by Madison McKnight
Growing up in the Southern region of the United States, I have fought a long battle against allowing myself to succumb to the southern accent. As smooth as the southern accent might sound, the stereotype surrounding it is distasteful and degrading. The media and literary works portray the South as illiterate, closed-minded, uncultured, and conservative (Hamilton). Much of the nation simply accepts these biased stereotypes and does nothing to challenge them. They choose to continue to view the South as a “hellhole of poverty, torment, and depravity,” while generalizing its constituents (Hamilton). It is painful knowing that this is how the world views people of my culture. These biases are what create an unlevel playing field in accordance to enabling success. Hence why I greatly value standard English. I view standard English as a shield because it protects one from prejudices against another due to circumstances outside of their control.
In short, standard English is the form of English that is written and spoken by educated people (“Standard English”). In the article “What Should Colleges Teach?” Stanley Fish argues in favor of ensuring that the next generation is taught to use this form of English in professional settings because it is “an instrument of power and a device for protecting the status quo.” Fish further supports his claim by insinuating that it is necessary for students to learn to speak and write this way because it prepares them for success upon entering a world that values standard English (Fish). As a response to Fish’s claims, Vershawn Young’s article “Should Writers Use They Own English?” addresses the controversiality of standard English. Within the article, Young claims that standard English makes the speakers of other dialects feel “dumb” or less important (Young). As a result, Young further reasons that in order to avoid language discrimination “we all should know everybody’s dialect, at least as many as we can, and be open to the mix of them in oral and written communication” (Young). In accordance with the arguments of Fish and Young, it is important to examine both perspectives in order to determine whether standard English is vital or menace.
In order to understand why standard English is used, it is necessary to explore how it came to be. As the world evolves, so does standard English. The English language is constantly changing; therefore, it is important to note that what might have been the standard a few decades ago, might not be the same standard now (Schmalz). It takes time for the English language to evolve. For there to be a change in standard English, there must be a group of people to back the usage of nonstandard English (Schmalz). For example, the sentence structure within standard English has changed greatly during the last century. Instead of asking “Have you a moment?” it is now generally accepted to ask “Do you have a moment?” (Zazulak). Another example of language evolving is using the word “contact” as both a verb and a noun (Steinmetz). Society determines what forms of language are “correct” because the ‘rules’ are based upon what the general educated public deems is propper at that given time (“Importance of Standard English”). Therefore, in the future it is possible that people will be able to write how they speak with no consequence of code meshing, combining vernacular language and other dialects, as Young claims it should be. But unfortunately, as of right now society is not at that level of acceptance yet.
Due to English being the standard language spoken around the world, it is still important to be able to speak and write in standard English because it helps one to gain skillful speaking and better opportunities. In the professional setting, one will be more successful when using standard English because it is what is expected of professionals, especially by the older generation that has conformed to the standards their entire life (Schmalz). For example, a person that expresses themselves using African-American Vernacular English (AAVE) in a professional setting is less likely to be successful in the professional world due to the negative biases tied to the language (Shammet). Society, the older generations, in particular, view AAVE as a language that uneducated people speak because it is associated with the violence and poverty seen within black communities (Shammet). Therefore, speaking AAVE in a professional setting will lead one to make biased assumptions about the speaker, ultimately inhibiting them from prosperity. However, as Young argues, not everyone that is successful follows standard English. In Young’s article, he uses evidence from Reporter Sam Dillon who wrote about a survey conducted by the National Commission on Writing saying, “that a third of employees in the nation’s blue-chip companies wrote poorly and that businesses were spending as much as $3.1 billion annually on remedial training” (Young). While this statistic supports Fish’s claim for the need for standard grammar being taught, Young views it as ” [forcing] people into patterns of language that ain’t natural or easy to understand” (Young). In other words, Young is arguing that standard English is not inherent and should not be imposed onto the people when a large portion of professionals are not proficient in the language.
Moreover, I have come to the conclusion that the best method of survival in a world in which authority is tainted with prejudices is to follow the advice of the old adage: if you can’t beat them, join them. If one’s dialect or language is what prohibits them from rising to the top, then they should join the ones at the top that have influence by using standard English because one day the power will be in their hands. When they are in a position of influence they can be the change they want to see. But at the moment, the generation that clings to standard English is the generation that has the most power and influence in terms of socioeconomic standing. Consequently, for the time being, it is wise for one to create a barrier for the time and place in which they use colloquial language versus standard English.
Standard English is constantly one step behind, as colloquial language is forever changing. Adapting the English language is an extremely slow process and much has occurred since the major noticeable shifts; therefore, there is much hope for the future of standard English becoming diversified and influenced by more cultures. What is not accepted now as standard English has the potential to evolve into standard English as younger generations phase into society and morph the language into a reflection of how the world is changing.
Works Cited
Fish, Stanley. “‘What Should Colleges Teach?”.” The New York Times, 7 Sept. 2009. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Hamilton, Karen. Y’all Think We’re Stupid: Deconstructing Media Stereotypes … 2009, https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1491&context=etd. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
“Importance of Standard English.” Importance Of Standard English – 1099 Words | Internet Public Library, https://www.ipl.org/essay/Importance-Of-Standard-English-PCJS7X42SG. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Schmalz, William. “Who Cares about Standard Written English?” LinkedIn, LinkedIn, 9 Mar. 2018, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/who-cares-standard-written-english-william-schmalz-faia. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Shammet, Tagwa .“AAVE Is Not Your Internet Slang. It Is Black Culture.” The Commonwealth Times, 18 Feb. 2021, https://commonwealthtimes.org/2021/02/18/aave-is-not-your-internet-slang-it-is-black-culture/. Accessed 4 Nov. 2021.
“Standard English.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Standard%20English. Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Steinmetz, Katy. “5 Common Words That Used to Be Totally Unacceptable.” Time, Time, 14 Apr. 2016, https://time.com/4293303/garner-common-words-mistakes/. Accessed 1 Nov. 2021.
Young, Vershawn A. “‘Should Writers Use They Own English?”.” Iowa Journal of Cultural Studies, vol. 12, no. 1, 2010, Accessed 31 Oct. 2021.
Zazulak, Steffanie, et al. “How the English Language Has Changed over the Decades.” Resources for English Language Learners and Teachers | Pearson English, 18 Apr. 2017, https://www.english.com/blog/english-language-has-changed/. Accessed 1 Nov. 2021.