Crossing and Code-Switching: Language, Ethnicity, and Identity

1
Crossing and Code-Switching Language, Ethnicity,
and Identity

• (Or, Excuse me, may I borrow your ethnicity,
  please?)

2
Ethnicity Some Definitions

• What is ethnicity?
• Not (always) race can be culturally defined.
• Though race can play a part, race biologically
  defined, ethnicity socially constructed.
  Similar to sex/gender distinction
• From the Greek ethos custom, trait.
• ethnikas/ ethnicus nation, group
• So, group with similar/shared characteristics.
• those human groups that entertain a subjective
  belief in their common descent because of
  similarities of physical type or of customs or
  both, or because of memories of colonization and
  migration this belief must be important for
  group formation furthermore it does not matter
  whether an objective blood relationship exists.
  (Weber, 1922)
• An individual may strongly identify
  psychologically with an ethnic group, however,
  the strength and authenticity of the identity is
  contingent on the acceptance and acknowledgment
  of "ingroup" and "outgroup" members. (Suharso,
  1999)
• Ethnic identity is usually contextual and
  situational because it derives from social
  negotiations where one declares an ethnic
  identity and then demonstrates acceptable and
  acknowledged ethnic group markers to others.
  Ones ethnic declaration often is open to the
  scrutiny of others who may validate or invalidate
  the declaration. (Trimble Dickson, 2004)

3
Language and Ethnicity

• Language, politics and power intersect on a
  multitude of levels, and analysis of language in
  the context of ethnicity and race allows for this
  relationship to be made explicit. (Price, 2004)
• On an individual level language is a powerful
  tool in the display of ethnic self
  (Bucholtz,1995357)
• On a group level language the very emblem of
  the existence of that community.
• Sometimes, people learn the language of their
  heritage in order to achieve ethnic authenticity
  through language (Bucholtz 1995362)
• People often assume a link between ethnicity
  (race?) and language, particularly in situations
  where two or three ethnic groups are polarised
  (e.g. White / Chinese / Black in Taiwan)
• White are expected to speak / be able to
  teach English (even if e.g. Spanish)
• Often expected to be genetically unable to
  understand Chinese (!)
• Black expected not to speak English well
  enough to teach
• Even sociolinguists sometimes make this
  one-to-one connection e.g. Black British
  English, African-American Vernacular English

4

• 1.5 Discussing Ethnicity The Visible/Invisible
  Barrier
• 1.E. Just got a message from Edward
• 2.A Hmm Hmm (clears throat)
• 3.G Oh really
• 4.E Yeah hes playing tonight
• (10secs)
• 5.A Edward
• 6.E DJ
• 7.A But he speaks (.) but he cant speak
  Chinese (.) English right
• 8.E He doesnt really like to speak English(
  )and he has to speak at these parties
• 9. G Hes Russian
  yeah
• 10. E Hes half Chinese half something else
• 11. G no
• 12. A But he cant really speak English
• 13. D ((from kitchen)) Who
• 14. G No
• 15. E he always has big eyes
• 16. D Who Edward

5
Ethnicity and Accent

• Rubin and Smith (1990)
• Students were played a recording of a lecture.
  They were also shown a photograph of someone who
  was, they were told, the person giving the
  lecture. Though they all heard the same lecture,
  they were shown photographs of people with
  different ethnicities (Caucasian and Asian.) They
  were asked to rate the strength of the
  lecturers accent.
• When students were shown a picture of an Asian
  lecturer, the recording was rated as having a
  stronger accent than when a Caucasian teacher was
  shown.

6
The Myth of the Native Speaker

• The idea of being a native speaker of a language
  and having it as your mother tongue tends to
  imply that a particular language is inherited,
  either through genetic endowment or through birth
  into the social group stereotypically associated
  with it and being a native speaker involves the
  comprehensive grasp of a language. Rampton (1995
  336-7)
• Taiwan Minister of Education
• The Ministry Of Education (MOE) would only
  consider teachers whose native language is
  English to teach in elementary schools. Teachers
  from the Philippines and India are not native
  English speakers and their mother tongues are
  other languages. The MOE so far only considers
  hiring teachers from the US, Canada, the UK and
  Australia.
• Reality brown people (South East Asians) clean
  floors. White people teach English. Teachers of
  Asian ethnicity (e.g. Canadian-born Taiwanese)
  paid less than White Canadians. Black teachers
  find it harder to get jobs, as parents wont pay.
• So my sister had a Black teacher. And my parents
  said to the school, Were paying the same money
  why do we get a Black teacher?

7
Crossing I

• But ethnicity not always fixed, essentialised
  biological category
• Ethnicity can be declared or performed
  through language use
• Code-switching The use of ones own languages
• Crossing The use of someone elses language
• Crossing The use of a language which isnt
  generally thought to belong to the speaker
  (Rampton, 1998291)
• The redefinition of reality (Rampton, 1998)
• Ethnic identity thus constructed in interaction

8
From Rampton, (1999293-4)
9
Crossing II

• That ethnicity can be performed is important
  Foucaults notion of resistance
• Not fixed category, but fluid but, importantly,
  not completely free to take any ethnicity we like
  or runaway deconstruction of identity.
• Must be approved by others
• Thus crossing can be a risk to face
• Hip-Hop culture e.g. White artists such as
  Eminem white fans Blackness doesnt
  guarantee acceptance into hip-hop culture (e.g.
  Sir Trevor MacDonald)
• Rampton notes that White and Panjabi youths avoid
  use of Creole in the company of Black peers,
  White and Black peers hardly use Stylised Asian
  English to target Panjabis. (1999299)
• In the last example - Panjabi youths did not
  generally approve of white youngsters expressing
  an interest in Bhangra

10

• 1.3 Eating your words Food, Language and Culture
• 1. E ( . )
• 2. A Bu xiang yao
• (I dont want to)
• 3. E You should cook some Chinese food
• 4. A Bu hui
• (I cant)
• 5. E No ((rising tone))
• 6. A Bu hui a
• (I cant eh!)
• ( )
• 7. D A - get some spaghetti even a little bit
• 8. G You should eat some carbohydrates love
• 9. D She cant eat she cant eat Western food
  you know
• 10.G ((pointing at spaghetti)) These are
  noodles (1) SHI MIAN A!
• (they arenoodles eh!
• 11.D YAO BU YAO CHI MIAN
• (Do you want to eat
  some noodles?

11
Passing

• Similar to crossing adopting a gender or ethnic
  identity through language when ones own is
  ambiguous
• G Have you ever experienced discrimination when
  looking for teaching jobs because you are black?
• K Yeah but, Gareth, I aint that black
• Especially chat lines and the internet

12
Is it coz I is black?

• Andy Runey Ok, that's enough.I can't do this.
  I can't do this.Ali G Why not?Andy
  Runey It's not going good.Ali G Is it
  because I is black?Andy Runey You're
  black?Ali G For real.Andy Runey Who's
  black?Ali G Yo, I is.Andy Runey No. I
  just can't do this. I don't have
• time for this.Ali G You has been rude to
  me since the first moment.Andy Runey Sorry.
  I'm sorry.Ali G Telling me I don't speak
  English.Andy Runey Well, alright.Ali G
  He's being rude. That's quite racialist to be
  honest.Andy Runey It's racist, not
  racialist.Ali G Whatever, it's racialist.
  Keep the cameras rolling because this is
  racialism that's going on right here. He's
  chucking me out because of the colour of me
  skin.

13
Ali G

• Sacha Baron-Cohen white, Jewish, Cambridge
  educated.
• Ali G use of stylised Black English. Also use
  of hip-hop clothes etc.
• Famously Is it coz I is Black
• Ali G in Wales ...
• Also discussion of identity in comments turns
  into war

14
Summary

• Ethnicity is a powerful marker of identity
• While one cannot change ones race (or with
  difficulty), ethnicity can be negotiated and
  constructed
• One main way of doing this is through language
• But not just free choice
• Language and ethnicity are closely related
• But not one-to-one relationship, diffuse and
  differentiated.