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Jasmyne's Unit 4 Blog

Page history last edited by Boda 13 years, 4 months ago

are kids uneducated because they respond to their teachers with slang? are they dumb because they don't care about correct spelling and simple grammar errors? are they not smart because they talk one way and write another? Hm, these are things that wandered in my high school english teachers minds. When I wrote or actually read aloud, they acted surprised. I didn't talk to them in proper english all the time because that's not how I talked. It didn't stop them from understanding what I said or meant either. It didn't stop me from understanding what they were saying. My hearing isn't only tuned into slang and ebonics. I can hear perfectly. I understand what is meant in proper standard english, but when I speak, they acted like they couldn't understand me. This is where I think alot of people get "talking white" from. Many people use proper english, but it came from where? England! Where you see um whites, correct? Yea, pretty much. When my mom talks to me, it seems natural and untouched. Her voice changes when her coworkers come around or people that are not black. I hate to say it but I tell her she puts on her "voice" when she gets on the phone with them(coworkers) and its aggravating. I do the same thing. When I get to work, my voice changes miraculously unless I'm talking to one of my black coworkers. When black people pull up to my drive thru window, they look at me like I'm crazy because they didn't know it was a black girl on the speaker. I mean, it doesn't matter, but it does. I think about this alot. I don't understand why race could define what voice we speak in. It's a cultural thing. It's being taken away by society because teachers want you to speak and write in one way, but that's ultimately not who you are.

 

Back to Unit 4 Portfolio

 


 

Here's an excerpt from the book, "The Color Purple" by Alice Walker - from which she won the Pulitzer Prize.

 

How long you had your little girl? I ast.
Oh, she be seven her next birthday.
When that? I ast.
She think back. Then she say, December.
I think, November.
I say, real easy, What you call her?
She say, oh, we calls her Pauline.
My heart knock.
Then she frown. But I calls her Olivia.
Why you call her Olivia if it ain't her name? I ast.
Well, just look at her, she say sort of impish, turning to look at the child, don't she look like a Olivia to you? Look at her eyes, for god's sake. Somebody ole would have eyes like that. So I call her ole Livia.

 

I think it'd be great if you wrote in the different 'voices' you use in your life.  Perhaps even discuss the different aspects of language/slang/culture from the different aspects of Jasmyne (home / work / school / friend / etc).  I think you have tremendous potential here.  Please invest.  I'd love to hear what you have to say. ~ Jay

Comments (10)

ShareRiff said

at 2:12 pm on Nov 18, 2010

As many (Andrea, Tim, Jay, myself) noted in class, you have the kernel of an amazing project in this blog. Let us know what worked best in today's workshop, so those of us who were really plugged in to the conversation can post our reflections here in the comments section of this page.

One authority who you will definitely find a lot of resonance with is Geneva Smitherman http://www.english.msu.edu/staff/Detail.asp?AdcancedSearch=True&page=4&ContactID=43&RecPos=83 Perhaps start with her book "Talkin and Testifyin" where she considers (way back in the 70s) attitudes about Black English with special concern for how these attitudes effect young children in educational contexts.

See if the library has the edited collection "The Skin That We Speak." Here's a review: http://www.readingmatrix.com/book_reviews/ross/book_review.html

And definitely keep flowing here on this page.

Boda said

at 2:35 pm on Nov 18, 2010

I agree ... please grow this. I've noticed and considered dialects and slang through out my life, but I never really thought about it the way you talked about it today. I don't necessarily think there's a problem to solve here, but perhaps you can help convince your audience that kids who speak a certain way are not lost causes. Perhaps you can turn it around and convince the folks who speak in slang there is utility in using a common language in society. Convince us there is a middle ground. This is a gold mine of a topic. Mine it for all it's worth.

JazzieBee:) said

at 2:42 pm on Nov 18, 2010

Thanks for the comments and encouragement. Alot of it worked. I'm going to look into what sheena wrote. I just don't know how to express what I feel as a direct problem, to say, "so and so is WRONG" and "this is how we need to fix it"

April Sopczak said

at 3:25 pm on Nov 18, 2010

Well, just don't let loose of this. What you have written so far is provacative and intelligent. Keep going!

"My hearing isn't only tuned into slang and ebonics. I can hear perfectly. I understand what is meant in proper standard english, but when I speak, they acted like they couldn't understand me." This is very intriguing. Can you go somewhere with this? "They" who? What is this about? How did/does it effect you? I don't know if this was part of your discussion in class, but I would really like to hear more.

ShareRiff said

at 3:33 pm on Nov 18, 2010

It's true: once you have a real live meaningful issue to work with, it's really too simple to frame it in terms of "problems" and "solutions." Now that you have a focus, you can soften the WTSolve framework a bit by simply demonstrating a need for innovation, a gap in understanding, or a cultural misalignment (in elementary school classroom pedagogy, for example). Then, in the "solve" section, you can articulate ways of responding to this need for innovation, or outline different steps for bringing different attitudes and cultures into harmony. Does that make sense?

Andrea said

at 5:56 pm on Nov 18, 2010

The part that April pulled out is my favorite part in this whole blog, it's very meaningful, and I almost feel like you can use it in your essay as a personal experience. From a creative standpoint, I can picture this perfectly in a novel, and I love it!

Opening up with a personal experience that is expository would be magnificent, and like Dr. Connor said, articulate the need for innovation.

If you write this essay and complete it, I highly recommend using this in your showcase.

Ehle so fly said

at 6:06 pm on Nov 18, 2010

I am really excited to see how this WTSolve essay forms!! Good topic, so true!

sheena said

at 1:10 am on Nov 22, 2010

I think you will be able to do really well with this topic and open the minds of others with this idea. My last boyfriend spoke in such a way as you with slang and ebonics, and it really opened my mind to a whole new culture. I would love to discuss and help you expand this topic if you're up for it.

Alyssa Blumenthal said

at 10:56 am on Dec 2, 2010

I agree that this could be a really awesome WTC. Add writing to this to make it more convincing and include some statistics if you can find some.
It's really interesting.

Alyssa Blumenthal said

at 10:56 am on Dec 2, 2010

Or even add videos, pictures, etc. This will all help enhance your work

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