Week
3
PART
1: Different Englishes
Performing
Identity: a Stage for Multilingual English and Multicultural Englishess
Charlene Rajendran is a writer, teacher and theatre director/performer in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. http://www.britishcouncil.org/studies/england/rajendran.htm
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Performing Identity: Charlene Rajendran is a writer, teacher
and theatre director/performer in Kuala Lumpur,
Malaysia. * * * how come your
English is so good? When is the
last time you were asked 'how come your English is so good? Perhaps you
have never been asked that question. Perhaps your English is not so
good. Or perhaps your English is so good but because you are expected
to have good English to begin with, the question is never asked. The last time
I was asked this question was a few months ago in Malaysia. A visiting theatre director from England on tour with her production
had come to talk to a group of students in a residential sixth form school
just outside Kuala Lumpur. I had driven her there and we had been talking in
the car for about an hour. She had asked all kinds of questions about
Malaysian politics, history and the theatre scene
there. And as we turned into the entrance to the school she turned to ask me
"how come your English is so good?". I was fairly dumbfounded[預設1] as I was not expecting
the question and thus cannot recall what my reply was. As we got to the
parking lot, she turned to her Assistant and remarked "Isn't it
incredible we have come so far and people everywhere speak our language
' - how amazing it was that they travelled all over
the world and almost everywhere they went people spoke their language. I suppose my
English is either not supposed to be so good or my English is in fact
not the same as her English and thus she is curious about how I got
this kind of English. Almost as if I picked it up in a shop and paid good
money for it. It has after all lasted me well and thus must be of fairly
decent quality. That is not to
say my English is particularly good at all. I am fairly sure
that if my skin were a different colour and I lived
in a different country, I would not be asked this question ever. And I have
been asked it several times. My English is a
multilingual English My English is simply a
Malaysian English. Whatever the accent I choose to use and whatever the lexical[預設2] item I choose to
incorporate, it is my English and it is Malaysian. Because I am
Malaysian. And there are several brands of Malaysian English on the market
where I got mine. My English is also a multilingual English - an
English of many types, many strands and many varieties. When I go to a
Government Office in Malaysia I begin by speaking Malay and when the officer
begins to speak to me in English I adopt an accent that makes me sound more
like him or her, depending on how they speak - often with a Malay accent.
That has its own style and sound. And I try to make it clear that I am very
local and that my English is not the snobbish kind. When I arrive
at the British Immigration counter in Heathrow, I
adopt a rather proper accent that makes it seem as if I am a native here and
thus not likely to be a problem to the country or society. I am particularly
keen to impress with what must be regarded as a rather respectable accent as
I have few if any problems compared to the other foreign sounding travellers with brown skin like mine. My English
also can switch one. When I am in the night market or the shopping centre where there is alot of
bargaining to do then I will simply mix the codes and switch the accents to
make it more friendly lor. This way maybe I can get
extra 10 percent discount. Sometimes when
I am teaching a language class and I want to sound foreign to make a point or
to amuse my students I use a European accent like a French one if I am
talking about cuisine and explaining to them that the word c-h-e-f is
pronounced chef and not chef. When I speak
to my Aunt's Filipina domestic maid I lilt towards
her Filipino accent and ask her stories about her family. I just love the
sound of the Tagalog language especially when it is
sung. It is of
course really easy to use the American accent in class because so many young
people just wanna be cool and they watch television
and listen to pop music that is largely from North America and many of them
adopt a pseudo American accent as well. But to the man
from whom I buy my roti chanai and chicken curry I will speak with alot
more head shaking and rrr rolling in the hope that
his portions will be more generous of course. Englishness has been Malaysianised
just as English has But what is
the English I speak at home and among friends? What aspects of Englishness do I breathe and live? Or is this language
which is my mother tongue and father tongue, my grandmother tongue and my
grandfather tongue, a foreign language that has invaded my being but has no
real place there. Is not authentic. Perhaps it is
not even English anymore. Because it was learnt from people who are not
English in a land that is not English , it is spoken most of the time to
people who are not English and thus what connection does it have with Englishness at all? When I came to
study at University in England some of my friends were most tickled[預設3] that I had competed in
elocution[預設4] contests and that our
schools have speech days, that we sang songs like 'It's a long way to Tipperaree' at our Christmas
parties and have marmalade and toast for breakfast. Most of the students in
my college were English and from Surrey! If these are
some typical aspects of Englishness, then they have
stayed with us in post-colonial Malaya and have now become a part of us in
semi-globalised Malaysia. However the speeches on
speech day are of course in Malay, the elocution contests are largely in
Malay, 'It's a Long Way to Tipperaree' leads into a
baila, which is a Singhalese folk song, and the
marmalade is sometimes eaten with roti chanai instead of toast. Englishness has been Malysianised, just as
English has. And with each variation or hybrid, a new brand emerges. That
which we subscribe to and sometimes even prescribe is a sense of English and Englishness that we feel is ours and is in synch with
what we aspire towards. Whether or not they will survive the market forces of
change is another question of course. English has
acquired a culturally viable and hybrid local sensibility of its own in the
former British colonies where the language has had a relatively long history.
The localisation of English as well as the ongoing
viability of other languages point to the ascendancy [預設5]of contradictory and
contesting cultural flows. ( Sumit Mandal) The
contradictory and contesting flows have led to a multiculturalism within a
broad category of culture - a multicultural Englishness,
in a multicultural Malaysianess - where there is no
fixed and ready culture or identity in the singular (Stuart Hall) - and the cosmopolitan[預設6] merges with the
provincial to create a condition that is transnational
as well as transrural. In the mix
that makes Malaysia, we choose the strands that make up the composite of our
individual identities for acknowledgment, approval and attention. Sometimes
this is done carefully and in accordance with the rules, but at other times
it is irreverent[預設7] and blatantly
disregards the rules. When it comes to filling in official forms, we
subscribe to the categories of race, gender and religion assigned. But when
it comes to food or clothes we eat and wear what we please to a larger extent
and thereby extend the boundaries of eating and wearing. The act of
identity is not one that can be quantified strictly. Sometimes its purpose is
far different from its interpretation. The accent may be a convenience and
not really anything to do with who I am and what I feel, apart from the fact
that this will get me through the queue faster and with less hassle. The
marmalade with roti may also be due to
having run out of bread. But the batik ballgown
may be setting a new trend. So mush
of me So mush
of me is English. So mush
of me lives Anglo. So, mush
of me So, mush
of me So mush
of me So mush
of me is (a poem from 'Mangosteen Crumble: a book of poems' by Charlene Rajendran (1999) Team East.) a style
that has a particular charm Because our
Malaysian Englishes and Englishness
are less known to the rest of the world, they can sometimes be regarded as
cute or quaint[預設10], a style that has a
particular charm. But not something to be taken seriously as a performance of
self and society that seeks to say I speak or I do therefore I am. This
imbalance in what is known of adaptations and appropriations of English is
slowly being redressed. The Empire Writes Back! There are a growing number of
performers and writers from South East Asia who are making a place for
themselves on the global map. Whether it be actress Michelle Yeoh from Malaysia or musician-deejay
Najib Ali from Singapore,
their vocabularies, accents and varieties of language and culture have become
popular and travelled into the mainstream media
where they are heard and revered[預設11]! Homi Bhabha, whose aim in the suggestion of the
Re-Inventing Britain idea is to get away from a view of culture as an
evaluative activity concerned primarily with attribution[預設12] of identity
(individual and collective) and the conferral of authenticity (custom,
tradition, ritual) says that the work of culture does not exist at the level
at which a community expresses a demand but at the level at which that demand
becomes articulated with other demands in order to be able to claim a value
and become meaningful as a form of cultural judgment. This
articulation is performance. On a stage, meaning in a space, and with an
audience, people who respond. Identity has to be performed before it really
has a place in the collective or individual experience or psyche. And
identity works best as a creative selection made for a purposeful
performance. Like a selection of food or clothes. Richard Poirier, in his examination of writing as performance and
writers as performers says that it's performance that matters - pacing,
economies, juxtapositions, aggregations of tone, the whole conduct of the
shaping presence. Identity as performance is a composite that makes art. When
we write our own identities we exercise the power to create and to transform. Performance is
an exercise of power, a very curious one. Curious because it is at first so
furiously self-consultive, so even
narcissistic[預設13], and later so eager
for publicity, love, and historical dimension. Out of an accumulation of
secretive acts emerges at last a form that presumes to compete with reality
itself for control of the minds exposed to it. (Richard Poirier) This is not
about performance as pretence[預設14] which acquires for
itself authenticity or identity as labels or medals to show off on the
shoulder. But performance as an act that is governed, influenced, suggested
and driven by policy, preference, passion, need, etc. and the whole conduct
of the shaping presence which will create its own sense of self, community,
society. A new composite making a new brand. must vary
in texture and tone Yet identity
must vary in texture and tone if it is to satisfy and be of more than just
functional value. The selection of what to wear depends of course on a
variety of factors from fashion to mood, convention to convenience. Outfits
that work are about combinations that bring out the best in a wearer whilst
being suited for the occasion. Outfits also serve to make a statement. Whether
to stand out or blend in. Whether to attract attention or deflect[預設15] it. So whether it
is about ethnicity, nationality, sexuality, ideology or whatever else,
identity is like a shifting mosaic [預設16]or composite in flux
that needs to be changed every so often. Affiliations and associations are
then built up around the choices made and each particular mix comes with its
own luggage of problem and prejudice. Hence
sometimes it's refreshing to just go without, be in the nude, skinny dip or
take a Japanese Hot Bath where being without clothes among other people who
are similiarly dressed, or undressed can in fact be
quite liberating. Perhaps in airports we come closest to being without
identity. Where anyone could be from anywhere and going anyplace or simply in
transit. Passengers on a passage about to come or go. Because
language and ethnicity are important factors in the Malaysian political
arena, and they have been used by politicians to manoeuvre[預設17] and malign[預設18] when they deem fit,
Malaysians cannot help but be affected by the extent to which the languages
we speak and our ethnicity is either regarded as majority or minority, indigene or migrant, local or foreign, regardless of
actual cultural practice. Being Malay
means being bumiputera or prince of the soil and
thus entitled to certain privileges of affirmative action. Speaking Malay
means being nationalistic especially if one is not ethnically Malay. Being
Chinese means being part of a so-called migrant community although some
families have been in Malaysia for more than 400 years and others have
inter-married so extensively to become a very mixed ethnicity. Eurasians or
Pan-Asian by blood and culture. Speaking Tamil
means being communal and appealing to only a small sector of society. Being a
part of the aboriginal community is often to be even more marginalised
because rights and privileges are determined by those who do not belong to
the community at all. Categories and stereotypes that are changing and being
modified by the new forces in the market of identity brands. But labels that
continue to hold strong nonetheless. Luggage that is difficult to get rid of. a seemingly
neutral medium Amidst this
English and Englishness have a critical role to
play. Whether it is the acquisition and indigenisation [預設19]of the language or the
cultural practice, English has expanded vigorously in key areas of life
following the state's embrace of globalisation in
the 1990's. In particular it has made inroads in the corporate sector,
technology, education and in the social life of major urban centres. (Sumit Mandal) For a long
time in recent history it was adopted as a language of education and
administration, colonialism and imperialism, and thus has remained a language
of power and prestige that still has very high status compared to the
National Language which is Malay. It is seen nowadays as a seemingly neutral
medium and thus more elastic. Able to be more inclusive of all kinds of
grammars and vocabularies in the spoken form because a range of people use it
and appropriate it without feeling cultural betrayal. This is partly because
it has no traditional ties to ethnic groups in the society although for many
of us it is our mother and father tongue. And it is less regulated and ruled
compared to Malay. But being
English educated, or seen as Western or Anglophile has certain elitist and
distancing effects. And thus to deal with this, certain variations have
evolved that soften the elements of Englishness and
yet do not lose them. Playing with aspects of our identity that are not
controlled or censored by policy. Redefining and remixing
since nationalisation and orientalism,
capitalism and globalisation have come to play. In the English
language theatre scene in Malaysia for example,
these varieties of English are played with most successfully to create layers
and textures of meaning on stage. Directors who devise plays, use the range
of linguistic flexibility available to their actors, to tease the audience
about ideas and thoughts that may be scrutinised [預設20]as subversive or
sensitive in more official terms, but within the playful zone of the stage
are often overlooked by the censorship authorities. The Instant
Cafe Theatre, who are a very popular dinner theatre group who perform very political satire in
English, get away with much attack and comment on Malaysian systems and
structures, politics and politicians, because they perform to an elite group
of people in urban, cosmopolitan contexts, in a language that is the command
of a minority. They would not have the same freedoms if they were to perform
in Malay to a more grassroots audience. And yet they are an important
presence in the cultural life of Malaysia because they touch on raw nerves
and give voice to open wounds within the safety net of humour. 'A Chance
Encounter' is a devised play directed by Krishen Jit from Five Arts Centre,
about a Chinese cosmetics salesgirl who meets an Indian Muslim elderly lady
in a shopping mall. It is a recent example of a play that used multilingual
English and Malay freely. Most Malaysians who watched the play were not
bothered by this as it sounded fairly similar to the way these two people
would talk if they were real, losing some the artificiality of some staged
material based on scripts that adhere[預設21] to grammars and
vocabularies rarely used in spoken discourse. However there were some members
of the audience who objected strongly to the fact that there had been no
'warning' of the fact that the different languages were being used and thus
when they could not understand some parts of the play, they became very
disturbed. The title was deemed misleading but then again, should not a
Malaysian play be simply a Malaysian linguistic and cultural experience that
needs no further clarification? Clearly it touched on an aspect of our
linguistic and cultural identity that has been little addressed on the public
platform. And perhaps the consequences would have been graver[預設22] if the title had been
in Malay and the liberties taken were seen to be detrimental[預設23] to National Culture.
Did it need to spell out that this was a bilingual play, when in fact it was
multilingual within the two broad categories of languages used? more
concerned with the verb than the noun The
accumulative effect of each performance of identity is a redefinition of
meaning, a shift of emphasis and a relocation of focus. Identity becomes more
concerned with the verb than the noun - the doing more than the labelling. Actions that take place in the imagination or
in the physical world. Actions that then become categorised
or labelled as new brands perhaps, but ones which
assume their own authority of quality and value. These labels
can of course be restrictive. As all categories are. But when we recognise that identity should be about vocabularies
rather than grammars, then we are more free to mix and match without worrying
about the rules. Yet we seem to
want to have control over what is included in our categories in order to feel
secure that we have not lost a distinctive and perhaps distinguished quality
about ourselves. And yet who
decides? The players or the play? The policy or the polity? The person or the
persona? In the threat
of a loss of identity in the face of modernisation
or globalisation, which seems to suggest a homogenisation[預設24] of sorts, language and
culture become the contesting forces that write back and speak back. These
acts of identity are about securing and retaining power - power to speak for
and against, power to wield economic influence and clout, power to claim
space for one's self, community and nation. The performance of identity is then
inclusive of every selection of language, word, food, clothing, ritual,
ceremony, and so on - each making its own rite of passage into the spaces
where identity lives and breathes - inroads into the sensibility and the self
- not just technology, education and the corporate sector. beyond the
textbook version In discussing
the developments in English language theatre in
Singapore, and looking at the instrumentalist-rational attitudes that have
dominated policy for so long, Wee Wan-ling suggests
that "we need a stronger and critical historical discourse so that we
have an understanding of history in depth, as the past is that foundation of
individual and collective identity. A rigorous approach will help pre-empt[預設25] the danger of theatre potentially catering either to merely nostalgic
impulses or falling prey to easy notions of 'global culture' which may
resemble the multi-cultural emptiness of Benetton advertisements - given capitalism's amazing commodification[預設26] capacity". (C J
Wee Wan-ling). To avoid this
exotic emptiness, we need to recognise within
history and tradition the diversity that has for so long been left out. The
range of perspective and the plurality of stories that make up the face of
history beyond the textbook version of the past. This means reclaiming spaces
that have been designated either controversial and dangerous, or unimportant
and irrelevant. But spaces where acts of identity have been performed and
spaces which will affect how we choose our performances today. The threat of
a loss of space or a loss of defined space creates certain fears - loss of
distinction or loss of distinguishment. Acts of
identity can become dangerously neurotic[預設27] and frighteningly paranoid [預設28]when this begins to
happen. Scrutinising every detail of who does what
and why because of a perceived threat. Wanting to protect what comes in and
out of the category. Almost as if the brand loses market value if it admits
just anybody and anything into its space. Despite impending loss or even
extinction. History does
help keep our balance. But an open and honest history that takes into account
the meek and the bleak, the glory and the gory. A history that is multi-pronged in its approach to telling the story
because it too is a performance of sorts, it too is an aspect of identity. the need to
go back to an essence or root Is that what
has happened to English and Englishness? That it is
has been assumed by so many in such diverse locations, that the need to go
back to an essence or root seems greater in the space that calls itself England?
Such that the need for re-definition has become greater? Because there is a
perception that there was something essential to begin with - an originally
whole culture (Stuart Hall). Have English and Englishness
been so overwhelmed by their expansion and extension that they have begun to
desire smaller spaces with more exclusivist[預設29] memberships? Or have they begun to seek their own version
of exoticism and quaintness? Certainly in
Malaysia, when ethnic, religious, cultural or linguistic groups feel threatened
they revert to a greater protection and propagation of that which makes them
distinct. And there is more rigour about not losing
the essence or the essentials of the culture. This creates unfortunate repercussions[預設30] that range from
widespread social instability to rising tensions within members of a family.
And the problems of essentialism[預設31] come to bear. I suggest that
the way to deal with this kind of fear is to recognise
that there are multilingual languages and multicultural cultures that accept
and validate all performances with purpose as acts of identity that have
right of space and voice. These are not determined by core and periphery, centre and margin, but elements and performances which
move in and out, to and fro depending on the need
and purpose to perform. This would apply to any language and culture that is
international and has crossed borders freely and for long periods of time.
But perhaps more so with English because of its history of imperialism and
current role in the cyber world - where networks
are all, and each link or entry is given equal access to the web provided the
modem allows and the server supplies. In Malaysia
this awareness is slowly catching on as something that is translatable into
the political arena. Political leaders and parties begin to recognise that playing the narrow minded race card can in
fact backfire and to be more accepting and inclusive of plurality can be a
vote getting strategy. Where the identity of the party or coalition becomes
the composite of the strands of ideology, ethnicity, religion, and culture of
those who belong and who work together. needs to be
loved In recognising identity as a live performance that changes
all the time, we have to insure the
linguistic and cultural category as an elastic one which integrates all kinds
of vocabularies without feeling threatened by regular entry and exit -
passages to and fro. After all identity seeks to be
acknowledged, paid attention to and approved and to gain these it needs to be
more than politically or grammatically correct. It needs to be enjoyed,
desired and loved. When we write
our own identities we make them what we will in accordance with our liberty
and capacity to craft an identity that we think we will enjoy and that will
perform its task effectively. History, language and culture are primary
elements in this composite, and we shift and change when we need to or so
desire. Every
selection and performance is a thrust of power that seeks 'love'. And when
that love is taken away or denied, identity seeks to alter itself in order to
re-gain love, performing acts that will accord it the affection and
affirmation it needs. The audience is imperative[預設32]. The self that
is able to play freely and with a sense of humour
with aspects of identity, is perhaps the more engaging self. And the stage
for its performance whilst being a constantly moving stage is a flexible and
elastic one. The individual and the collective then learn how to adapt to the
space and audience to create performances that explore new terrain whilst
juggling the elements of the old. Asserting the voices that need to be heard
whilst listening to the responses of the audience who attend. We are all
politicians seeking to be voted into the office of our making. Seeking to be
trusted with power to govern and change. Above all seeking to be loved and to
love, fall in love and be fallen in love with. So' how come your
English is so good?' Perhaps the next time I am asked this question I will be
less dumbfounded and reply - 'because I love my English and my
English has grown to love me back.' References: Bhabha, H (1999) 'Re-inventing Britain - a manifesto' in Nick Wadham -Smith (ed) Anthology
Issues 6-10, British Council Hall, S (1999)
'Opening Remarks at the Re-inventing Britian
conference, London, March 1997' in Nick Wadham
-Smith (ed) Anthology Issues 6-10, British
Council Mandal, S (1999) 'Reconsidering Cultural Globalisation
: Is the Expansion of the English Language in Malaysia Double-Edged?'
for forthcoming publication in Mittelman and Othman (eds) Capturing Globalisation. Poirier, R (1992) The Performing Self, Rutgers
University Press Wee, Wan-ling, C.J (1999) 'National Identity, The Arts and The
Global City', for forthcoming publication in Derek da
Cunha (ed) Singapore
in the New Millenium: Challenges Facing the City
State |
|
|
Produced
in United Kingdom by The British Council © 2000. The British Council is the
United Kingdom's international organisation for
educational and cultural relations. Registered in England as a Charity. |
PART
2
"MOTHER TONGUE" by Amy Tan
Lifted from HYPERNEWS FORUM http://hyper.vcsun.org/HyperNews/sjackson/get/tan1.html
Please respond to TWO of the three questions written below.
Your response to EACH question should be at least 10 lines, i.e.
approximately the equivalent of half a page each. Next week, you will be
required to respond to the postings of two other students from class B.
Question 1: What does Amy Tan mean when she talks about the
"different Englishes" she used while
growing up, and how did these "different Englishes"
influence her relationship with her mother?
Question 2: We all have different ways of speaking when we
talk to different people. Describe the "different Englishes"
that you speak, and explain why you change the way you speak. (Consider how you
talk to friends, parents, siblings, small children, older adults, teachers,
fellow employees, supervisors at work, etc.)
Question 3: If you speak more than one language, describe
any difficulties you experienced learning and using your second language. Have
any of your experiences been similar to Tan’s?
[預設1]Main Entry: dumb·found to confound briefly and usually with astonishment
[預設2]Main Entry: lex·i·cal of or relating to words or the vocabulary of a language as distinguished from its grammar and construction
[預設3]to provoke to laughter or merriment tick·le
[預設4]el·o·cu·tion the art of effective public speaking
[預設5]as·cen·dan·cy governing or controlling influence
[預設7]ir·rev·er·ent lacking proper respect or seriousness
[預設8]idyll a simple descriptive work in poetry or prose that deals with rustic life or pastoral scenes or suggests a mood of peace and contentment b : a narrative poem (as Tennyson's Idylls of the King) treating an epic, romantic, or tragic theme
[預設9]an·gli·cize to make English in quality or characteristics
[預設10]quaint marked by beauty or elegance
[預設11]re·vere to show devoted deferential honor to
[預設12]at·tri·bu·tion the act of attributing; especially : the ascribing of a work (as of literature or art) to a particular author or artist
[預設14]pre·tense claim made or implied; especially : one not supported by fact
[預設15]de·flect to turn aside
[預設16]mo·sa·ic a surface decoration made by inlaying small pieces of variously colored material to form pictures or patterns; also : the process of making it
[預設17]ma·neu·ver evasive movement or shift of tactics
[預設18]ma·lign evil in nature, influence, or effect
[預設19]in·dig·e·ni·za·tion to cause to have indigenous characteristics;
indigenous - having originated in and being produced, growing, living, or occurring naturally in a particular region or environment
[預設20]scru·ti·nize stresses close attention to minute detail
[預設21]ad·here to give support or maintain loyalty
[預設22]meriting serious consideration
[預設23]det·ri·men·tal obviously harmful
[預設24]ho·mog·e·ni·za·tion to blend (diverse elements) into a uniform mixture
[預設25]pre·empt to prevent from happening or taking place
[預設27]neu·rot·ic a mental and emotional disorder that affects only part of the personality, is accompanied by a less distorted perception of reality than in a psychosis, does not result in disturbance of the use of language, and is accompanied by various physical, physiological, and mental disturbances (as visceral symptoms, anxieties, or phobias)
[預設28]para·noid extremely fearful
[預設29]ex·clu·siv·ist to bar from participation, consideration, or inclusion
[預設30]re·per·cus·sion a widespread, indirect, or unforeseen effect of an act, action, or event -- usually used in plural
[預設31]es·sen·tial·ism an educational theory that ideas and skills basic to a culture should be taught to all alike by time-tested methods