How My Spoken Language Changes in Different Situations
Spoken Language
Although I have my own idiolect, the way I speak constantly changes. This is because I try to adapt my spoken language to suit the situation I am in. There are many reasons for why I try to adapt my spoken language some of the main reasons being that I am fearful of the judgements and perceptions that others may make because of the way I speak also being afraid of exclusion or not being able to fit in and sometimes I feel pressurised into speaking in a certain way.
With my parents I often codeswitch between Bengali (my mother tongue) and English. ‘Aboo money lagé’ (Dad I need money). Notice how I go from speaking Bengali to English and then once more back to Bengali. I use more Bengali to show my parents that even though I am bilingual and get to experience another cultures, I am still in touch with my Bengali heritage. If I was to speak in full English my parents may think that I prefer my English over Bengali. Therefore I feel the need to speak Bengali as culture is very important to my family and so by speaking the language I am showing that I value the language and the culture, which will please my parents.
When I speak with my family I sometimes use fluent Bengali. There are several reasons for why I speak in this way. The main reasons being that, the atmosphere is very strict and so I feel pressurised to speak fluently, because I am worried my parents would get cross at me if my Bengali was not fluent. I also use fluent Bengali to show my parents that I can speak the language of the native speakers in Bangladesh which would make them proud. Also by speaking fluent Bengali makes it easier to communicate with my parents as they understand what I am saying, which emotionally makes me feel closer to them.
Although I speak Bengali with my parents I use formal Bengali. This is because my parents are older than me and have power over me so I need to respect them. Another reason why I speak formal Bengali is that it makes my parents proud
Although I have my own idiolect, the way I speak constantly changes. This is because I try to adapt my spoken language to suit the situation I am in. There are many reasons for why I try to adapt my spoken language some of the main reasons being that I am fearful of the judgements and perceptions that others may make because of the way I speak also being afraid of exclusion or not being able to fit in and sometimes I feel pressurised into speaking in a certain way.
With my parents I often codeswitch between Bengali (my mother tongue) and English. ‘Aboo money lagé’ (Dad I need money). Notice how I go from speaking Bengali to English and then once more back to Bengali. I use more Bengali to show my parents that even though I am bilingual and get to experience another cultures, I am still in touch with my Bengali heritage. If I was to speak in full English my parents may think that I prefer my English over Bengali. Therefore I feel the need to speak Bengali as culture is very important to my family and so by speaking the language I am showing that I value the language and the culture, which will please my parents.
When I speak with my family I sometimes use fluent Bengali. There are several reasons for why I speak in this way. The main reasons being that, the atmosphere is very strict and so I feel pressurised to speak fluently, because I am worried my parents would get cross at me if my Bengali was not fluent. I also use fluent Bengali to show my parents that I can speak the language of the native speakers in Bangladesh which would make them proud. Also by speaking fluent Bengali makes it easier to communicate with my parents as they understand what I am saying, which emotionally makes me feel closer to them.
Although I speak Bengali with my parents I use formal Bengali. This is because my parents are older than me and have power over me so I need to respect them. Another reason why I speak formal Bengali is that it makes my parents proud