Language, Social Media and Ideologies: Translingual Englishes, Facebook and Authenticities

The extensive use of English on social media makes the language a new paradigm for linguists, who attempt to probe into its dynamic use online. Different from other researchers, the author of this book explores the translingual Englishes from the perspective of Critical Applied Linguistics. Instead of regarding the multiple recombinations of English as a violation of linguistic purism, the author believes it has pedagogical implications for EFL (English as a Foreign Language) teaching and learning.This book unveils the influence of social media on EFL university students’ learning and processing of English language, as well as examining the notion of linguistic authenticity. In addition to the introduction (Chapters 1–2), the book can be divided into three following parts, that is, research method (Chapter 3), case studies (Chapters 4-8), and conclusion and pedagogical implications (Chapter 9).The first two chapters of the book are the introduction. Chapter 1, “Peripheralized Englishes, Social Media and (In)Authenticity” points out two focuses of this book: one is to measure the complex relationship between English and transnational EFL university students as social media users; the other is to probe into the multiple claims of authenticity and legitimacy by transnational EFL university students. Chapter 2, “Translingual Englishes and the Global Spread of Authenticity,” introduces the notion of translingual Englishes. Depending on this notion, the author triggers the debate on language authenticity. For some experts, translingual Englishes collides with the concept of language purism, which could be considered as a language dystopia. However, the author argues that in the context of globalization, authenticity can take different forms, though it is often associated with staying true to one’s own language, culture, and tradition. This is so-called “the global spread of authenticity” (17).In the second part, Chapter 3, “Synchronous and Asynchronous Participants of Facebook,” expounds the research methodologies used in this book. The data are collected from two ethnographic projects carried out by students from the National University of Mongolia and the University of Aizu. The first digital ethnographic project focuses on the synchronous side of social media communication, such as real-time interactions, live updating, or live streaming. In contrast, the second one pays attention to the asynchronous social media engagement of EFL university students in the University of Aizu, that is, exchanges and alternations that do not necessarily take place in simultaneous real-time or live-streaming milieu. Transtextuality and transmodality methods are employed to analyze the collected data.The third part of the book analyzes the two above cases. Chapters 4–6 present the synchronous side of social media communication of EFL students at the National University of Mongolia. In Chapter 4, “African American Vernacular English, Hip-Hop and ‘Keepin It Real’,” the writer studied a case of hip-hop lovers. The hip-hop lovers’ linguistic practices are entangled with hip-hop-oriented texts and other African American Vernacular English resources. They claim the idea of authenticity through the hip-hop ideology of “keepin’ it real.” Chapter 5, “Heavy Englishes and the Enactment of Authentic Self,” further explores linguistics authenticity by studying the cases of Mongolian students’ heavy borrowing from English on social media. The author would like to consider it as an indication of the language users’ advanced linguistic skills and high linguistic confidence in their English competence, rather than taking this phenomenon as a show-off of students’ English proficiency. By integrating English with their native language, the users are identifying with their true “self.” Chapter 6, “Inverted Englishes, ‘In-Group’ Talks and Authenticity,” focuses on the emerging phenomenon of “inverted English” (45) used among EFL university students in Mongolia. They invert English syllables, letters, and sounds in the unconventional linguistic, structural sense of “back-to-front” or “middle-to-front” (45) ways (e.g., person-sonper) to create an in-group talk that outsiders can barely understand. It creates a “real” communicative space for insiders without any outer negative impact. In this sense, the “inverted English” is authentic.Chapters 7–8 illustrate how EFL university students in Japan are involved with Facebook through asynchronous activities. The concept of “ghost Englishes” (55) is introduced in Chapter 7. Students in Japan believe that “ghost Englishes” (expressions of English that cannot be found in textbooks) are authentic, because they are formed by real people in real-life contexts. These odd formations can be considered as a creative invention against the prescriptive correctness, such as Omgodisridiculous (Oh my god! This is ridiculous!) (59). Chapter 8, “Idiomatic Englishes, Onomatopes, Authenticities,” analyzes the use of idiomatic Englishes and onomatopoeic words in Japanese students’ online communications. When certain words are combined together, they are endowed with metaphorical meanings rather than their literal meanings. For example, Jack of all trades, metaphorically means a person who is versatile. The linguistic authenticity of idioms is proved through their historical origins, but it is difficult for EFL learners to remember the conventional expressions. However, they can prove their language proficiency and use the words creatively if they can use the conventional expressions correctly. In a similar vein to onomatopoeic words, they express people’s genuine emotional expressions and reactions in the context of Facebook. For example, the expression Hahaha resembles people’s laughter. Such expressions are deemed as authentic English because their expressiveness brings out real “emotional sincerity” (72).To be the concluding part of the book, Chapter 9, “Translingual Englishes, Social Media, Language Ideologies, Critical Pedagogy,” seeks the implications of taking the linguistic realities on social media seriously. It has been concluded that the multiple expressions of English online can make EFL students fully aware of the infinite potentials of English language. The author also suggests combing the formal English textbooks with translingual features of Englishes on social media to make English learning more authentic and vivid.Generally speaking, the book has the following strengths. First, it provides readers with an in-depth view of language authenticity from different angles by illustrating different examples, which is against the concept of linguistic purism long held by many experts. The author thinks the idea of who is an authentic speaker is complicated, elastic, and complex, depending on the particular situation. We agree that language is a dynamic system; it changes through time and varies in different regions, so there is no fixed standard toward it. Nowadays, English has been served as a lingua franca for people who speak different L1 to communicate. “ELF is not a variety of English but a variable way of using English” (Seidlhofer, 77). So, there is no sense to regard British English more authentic than the English language used by Chinese people. For example, the term geilivable, which literally means “giving power” and figuratively means “awesome,” coined by Chinese Internet users is indeed an authentic expression, since it can fulfill their communicative needs and associate it with the social realities. People with different language-using habits and beliefs may also hold different opinions towards what is the authentic expression of language. For instance, some Chinese people might think 再会 [zai hui] (see you later) more authentic than 拜拜 [bai bai] (a transliteration of bye-bye). Actually, these expressions are all authentic as they can all perform the interpersonal function and satisfy interlocutors’ communicative needs. Therefore, the idea of authenticity should not be “assumed as a single-handed focal principle but rather a range of foci of ‘linguistic authenticities’ which are introduced differently in different local sociolinguistic contexts” (Naess).Second, the book gives us fascinating insights into linguistic creativity by introducing such notions as “inverted English” (45), “ghost English” (55) and “idiomatic English” (65). Previous studies (Kecskes) have proved that it is likely for a speech community to give special meanings to certain linguistic symbols if they have spent much time together. Therefore, it makes sense that why the inverted language can be defined as a secret language used for in-peer communicative practice. EFL users have invented their own expressions based on their existing L2 repertoire and L1 system to meet the emergent communicative needs. Their creations can often be considered as “the result of a hybrid or synergic system,” or “a blend of the two systems” (Kecskes, 57). By mentioning “ghost English” and “idiomatic English,” the book makes readers more aware of the creative use of language we have encountered online.Finally, it is also meaningful to mention the pedagogical implications of this book. The author suggests integrating translingual features of Englishes on social media with language teaching, making the use of social media as “socialization” and a “learning platform” (79). This suggestion might be feasible in revising EFL learning in China to incorporate the latest expressions used by native speakers or the mostly used abbreviations online (e.g., F2F, SYS, and LOL) into English textbooks. Such revisions may not only prevent EFL learners from intercultural misunderstandings but also attract students’ attention in learning English. For example, the latest popular expression used by Chinese netizens—no zuo no die, a creative combination of Chinese phonetic symbols and English language, means “never trouble trouble till trouble troubles you.” If teachers introduce such interesting expressions in class, students will notice that language is not fixed, but a dynamic system that can be used in an innovative way.Nevertheless, there are some points worth mentioning. The empirical studies illustrated in this book are all personalized. In Chapter 4, when studying the linguistic authenticity from the perspective of hip-hop culture, the author only mentioned the example of Otgon. It may result in a partial opinion, because there are no other supporting materials or data. The linguistic data involved are extracts merely from Facebook, which might lead to an insufficient source of the linguistic phenomenon. It is advisable to incorporate a study based on more inclusive corpus, from which the bigger data may guarantee the validity of the study.In conclusion, the book endorses linguistic diversity by promoting the idea of translingual Englishes. The pedagogical implications provide great insight into the future EFL classroom settings and reassessment of the complex relationship between EFL learners and English language. It fosters readers’ critical sociolinguistic and sociocultural awareness, making them understand that the language used on social media is closely interrelated with different ideologies and cultures.