Language and Identity
Advanced English
Fall 1999
Tokyo International University of America

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Language and Identity
An introduction to the topic

Vocabulary:

Identity: who we are; the characteristics people use to recognize and know us; the way we look and dress, who we spend time with or are related to, where we live and work and go to school, our experiences, what we say and how we say it, etc.

Language: in a general sense, everything we say and write

Background: history; information we need before we can understand something

Geographic origins: where we were born and spent our childhood; sometimes where our parents or grandparents were born or lived

Profession: job

As you read the following statements, write down the letters of the statements that are correct: ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___. If a statement is true, try to think of a specific example to support your opinion that it is true.

a. Language often reflects a speaker's or writer's childhood language background (where he or she lived, who his or her parents were, how friends spoke, the quality of his or her education, etc.)

b. Language often reflects a speaker's or writer's cultural background

c. Language may reflect a speaker's or writer's social class

d. Language sometimes indicates a speaker's or writer's relationship to the listener or reader (who is more or less powerful, older, wiser, etc.; who are friends, acquaintances, relatives, etc.)

e. Language often reflects a speaker's or writer's profession

f. Language very frequently reflects a speaker's or writer's gender

g. Language can demonstrate a speaker's or writer's level of education

h. Language can reflect a speaker's or writer's personality

i. Language might show a speaker's or writer's geographic origins

j. Language can even reflect a speaker's or writer's race

k. Language often reveals a speaker's or writer's age

l. Language often reflects a speaker's or writer's emotional state

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Using the ideas in a. through l. above to help you, tell as much as possible about the identity (age, education, profession, etc.) of a person who says, "Okay, guys, you did an awesome job on the test, but but I want you to beat the other class next time we take a test."

Next, please discuss the following question with your group. Each person should explain his or her individual opinion and personal experience and give supporting examples.

When you speak English, do you feel that your identity changes in some small way? How? Discuss the questions on the succeeding screens to help you decide. Make sure every person in the group has a chance to speak and freely express his or her opinion.