Class notes by Toni Reed

November 2, 1999

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Variations in English

Black English

7 McWhorton refers to standard and nonstandard. Nonstandard does

not mean substandard.

· The difference between standard and substandard is power or

prestige not inferiority.

· Nonstandard English is just as complex as standard.

Varieties/dialects is not equal to slang

McWhorton uses slang as teen language

Slang-one subset of vocabulary or lexical items

Some Features of Black English

Grammar

· Verb-to be, not always conjugated

Ex. "I be going home"

Habitual action vs. one-time or irregular action

· Zero copula rule

Where standard English can contract is, Black English drops it off

Ex. "Shirley, she so worried"

Sounds

· Disprefers consonant clusters at the beginnings and ends of words

[tEst] »[tEs]

· In some cases where Std. English has a monothong, Black English has a dipthong (two vowel sounds together); in some cases where Std. English has a dipthong, Black English has a monothong. See McWhorter for examples.

Sources of Black English

• White plantation owners
• Indentured British workers
• Creole English-mixture of English and African

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