97
Cited in this chapter 97
7 African American English 99
7.1 The historical context of African American English 100
7.2 Distinct discourse styles of African American English 103
7.2.1 Discourse and communication 103
