BeingthepaternallanguageoftheothernativeEnglishes(CanadianEnglish,AustralianEnglish,NewZealandEnglishandSouthAfricanEnglish),BritishEnglishandAmericanEnglishtodayarethetwomainEnglishlanguagesoftheEnglish-speakingworld.Althoughtoomanyhasalreadybeensaidoverhowthescope,thetypes,andthepossibleeffectsoftheinconsistencybetweenthetwokindswillbeinthefuture,thequarrelontheissuehasnotcometoanendatall.
ThecoverofthejournalForumXXVII,No3,July1989,recallingthetopicandprovidesaresearchofevidenceofthedifferencebetweenthetwokindsofEnglishoverthecenturies.NoahWebster(inDissertationsontheEnglishLanguage)claimedthatafurtherincompatibilityoftheAmericanlanguagefromtheEnglishnecessaryandinevitable.Healsopredictedthat“NorthAmericanEnglishwouldeventuallybeasdifferentfromBritishasDutch,DanishandSwedisharefromGermanorfromoneanother”.MarkTwain(inTheStolenWhiteElephant)thoughtAmericanandBritishEnglishtobedifferentlanguagesanddeclaredthattheformer,spoken“initsutmostpurity”,cannotbeunderstoodbyanEnglishpeopleatall.ThisattitudewaspreviouslyexpressedbyCaptainThomasHamilton(inMenandMannersinAmerica).Hesaidthat“inanothercentury,thedialectoftheAmericanswillbecomeutterlyunintelligibletoanEnglishman.”
Authorsofthetwentiethcenturyholdentirelydifferentattitudetowardthoseofthepreviouscenturies,theytendtohaveamuchmoredistinctivefeelingofsamenessbetweenAmericanandBritishEnglish.Thus,MitfordM.Mathews(fromBeginningsofAmericanEnglish)seesthetwokindstobe“sooverwhelminglyalike.”ForStephenLeacock(fromHowtoWrite),“ThereisnotthefaintestchanceofthereeverbeinganAmericanlanguageasapartfromEnglish.”RandolphQuirk(inTheNewYorkTimesMagazine),believesthat,”eveninmattersofpronunciation,itisdifficulttofindmanyabsoluteBritishandAmericandistinctions”;QuirkclaimedthatevenNoahWebster,afterfruitlessyearsintryingtocreatea“linguisticgulf”,“cametorealizethatinallessentialsBritainsandAmericansspokethesamelanguage”.AlbertH.MarckwardtandRandolphQuirklatelyexpressedtheirconclusionthattheyconsiderBritishEnglishandAmericanasthesameintheirbookACommonLanguage:BritishandAmericanEnglish.It’sIntroductionwhichisanexcerptfromthebookreadsthat“ThetwovarietiesofEnglishhaveneverbeensodifferentaspeoplehaveimagined,andthedominanttendency,forseveraldecadesnow,hasbeenthatofconvergenceandevengreatersimilarities.”
ThepresentbooksarguesthatthisgrowingviewofsamenessbetweenAmericanandBritishEnglishgiveouttheriskofneglectingtheexistenceofsomesignificantdifferenceswhoseimpactincertaindomainsoflifeshouldnotbeoverlooked.ButbeforelookingintotheproblemswhicharisefromthedifferencesbetweenthetwoEnglishes,IwillgiveabackgroundshowingthedevelopmentprocessofthestatusofAmericanEnglishintheworld,itsinfluenceandexpansionandanalyzeit’scausesofgrowing.
1.ThedevelopmentandpopularityofAmericanEnglish
LongafteritsintroductionintotheNewWorld,AmericanEnglishwasstillconsiderednon-standardEnglish.Mr.Kahanepointedoutthataccordingtosomepeopleofthe1780sAmericanEnglishwasthe“underdog”orapeasant’slanguagethata“gentleman”willnotspeak.Consideredinabilingualpointofview,BritishEnglishwasthedominantlanguagelinkedtoprestigeand(linguistic)purism.ThebeliefintheauthorityorsayinthesuperiorofBritishEnglish,hasmaintainedtothetwentiethcentury,especiallyintheformerBritishEmpireorinthefieldsofBritishinfluence.Thus,itisreportedthatinChina,teachersandschooltextbooksrefertoandrecommendReceivedPronunciationasthemodel,aswellasstandardBritishsyntax,spellingandlexis.BritishEnglishisalsoencouragedandacceptedasthecriteriaofsomemajorofficialexaminations,forexample,CollegeEnglishTestandTestforEnglishMajorswhichareconductedbygovernment.Similarsituationscouldbefoundinothercountries,forexample,inAfrica,theWestAfricanExaminationCouncilandJointAdmissionandMatriculationBoardaccepttheBritishEnglishasthestandardEnglish.ReportcanalsobefoundthatinCairo,asrecentlyas1984,someuniversitystudentsreceivedlowergradesiftheyusedAmericanspellingsinsteadofBritish.ModianowrotethatinEurope,“wefindteachers,Britishpeopleaswellasnativesofthecountryinwhichtheywork,whofollowtheBritishEnglishstandard,andscorntheAmericanEnglish”.
Howevertheaboveattitudesarenothingbutthelastinfluenceofalong-goneperiodofBritishsupremacy.AccordingtoCampbellandothers,thebeginningofadistinctleadofAmericanEnglishcanbetracedtothedecadesafterWorldWarII.ThiscoincideswiththesimultaneousriseoftheUSasamilitaryandtechnologicalpowerandthedeclineoftheBritishEmpire,whichdrovemanytoAmericanEnglish.Andfromthenon,AmericanEnglishhascontinuouslysentitsinfluencetoeverycorneroftheplanet.
BritainmadeEnglishaninternationallanguageinthenineteenthcenturywithitsimperialismpower,butAmericanshavebeenthedrivingforcebehinditsglobalizationinthetwentiethcentury.AgreatdealofexamplesoftheinfluenceofAmericanEnglishcanbefoundinalargequantityofcurrentbooks,magazines,movies.AccordingtoFoster,thepopularityofAmericanismamongtheyounggenerationinBritainis“thehall-markofthetough-guyandthehe-man”.AfterreviewingthepresenceofAmericanEnglishfeaturesintheBritishvarietyofEnglishitself,AwonusigivesagreatdealofexamplesofAmericanizedEnglishinphonologyandlexisthathehasidentifiedco-exitinginhisownNigerianEnglish.Modianoreportsthat,despitetheinfluenceofexpertEnglishteachersfromBritain,Europeans“aresubjectedtoamassiveamountofAmericanEnglish”,whichmanystudentsaremuchmoreinterestedin.Campbell’sexamplesoftheinfluenceofAmericanEnglishincludethefactthatyoungpeopleinEurope,AsiaandRussiauseitindailyconversation,evenwhenmanyofthemhavebeentaughtBritishEnglish.InBrazil,peopledemandforcoursesinAmericanstyleratherthanBritish.ThisisbecauseAmericanEnglishisinfiltratingtheterritoriesformerlyknowntobetheterritoryofBritishEnglishinfluence,forexample,Nigeria,Egypt,Thailand,andmoreforcefullypenetratingLatinAmerica,Japan,andsouthKorea.Americanizedwordslikeguy,campus,moviewhichdonotexistinBritishEnglish,arenowwidelyused.TodayeventheBBC,whichhaslongusedBritishEnglishspeakingannouncersexclusively,nowaddedAmericanannouncersinitsbroadcasts,especiallyinprogramsthatgotocountrieslikeSouthKorea,whereAmericanEnglishisfavored.
AccordingtoCampbell’sestimate,70%oftheroughly350millionnativeEnglishspeakersspeaktheAmericanversionofEnglish.Infact,thepopulationsofthetwoleadingmothertongueEnglishcountriesareevenmoresuggestive:TheUnitedStateshasapopulationofabout260millionwhilethereisonlyabout55millioninBritain.ThisseeminglygivestheAmericanEnglishmuchmoreadvantage.ThecausesoftheunprecedentedexpansionofAmericanEnglishinclude,asstatedabove,thepost-WorldWarIImilitaryandtechnologicaladvancement.Theyarefordemographic,politicalreasons,orhavetodowiththecomputerandtheinternet,themassmedia,trade,thePeaceCorps,andimmigrationpolicies:
Thelastfewdecadeshavewitnessedanever-increasingpoliticaldominationofAmericaontheplanet.Thisstatuswasfurtherreinforcedinthelate1980sbythefallofcommunism,whichresultedintheUSpenetratingandconsolidatingitspositioninformerlysocialistterritories.
TheleadoftheUSinthecomputerandInternetindustryhaslongbeenestablished.ThatBillGatesandothercomputergeniusesareAmericans,theycreateeverythingbyAmericanism.AsaconsequenceoftheUSdominationofcomputerindustry,thefavoredlanguageofthisindustryisAmericanEnglish,whichforcepeoplewhouseAmericancomputerhardwareandsoftwaretoaccepttheAmericanEnglish,eitherconsciouslyorunconsciously.
Americanradioandtelevisionnetworksarespreadallovertheworld.Campbellreportsthat,asrecentlyas1993,theUnitedStatescontrolled75%oftheworld’stelevisionprogramming,“beaming‘SesameStreet’toLagos,Nigeria,forexample”.TheVoiceofAmericaandCNNhavenocompetitorsallovertheworldover.
TradewiththeUShassteadilyriseninvolumeoverthepastfewyears,eveninterritoriesformerlycontrolledbyBritainandconsideredbymanypeopletobecountofboundstoAmerica.Forexample,theUSisoneofNigeria’smainpartnersinthecrudeoilbusiness.
ThePeaceCorps,foundedbyPresidentJ.F.Kennedyin1962,hasbeenamajorcauseofemigrationofAmericanstovariouspartsoftheThirdWorld.ThePeaceCorpsvolunteershavebeenworkinginthemedicalsector,inagriculture,andverysignificantlyinEnglishlanguageteaching,leavingconsiderableinfluenceofAmericanEnglishaftertheirreturningback.
ThestrictimmigrationlawsofBritain,coupledwiththeallegedinhospitalityoftheBritish,haveoflatedivertedtoAmericastudentsandpeoplefromvariouspartsoftheworldseekingasubstituteplace—theUnitedStates.ThechainreactionofthisfactorhasresultedinmuchmoremigrationtotheUS.ForpeopleholdthesensethattheytendtofindhelpfromfriendsandrelativeslivingintheStates.Therecentpolicy,enactedbytheUS,ofthevisaprogramto“recruit”50,000newimmigrantstotheStateseachyearhasaddedtotheattempttomigranttotheUS.Thelong-termreactionofthelargemigrationtotheStatesontheAmericanizationofEnglishinnativecountriesoftheimmigrantsisobvious;theimmigrantscontinuetocommunicatewiththeirfriendsandrelativesbackintheirhomeland,andmanyeventuallycomebackandsettle.
ToldaboveisthestoryofthebabyversionofaEnglishlanguagethathasgrownandisthreateningtoshakethedominationofthemotherlanguage.Thisphenomenoncouldhardlybeenseenelsewhere.NeitherthecasewithCanadian,BelgianorSwissFrenchinrelationtotheFrenchofFrance,norwithLatinAmericanSpanishorPortugueseinrelationtotheSpanishorPortugueseofSpainorPortugal,respectively.Thespeaker,andespeciallythelearner,ofEnglishisnowfacedwiththetaskofmanagingtheco-existenceofthetwocompetinglanguages.Theyare,however,notproblem-free.
Theproblems
Itisoversimplifiedtosay,likeM.Mathewsintheintroductionabove,thatAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglishare“sooverwhelminglyalike”or,likeQuirkequallycitedabove,that“eveninmattersofpronunciation,itisdifficulttofindmanyBritishandAmericanabsolutedistinctions”.ItreallydependshereonwhatquantityQuirkconsiderstobemany.Already,thelistofpronunciationdifferencesthatheandMarckwardtthemselvesgiveaffectshundredsofwords,whichcanbeconsideredtobemajor,byanystandard.Qualitatively,too,thedifferencesareimportant.Learnersallovertheworldwillsurelyagreewithme,forexample,thatthefollowingdifferencesarequiteconfusing:BritishEnglishant[i],mult[i];sem[i];do[sail],fu[tail];l[e]sure,fer[tail],[lef]tenant,g[o]t,p[o]ttervsAmericanEnglishant[ai]-,mult[ai],sem[ai];do[sl],fer[tl];l[i:]sure,[lu]tenant,g[a:]t,p[a:]tter.Andtherearemanyothersuchcontrasts,Inlexisandgrammer,wecanalsofindmanydistinctcontrastswithanobviousincidenceoncommunication,aswillbeshownlater.
DifferencesbetweenAmericanandBritishEnglishdonotmatterwhenthespeakerorwriterisfamiliarwiththetwocodesandcaneasilyfindinhis/herownvarietycorrespondencestofeaturesfromtheothervariety.Butconfusion,embarrassmentorsheerincomprehensionwillariseinmanydaily-lifesituationswhenthelistenerorreaderwhoisnotfamiliarwiththeothervariety.GoodillustrationscomefromyourPCinthiscomputerage:whereyourspellingchecker,basedonAmericanEnglish,identifiesclour,centre,dialogue,civilise,towards,defence,enclose,travelledfromyourtextasincorrectlyspelt,youneedtobefamiliarwiththetwovarietiestoknowthatyourspellingcheckerexpectsAmericanspellingswhicharecolor,center,dialog,civilize,toward,defense,inclose,traveled.(IfyourtextisinBritishEnglishyouwillsimplyclick“ignore”andmoveon.)
Knowledgeofthetwovarietiesisequallyimportantintheclassroomforthestudentsandteacherswhereadecisionoftenhastobemadeaboutwhatformiscorrect.Iftheteacherandstudentsknowthatfiberandfibre,transportationandtransport,proctorandinvigilator,baretteandhairslide,faucetandtap,fallandautumn,fiveyearsbackandfiveyearsago,MondaythroughFridayandMondaytoFriday,ahalfmeterandhalfametrearefeaturesofAmericanandBritishEnglish,Respectively,theteachingandthelearningprocesscanproceedunhampered,ifitisagreedthatthetwovarietiesareaccepted.Butitisdramatic,especiallyinatestingsituation,whenfeaturesusedfromonevarietybythestudentarenotknownbytheteacher/tester,familiaronlywiththeothervariety.Thestudentwillthenbeunjustlypenalized.
He/shewillbeallthemorepenalizedassomefeaturesinonevarietymayclearlyviolatethegrammaroftheothervariety.ManyAmericanchangesofcategoriesobservedinsomecasesareinoutrightviolationofBritishEnglishgrammar.Forexample,accommodationbecomescountable(e.g.Goodaccommodationsarerare);someirregularverbsbecomeregular(e.g.broadcasted,shined);someregularverbsbecomeirregular(snuckoutforBritishEnglishsneakedout);someintransitiveverbsbecometransitive(e.g.TheplanedepartedNewYork;Weprotestedthesalarycuts);sometransitiveverbsbecomeintransitive(e.g.IvisitedwithmyfriendsforBritishEnglishIvisitedmyfriends):someadjectivesmaybeusedasadverbs(e.g.It’srealnice).OthermajorviolationsofBritishEnglishsyntaxareseeninusagessuchas:AisdifferentthanB,wherethanisusedwithoutthecorresponding–er/moreorlessrequiredforcomparatives;inSusanwantsout,whereawholeverbanditsprecedingparticle(togo)areomitted;inlikeIsaidwherelike,insteadofBritishEnglishas,introducesaclause;inIwantforyoutogo,wherethereisamajorintrusionofapreposition;inHelookedoutthewindow,wherethereisamajordeletionofapreposition;inHejustleft,where,despitetheclearfactthatapastactionhassomerelevancetothepresent,thepresentperfectisnotused.Andsoon.
AninformalsurveyrecentlycarriedoutamongteachersofEnglishwhohadbeenworkingforlong,showedthat,althoughtheydeclaredthattheyreadilyacceptedAmericanEnglish,theywouldconsidertheaboveAmericanEnglishusages,andmanymoreasincorrect.AlltheyknowofAmericanEnglishis–orfor–our(e.g.color),-izeforise,centerforcentreandsimilarminorandcommondifferences.
TheproblemofmultiplestandardsisaggravatedincountrieslikethoseoftheformerBritishEmpirewhereindigenizedvarietiesofEnglishhavealreadyestablishedthemselvesathoritivelyaslocalstandards.There,theintrusionofAmericanEnglishaddstothealreadyexistingconflictandcompetitionbetweenBritishEnglishandthelocalforms.Awonusi(1994)aptlydescribesthisphenomenoninNigeria.What’smore,othercountries,likeChina,faceasimilarsituation.InChinaEnglishforexample,themostinterestingmanifestationofthistriplescaleiswhenalocalEnglishformestablishesitself,anddiffersfromboththeestablishedBritishEnglishandAmericanEnglishforms.Forexample,yourelaxinasittingroominBritain,alivingroominAmericaandaparlourinChina;youfillinforminBritain,filloutaformintheUSandfillaforminChina.Phonologyoffersmanymoreofsuchsystematiccontrasts.
Inadditiontoproblemsofcorrectnessdiscussedabove,thedivergencesbetweenAmericanandBritishEnglishraisedproblemsofintelligibilitythatcannotbealtogetheroverlooked.
StudiesspecificallymeasuringtheintelligibilitybetweenAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglisharenotavailabletomeatthemoment.Butothersinvolvingtheintelligibilityofthetwovarieties,fromthepointofviewofthenon-nativespeaker,doexist,andshowthatAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglishdonothavethesamedegreeofintelligibility.Forexample,inSmith’s(1992)studyconductedinAmerica,aBritishEnglishspeaker(interactingwithaPapuaGuinean)is70%understandabletonon-nativespeakerswhileanAmerican(interactingwithanIndonesianis90%undertandable).Theratesofcomprehensibilityandinterpretabilityinthesamecontextare90%and60%,10%and30%,respectively.
DifferencesbetweenAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglishwouldhavenomajorimpactonintelligibilityiftheyonlyconcerned,forexample,featuresinphonologylikeAmericanEnglishrhoticity,darkeningof“l”acrosstheboard,thenasaltwang,somewordstressdifferences;inspellinglike–ize,-orand–erdiscussedabove;orinlexisitemslikevacation,movie,cab,schedule(forBritishEnglishtimetable),etc.Butthevariouslevelsofanalysisoffermoreserious,andveryoften,lessknowndivergences.Inphonologyforexample,alearnerwhoisusedtoBritishEnglish/dentist,kla:k,le3e/(dentist,clerk,leisure)maynotfind(AmericanEnglish)/deni:st,kle:rk,li:3er/intelligibeunlessthecontextisverysupportive.Andwhenonebearsinmindthatprocessesyieldingtheredifferencesaffectamultitudeofotherwords,oneeasilyunderstandstheriskofintelligibilityfailure.
Lexisalsooffersveryinterestingcases.AuserofBritishEnglishwholistenstoorreadsAmericanEnglishwillfaceproblemsofintelligibilitywithwordsthatdonotexistinhis/herownversionlikefaucet(BritishEnglishtap),janitor(caretaker),pitcher(jug),mortician(undertaker),realtor(estateagent),closet(cupboard),penitentiary[noun](prison).He/shewillalsofindwordswhichexistinhis/hervariety,buthaveadifferentmeaning.Thedifferenceinmeaningmaybenegligibleandnotcausecommunicationproblems,asinAmericanEnglishvacationvsBritishEnglishholidays,call(byphone)vsring,schedulevstime;bothmembersofthesepairs,inparticular,andmanyothers,arenowusedinBritain,whichfurtherreducestheriskofcommunicationfailure.Butmajorsemanticdifferencessometimesexist,suchasbetween(AmericanEnglish)firstfloor,secondfloorandBritishEnglishgroundfloor,firstfloor,pantsandtrousers,gasandpetrol,(fromAmericanEnglish,12thofFebruary1998).Theseextremecasesofdivergencemaycausecommunicationproblemsorgreatembarrassmentinsomecases.JustimagineanAmericanEnglishspeakerdirectingaBritishEnglishspeakertothefirstorsecondfloor,askinghim/herforgas,askinghim/hertoshowhis/herpants,andyouwillagreethatAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglisharenot“sooverwhelminglyalike”,asclaimedabove.
Casesofcommunicationfailure(orpotentialfailure)duetosuchlexico-semanticproblemsarereportedbyModiano.TheyincludeAmericanEnglishroundtripticketvsBritishEnglishreturnticket,AmericanEnglisheraservsBritishEnglishrubber,andBritishEnglishpublicschool(vsitsAmericanEnglishmeaning).
ModianorequestedatickettoLondonbuthewasaskedwhetherhewantedareturnticket.InterpretingreturnticketasmeaningaticketfromLondontotheplacefromwhichhewastravelling,Modianoreplied,“Howdoyouexpectmetogetthere?”AsforBritishEnglishrubber,theauthorfoundthatinAmericanEnglishitisanAmericanslangforthewordcondomanditsuseinsomecontextsmaycauseembarrassment.ModianogoonnoticedthattheBritishEnglishuseofRubberratherthaneraserisunknownintheUS.Concerningpublicschool,ModianopointsoutthecontrastinBritishEnglishwhereitmeansprivatelyownedinstitutionsandinAmericanEnglishwhereitmeans“schoolsownedandoperatedwithpublicfunds”.
Effortstobemade
Thebestthingtodealwiththesituationofco-existence,orcompetition,ofAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglishwouldbesomekindofharmonization.Thissolution,whichsuggestschangingthenaturalcourseofalanguageorlanguagevariety,hadhardlybeensucceeded.Theotherquestionisevenifthissolutionwerepossible,theharmonizationinthedirectionofAmericanEnglisharedemographic,technological,political,commercial,andmedia-related,asanalyzedabove;infact,mostpredictions,includingthatofDavidCrystal,arethatEnglishinfuturewillbeAmerican-dominated.ArgumentsforharmonizationinthedirectionofBritishEnglishincludethefactthatthemajorityofdictionariesandEnglishLanguageTeachingmaterialsoutsidetheUSareBritishEnglish–dominated.TheotherargumentisofanemotionalandsymbolicfeelingandmixedwiththesensethatBritishEnglishisafterallthemothervariety.
Modiano’ssolutiontotheexposureto,andmixingof,AmericanEnglishandBritishEnglishisthatMid-Atlantic,spokeninincreasingnumbersbyEuropeans.ShouldreplaceBritishEnglishastheeducationalstandardinEurope.Accordingtotheauthorof“TheAmericanizationofEuro-English”,Mid-Atlanticis“avarietythatencouragesneutralpronunciationandavocabularybasedontheinterlocutor’sframeofreference’.TheonlyprobleminModiano’sargumentisthathecarefullyexplainsthereasonsforMid-AtlanticEnglishtobeused,andwhatdoesnotconstituteMid-Atlantic,butfailstodiscussinconcretetermssomedetailedcharacteristicsofthisvariety.
Forlackinginaguaranteedsolutiontotheproblem,IsuggestedthatcoursesincontrastiveanalysisofAmericanEnglishandBritishEnglishshouldbewidelyincludedinEnglishLessonstowipeouttheconfusionofthosewholearnEnglishasasecondlanguage. |
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