Date: Tue, 7 Jan 1997 08:08:51 +0000
Subject: M-G: Re: M-I: Hooked on Ebonics


Doug writes:

>>Can Ebonics thus be studied not for its roots in West Africa but for its
>>servile characteristics? I have been asking this question since my first
>>post, and so far I don't think I have got a straight answer.  Remember,
>>African-Americans left West Africa a few centuries ago and we should not
>>abstract the study of language (in this case Black English) from the
>>relations of domination in which it has developed.
>
>These are excellent questions. Just what *is* the evidence from
>linguistics? Is the alleged West African source of A-A speech
>well-established, or is it the recent invention of Afrocentrists?
>
>And doesn't an unconjugated form of "to be" present a bit of a problem in
>expressing time and counterfactuality? Or is there a way around that? I ask
>this in all seriousnessness; I haven't the slightest clue of an answer.

The sources of Black English are (naturally) very controversial. Read some
basic stuff on the origins of Pidgin and Creole languages, such as Peter
Trudgill provides in his book on Sociolinguistics. What usually happens is
that a couple of very distinct language systems collide and intermesh, like
badly aligned and dimensioned clutch and gear systems. All the bits that
get in the way are stripped off. As against the engine analogy, the thing
gets going anyway instead of grinding to a halt. Only the grammatical
subtleties are removed from things like word endings to word order and the
like.

Two examples from living and dynamic state languages can put Doug's mind to
rest about the difficulties languages might have expressing time or
whatever because of some formal properties of the verb "to be". Chinese
does the same. And English lost lots of special forms of verbs during its
time as a Norman-French-cum-Anglo-Saxon Creole (also known as Middle
English). Chaucer was writing in a stabilizing Creole language. Have a look
at the history of Middle English and you'll see the emergence of a more or
less standardized state language from a lawless bunch of Creole dialects.

Cheers,

Hugh




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