Values And Attitudes Towards English

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Values And Attitudes Towards English

Theses Statement

Finding, analyzing and understanding the Attitudes and values with respect to English language.

Introduction

Human beings are arguably referred to be the descendants of animals. This might be true, but one of the unique characteristics which differentiate us from them is our ability to communicate using sophisticated languages. Human beings being social animals, have the instinct to communicate with one another. We need a language not only to communicate with one another, but also to share our thoughts, feelings and emotions. The important role a language plays in our lives cannot be neglected. This essay throws light on English as a language and the attitudes of others towards this language.

Discussion

History of English

The language that we call English, began around four hundred years ago. It was not even called English back then. When the AngloSaxons, who were the Germanic tribes from northern Europe, arrived in Britain in the fifth century AD, the language emerged (Seargeant, 2012). The AngloSaxons brought with them different native dialects. In the coming hundred years, when these AngloSaxons established themselves in the area, and started spreading out, the language they brought with them developed too. The language began to be regularly called English not until the ninth century. English became "English" after four centuries of its existence.

During its early days, it was referred to as just one of the many languages which were spoken in Britain. It was a language with no particular identity and no special status. It was just a local language of the people of the Western Europe. In the next one and a half millennium, the English language has become not only the widest spoken language of the world but is also serving a wider set of purposes.

Development of English

Getting to know what English actually is, is not an easy task. If one lives in an English speaking country, then English is probably what one uses to converse with colleagues, friends and family. Reading and speaking English is something one do every day.

Varieties, Dialects and accents

Variety is a general term which is refers to any clear form of language. It can be used to suggest the prestige and legitimacy of one language over another. Dialect is the affect of what a person's social or religious background is. He uses vocabulary and grammar according to his background settings. Accent of a person, on the other hand, refers to how he differs in the pronunciation of a language(Seargeant, 2012).

English is an enormously diverse language in terms of the varieties, accents and the dialects it has. All around the globe, English is spoken in an entirely different way which has added to the beauty of this language through an enormous cultural diversification. According to a close estimate, around two billion people in the world speak English. English is a mix of in?uences on the Germanic dialects from which it emerged -Latin, Scandinavian, French , Norman (Seargeant, 2012)- and it still ...