ematusov@UDel.Edu writes:
>Our mainstream culture is a culture of understanding and fluency.
>Understanding is considered to be non-problematic, expected, and normal.
>Non- and mis-understanding is abnormal and dysfunctional. If I understand
>correctly Jay, he calls for destroying the normalcy of fluent
>understanding
>and for expecting non- and mis-understandings (and cultural mastery of
>dealing with them). If my understanding of Jay is incorrect, feel free to
>attribute the statement to me :-)
>
>What do you think?
>
>Eugene
This morning I was in a school where the natural mode of communication is
Welsh. I I collected a bit of language use from a predominantly Welsh
speaking child. In Bart Simpson mode she was writing out a punishment
note, which for a reason I have yet to discover, was in English. As you
will see her writing may at first appear to be completely odd. However
Welsh, unlike English, is written phonetically (using the Welsh phonetic
values for the alphabet).
Her writing (in Welsh phonemes) is completely understandable:
To: " Why I have to behave responsibly in lessons" , she replies:
"so wi can lyrn in lesyns and bihef wen tetys tel ys to lisyn" and " we
haftw bihef and lisyn o wi get a row ol the taim if we dont lisyn".
I translate:
"So we can learn in lessons an behave when teachers tell us to listen" and
"we have to behave and listen or we get a row all the time if we don't
listen."
As I can read Welsh, I had no problem in reading this non-standard
English. Her communication to me was competent but to others it could be a
complete mystery. Where do I draw lines?
Martin
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