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MODULE 2: LANGUAGE in society

ROLES OF LANGUAGE
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Social - Language helps us to communicate in socially acceptable ways with different groups of people. It can, conversely, be used to bully, ridicule and alienate people.
Political - Language is used as a means to form a state and is enacted in various ways that help achieve political objectives. So it can be used to persuade, inform, assert authority, and mark identity.
​Ethical - Ethical communication does not unfairly label one thing or another based on personal bias, staying clear of intentional bias. It is communication that tries to be honest, open, clear, and respectful.
Psychological - It provides a means to express our thoughts and feelings, which helps us connect with others on an emotional level. It can be used to express emotions, for example, joy, sadness, and anger. Lastly, can also be used to create art, literature, and music, which are psychological expressions grounded in emotion...
HISTORICAL FACTORS & CARIBBEAN LANGUAGE
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Caribbean Creole languages have a largely European-based lexicon, but West African influences are also greatly featured in the sounds and grammar. Some of the native vocabulary of the slaves was, in fact, often retained when they didn't have or understand a European equivalent. Therefore, European languages such as English, Spanish, French, and Dutch were blended with various African languages that were spoken by slaves and, to a lesser extent, indigenous languages. These new languages are called Creoles. Today, Creoles are languages in their own right, symbolizing the Caribbean’s hybrid cultures.
ATTITUDES TO CARIBBEAN LANGUAGE
Attitudes to the varieties of English spoken in the Caribbean result from many factors including historical and social ones, crucial to the attitude one adopts are two considerations-the association of education, formality, and good taste with standard English and the question as to whether creole English is fitting and appropriate for certain uses. Attitudes to the use of language may include: pride, confidence, and celebration, on the one hand, and contempt, shame and even ridicule of the language one speaks. Code-switching or adopting the variety of English spoken by others can be a sign of a lack of confidence and pride in one’s mother tongue.
LANGUAGE IN INTERNATIONAL SITUATIONS
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English is the foremost—and by some accounts the only—world language. Therefore, if dialects or Caribbean Creoles are utilized in international situations, then they not only will not be understood but they might not be taken seriously because they did not prepare themselves to negotiate that sphere. This lack of preparation might be insulting to some, while others might view the Creole speaker as ignorant and not belonging.
LANGUAGE IN INTERACTIVE SITUATIONS
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This depends on the audience, message, purpose, occasion, gender, age, choice of language, and communicative behaviours. This aspect of language is best explained with a SCENARIO. Here goes: Examination students, grades 11-13, have been increasingly absenting themselves from school. You, as the principal, have decided to hold a meeting with parents to give them tips on how to ensure that they are early, or on time, for school.
Contributor: Leisa Samuels-Thomas
                   Sharon Thorpe (Immaculate Conception High School, Jamaica)


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