Year 12
English Language
Linguists’ quotes on Language
‘The language of management…is language that cannot describe or convey any human
emotion…’ (Don Watson, November, 2003)
‘…ordinary language has been borrowing from specialist languages or jargons for
centuries. And there's always fierce resistance when these words first enter the language
because it smacks of pretentious language, perhaps or people don't like the sort of
people that use it. (Kate Burridge, April 2004)
‘All taboos serve direct human interests by avoiding those things which threaten
to cause offense or distress.’ Kate Burridge
‘Jargon is making it increasingly hard to understand what a public figure is
actually trying to say’ former political speech writer Dr Don Watson
‘The managerial class has forced on us a public language that makes no sense’
former political speech writer Dr Don Watson
"…there are now negative connotations associated with the very broad, ocker accent…It's
also a manifestation of Australia's growing self-confidence as a nation. [People] no longer feel
they have to be defined by that kind of strong accent." - Felicity Cox, 2005
“Standard English has an enormous legacy of overt prestige. It has been regarded as a
symbol of British nationhood…” Janet Holmes, 2008
Because of the way our society is structured, using sentences such as ‘I done it’
can put people at a disadvantage. And this is, of course, why teachers have to
give students access to Standard English, in order to protect them against this
sort of prejudice. – Kate Burridge and Jean Mulder, English in Australia and New
Zealand, 2001
Entirely new forms of Australian language are emerging as our accent adapts to
the growing babble of multiculturalism. – Felicity Cox, Macquarie University, 2008
Year 12
English Language
Kate Burridge “a range of linguistic deodorisers, smokescreens and fig leaves”
‘Underhand euphemisms are used, not so much to conceal offense but to
deliberately disguise a topic and deceive’ Kate Burridge
"Language itself changes slowly but the internet has speeded up the process of
those changes so you notice them more quickly.” - David Crystal
“The accent is a thing that defines the Australian language, it’s that which
defines Australian identity, and it’s that which has been utterly resilient and
simply refuses to change.”
“…we feel comfortable and not self-conscious any more, we’re very happy to
express ourselves using the accent that we have” (Dr Felicity Cox, Phonetician,
Macquarie University, Sounds of Aus, ABC, 2007)
Quote
Essay topic
theme
‘The language of management…is language that cannot describe or
convey any human emotion…’ (Don Watson, November, 2003)
Formal
language and
obfuscation
‘…ordinary language has been borrowing from specialist languages or
jargons for centuries. And there's always fierce resistance when these
words first enter the language because it smacks of pretentious language,
perhaps or people don't like the sort of people that use it. (Kate Burridge,
April 2004)
"Language itself changes slowly but the internet has speeded up
the process of those changes so you notice them more quickly.” David Crystal
Formal
language and
jargon
Technology
Year 12
English Language
‘All taboos serve direct human interests by avoiding those things
which threaten to cause offense or distress.’ Kate Burridge
Social harmony
‘Jargon is making it increasingly hard to understand what a public
figure is actually trying to say’ former political speech writer Dr Don Formal
Watson
language and
jargon
"…there are now negative connotations associated with the very broad, ocker
accent…It's also a manifestation of Australia's growing self-confidence as a Attitudes to
nation. [People] no longer feel they have to be defined by that kind of strong
varieties and
accent." - Felicity Cox, 2005
accents and
identity
“Standard English has an enormous legacy of overt prestige. It has been
regarded as a symbol of British nationhood…” Janet Holmes, 2008
Standard and
non-standard
Because of the way our society is structured, using sentences such
as ‘I done it’ can put people at a disadvantage. And this is, of course, Attitudes to
why teachers have to give students access to Standard English, in
language
order to protect them against this sort of prejudice. – Kate Burridge
and Jean Mulder, English in Australia and New Zealand, 2001
varieties
Entirely new forms of Australian language are emerging as our
accent adapts to the growing babble of multiculturalism. – Felicity Varieties and
Cox, Macquarie University, 2008
identity
Kate Burridge “a range of linguistic deodorisers, smokescreens and
fig leaves”
Social harmony
–euphemisms
‘Underhand euphemisms are used, not so much to conceal offense
but to deliberately disguise a topic and deceive’ Kate Burridge
Social harmony
–euphemisms
Year 12
English Language
‘The managerial class has forced on us a public language that makes
Formal
no sense’ former political speech writer Dr Don Watson
language and
obfuscation
and expertise
“The accent is a thing that defines the Australian language, it’s that
which defines Australian identity, and it’s that which has been utterly
resilient and simply refuses to change.”
“…we feel comfortable and not self-conscious any more, we’re very
happy to express ourselves using the accent that we have”
(Dr Felicity Cox, Phonetician, Macquarie University, Sounds of Aus,
ABC, 2007)
Accent and
language
variety