I believe that language plays a gargantuan role in creating and reinforcing
social distinctions such as class, ethnicity, and gender. In this post,
however, I am going to focus solely on the effect of language in creating and
reinforcing the social distinction of class.
Language has created and reinforced the social distinction of class in
literature for centuries throughout various cultures, including that of 15th-century
England. Englishman William Shakespeare published Henry V, a play
currently being read by Sturgis English Hl 1 IB students, as a historical play which highlights English culture in the 1400s. In this play, the
contrast between the language Shakespeare employed for the common folk and the
language employed for the nobility creates and reinforces the social
distinction of class. Shakespeare first uses language to create a class
distinction when the readers are introduced to three commoners: Bardolph, Nym,
and Pistol in Act II scene I. Throughout all of Act I of Henry V, we become
accustomed to the nobility speaking in iambic pentameter, but Shakespeare
changes things up at the beginning of Act II when we, the readers, are
introduced to three commoners who do not speak in iambic pentameter.
Shakespeare reinforces class distinction throughout the play, with the nobles
always speaking in iambic pentameter and the commoners always in 15th century colloquial English.
Language has also created and reinforced the social distinction of class in
everyday life through standardized tests such as the SAT. As a high school
junior, the SAT is of unique importance, as I will be taking this standardized
test later this year as part of the college admissions process. Although I have begun practicing so that I can do my best, I know that my family's income may also affect my score. Studies, such as the one conducted by the College Board in 2009 and posted
on the New York Times website (link below), have proven that the language used
by the writers of the SAT tends to benefit teens in higher-income families. Higher-income families have the money to hire tutors to help their children practice for and become accustomed to the language used on the SAT. The
charts for the three SAT categories, critical reading, math, and writing, are
divided into 10 income groups and show the average score in each category for
each income group. Looking at the critical reading scores, the average for a
child whose family income is less than $20,000 is 434 while the average for a
child whose family income is greater is $200,000 is 563. While one may argue
that the difference (129) is not a huge difference, this seems like a giant
difference to me, someone who has taken standardized tests before and is pretty
familiar with how the tests are scored. While it has probably been well-known
that the language used by the SAT writers tends to benefit teens in
higher-income families for years, charts such as those on the New York Times
website reinforce these social distinctions.
So, in conclusion, as demonstrated through
my experience as an IB learner, my
experience with language of the culture of 15th-century England, and my everyday experience with language, I conclude that language plays a
large role in creating and reinforcing class distinctions.
