From: wilcox@vax.oxford.ac.uk
Newsgroups: alt.usage.english
Subject: Re: Frosh (was Re: Sexist language (was...
Date: 23 Dec 92 14:24:46 GMT
Organization: Oxford University VAX 6620

> In article <BzJpFu.AG5@constellation.ecn.uoknor.edu>, mmmirash@banshee.ecn.uoknor.edu (Mandar M. Mirashi) writes:
>> However, no one has been able to put together an effective argument
>> that challenges the superiority of English English. I think the
>> reason behind this is that IT'S A FACT. *No one* can dispute that
>> English spread from England to other lands.

That sounds like a challenge to me! Here goes. We are trying to demostrate to
Mandar that "English English" is not superior to the other dialects of English.
I will attempt a demonstration by reductio ad absurdum on the statement
"English English is the superior dialect of English", which will have ad
hominem arguments against Mandar's assertions in it.

1. WHAT IS ENGLISH ENGLISH?

Answer 1: The English spoken by the Queen. In that case she speaks the same
dialect as a tiny minority of her subjects.

Answer 2: THe English spoken by BBC newsreaders. In that case there is no such
thing as English English because they speak several different dialects.

Answer 3: The English spoken in England. In that case there is no such thing as
English English because there is no such thing as *the* English spoken in
England.

Summary: "English English" is a spirit summoned by Mandar with no substance.

2. HOW IS ENGLISH ENGLISH SUPERIOR. 

Just for the sake of argument I will ignore my conclusions in 1 above and
concentrate on the English/US distinction. 

For English English to be superior it must be superior for some reason.

Reason 1: History---after independence the US veered away from "correct" English
English.
Answer: At the time of US independence there was no such thing as a standard
English pronunciation or spelling; the vast majority of people were illiterate
so any attempts at standardisation could only reach a few; it has been
suggested that East-Coast US English (as much a fiction as English English) is
closer to the way the first English settlers spoke than modern English English;
many spelling differences occur because English grammarians preferred
non-English forms which reflected the origins of words.

Reason 2: Name---English must be judged by England. 
Answer: I defeated this one a week or two back. Briefly if this were the case
we should not be able to judge most of the world's languages because they are
not nationally based.

Reason 3: English people say so.
Answer: The vast majority aren't interested and are more influenced by US
culture than traditional English culture; those who are interested are more
interested in description than prescription.

Reason 4: A group of the Great and the Good say so.
Answer: They don't. Even if they did no-one would listen.

Reason 5: English English is somehow aesthetically better than other dialects.
Answer: If so that is a matter of personal taste not of demonstrable fact.

Reason 6: Mandar says so.
Answer: Mandar is not an expert in any linguistic field, he is not English and
does not listen to reasonable argument.

That should do it, but given Mandar probably won't.
-- 

Stephen Wilcox             |   For Sale: Posts in British Government. Suit
wilcox@vax.oxford.ac.uk    |   outgoing American. Highest bids accepted.