Attitudes toward the Southern dialect in American English

Attitudes to the Southern Dialect

According to George Bernard Shaw, America and England "are two countries separated by a common language." Indeed, the differences in the manner in which English is spoken in these two countries has been the source of a great deal of research -- and amusement -- on both sides of the Atlantic but the interest in how English is spoken differently also extends to the dialects spoken in various regions of the United States itself. In this regard, Bex and Watts (1999) report that, "Standard English is simply a sub-variety of English, differing from regional varieties of the language in being a 'social dialect.' There is thus no one accent which is associated with it. (113). Likewise, Hartley and Preston (1999) advise, "A commonplace in United States linguistics is that every region supports its own standard. In the United States there is no one regional dialect that serves as the model. Each region of the country has its own standard" (207).

While English speakers in the U.S. may use many of the same words, the manner in which they are articulated and the syntax and phraseology used by Americans from different regions appears to make regional dialects sound strange to people from different regions. These different perception of regional variations has been the focus of a growing amount of research in recent years. For instance, according to Macneil (2005), "Linguist Dennis Preston of Michigan State University has spent years studying the prejudices Americans have concerning speech different from their own" (18). The studies by Preston typically involve asking random Americans to identify those regions of the country where they believed people spoke differently in an effort to determine where regional dialects adversely affected the perception of the uneducated and unpleasant qualities of these regional dialects. Time and again, Preston has determined that most Americans cite the South as being characterized by uneducated language use but that they still regard the dialect as being "charming" (Macneil 19). To explain this perception, Preston and other linguists suggest that many Americans are exposed to and learn to understand regional dialects through the media, a process that contributes to an increased appreciation for the diversity of the American social landscape. According to Macneil, though, "No matter how they themselves speak, Americans learn to understand the language of network broadcasters, which is the closest thing to an overall American standard. That standard coincides with the speech that Preston's subjects inevitably identify as the best American speech -- that of the Midwest -- because it has the fewest regional features" (19).

Research Question

The research question that guided this study was, "Do people tend to prefer the dialect of the region of the United States in which they were raised?

Hypothesis

Based on studies of languages attitudes by the linguist, Dennis Preston (1999) and others, that have determined that individuals tend to prefer the dialects of their own region, it was the hypothesis of this study that those respondents who identified themselves as being from the South would attribute the notions of "pleasantness" and "correctness" to the Southern dialect compared to respondents from other regions of the country.

Description of the Methodology

This study used a convenience sampling to survey 20 male and female respondents (n = 11 males; 9 females) concerning the region of their origin as well as their parents' origins, their gender and their attitudes about the southern dialect of the United States. These responses were then grouped into two categories, "pleasantness" and "correctness" (e.g., responses that were deemed related to "pleasantness" also included "friendly," "polite," "beautiful," etc.). No effort at randomization was made with the only criteria for participation in the survey being a willingness to participate. No compensation was offered to the respondents for their participation.

Ethical Concerns and Potential Biases

Because all of the respondents were assured of anonymity and that the results of the survey and study would remain confidential and would be used for academic purposes only, there were few ethical concerns involved in this methodological approach. Although the potential for researcher bias always exists, it was felt that the survey design, the interpolation of the review of the literature and interpretation of the results of the survey were straightforward and were not biased in any fashion.

Conclusion

The research showed that Standard English is spoken differently in various regions of the United States and that linguists such as Dennis Preston believe that most Americans tend to prefer the dialect of their own regions. The research question that was used to guide this study was, "Do people tend to prefer the dialect of the region of the United States in which they were raised?" And the findings of the survey support an affirmative answer to this question. The results of the survey showed that none of the negative perceptions concerning the constructs of "pleasantness" and "correctness" were attributed to the southern dialect by the respondents who identified themselves as being from this region of the country, while these responses were restricted to those from the Northern and Midland regions. By sharp contrast, all of the respondents who identified themselves as being from the Southern region provided positive responses to the constructs of "pleasantness" and "correctness," but a majority of the respondents from the Northern and Midland regions likewise included these characterizations of the Southern dialect in their responses as well. These findings suggest that although some Americans from the Northern and Midland regions may regard the Southern dialect as being "unpleasant" and "incorrect," most would appear to consider the Southern dialect to be "charming" in terms of its pleasant and correct qualities. Taken together, these findings confirm the hypothesis of this study which was that those respondents who identified themselves as being from the South would attribute the notions of "pleasantness" and "correctness" to the Southern dialect compared to respondents from other regions of the country.