For today's agenda, we discussed the Great Vowel Shift, synthesized the results on the correctness and pleasantness of English (Ch. 6 homework), and continued talking about the Lippi-Green readings.

The Great Vowel or Northern City Shift

The main ideas to remember about this movement are the following:

the sounds of any language change over time

changes may occur for reasons we don't entirely understand

e.g. On Martha's Vineyard, all the island inhabitants speak with the distinct accent on purpose---to distinguish themselves from visitors and wealthy New York people that have vacation homes on the island.

expect regularity with the sound shifting

remember that words, which are individual, change over time

sound changes are gradual

SUMMARY: sound changes are

normal

regular

may be related to social factors

may not have a "clear" reason

social factors affect rates of change

Keep in mind that (5) portrays how sound changes happen, and (3&4) explain why it happens. For example, in Old English the word "blind" was pronounced [blind], but today we pronounce it [blaInd].

In the latter part of the class, we formed into groups and discussed Lippi-Green's article "The real trouble with Black English" out of English with an accent: Language, Ideology, and Discrimination in the US book. In one of the Oprah Winfrey shows, an audience member from North Western University, asserted that if someone speaks right, meaning Standard English, then that person will succeed.

Dr. Harrington helpfully pointed out that it is easy to "see language as an indicator" when criticizing or judging others. And why are some people biased? Think about how we arrive at the internalizations we feel about the language we speak. Many children grow up studying the cultural history-the north was on the good side and the south on the bad one in the Civil War. Thus, it's easy to grow up with a geographic bias.