Spoken English and Broken English George Bernard Shaw

Spoken English and Broken English -George Bernard Shaw

About the author G. Bernard Shaw (1856 -1950) was an Irish comic dramatist, literary critic , orator, socialist propagandist, and winner of the Nobel prize for literature in 1925 and of the Oscar for the best screenplay in 1938. A man of many cause, Shaw supported the abolition of private property and radical change in the voting system. He also campaigned for the simplification of spelling, and the reform of the English alphabet.

Shaw’s mix of satire and moral message achieved near perfection in his play Pygmalion in which Shaw highlights the differences between Queen’s English and Cockney to make endless fight of the importance high society pays to superficial secondary characteristics.

Background Spoken English and Broken English is a transcript of a radio talk that was recorded in 1927 and broadcast over Manhattan's radio station WNEW as a part of a series of talks called A Treasury of The Spoken World. This radio talk show brought to the listeners the voices and opinions of a host of diverse personalities that included, in addition to Shaw, people like Mahatma Gandhi, Franklin Roosevelt and Bing Crosby

Shaw’s views on spoken and broken English In this talk Shaw , who often argued for the simplification of the English language, puts forward his belief that even educated native speakers who are experts on the English language, cannot speak perfectly correct English and that every single native speaker pronounces even the commonest and simplest English words in his or her own unique way.

Examples from real life Shaw claims that even the members of the committee established by British Broadcasting Committee for the purpose of deciding the model of correct speech in English, speak English in their own native accent. This is because all are from different backgrounds e. g. Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Oxford university and American members. Even the simplest words like ‘yes” or “no” they speak in different way.

Only perfect in right context In his characteristic tongue –in –cheek, ironic style, Shaw then goes on to argue that when foreigners travel to English-speaking countries, they are better off speaking broken English than perfectly correct English For example if you say , “Will you have the goodness , Sir, to direct me to the railway terminus at Charing Cross, ” pronouncing all the vowels and consonants beautifully, he will not understand you, and suspect you of being a beggar or a confident trickster. But if you shout, “please ! Charing Cross! Which way!” you will have no difficulty. Half a dozen people will immediately overwhelm you with directions.

Language development activity Some of the words in the text contain silent letter, for example, ‘know’ ‘foreign’, ‘though’ etc. Mark the silent letter in these words: Islands ought Walk what Whether often Two might Would listen

Complete sentences with silent letters I wish we had added some a…. monds to the pudding. We must get a plum. . er to repair the leaking tap. The drou…t has ruined the crops. These flowers have a lovely s…ent. The s…ord of Tipu Sultan is kept in a museum. I am afraid I‘ve lost the recei…t. My mother is very fond of …. nitting. After the King’s death, his …eir Prnce Vikramaditya ruled the Kingdom.

suffix Words are often extended by adding suffixes. Suffixes are word endings, such as : -ed -ing -er -est -ish -y -able Note : adding a suffix can change a verb tense, make a comparative or superlative form, or change noun into adjectives etc. Look at these verbs from the text with their endings: Pronounced ashamed forgetting preferring

Rules for adding suffix Double the final constant if the word ends in one vowel + one consonant. Examples: cut-cutting; spot –spotty; wet – wetter; big- bigger Note: exceptions are one syllable words which end with w , x or y. e. g. buy - buying, few- fewer; box- boxer If the word ends in either two vowels + one consonant or one vowel + two consonants, we do not double the consonant. Examples: need-needed; wait- waited; adapt- adapted; talk- talked. Double the final constant if the last syllable is stressed and it ends in one syllable and one consonant. Examples: for. GET- for. GOTTEN; PREfer- pre. FERRING We do not double the final constant if if the stress is on the first syllable. Examples : FOSter- FOStering; PUNish- PUNished; LISten- LIStening

Activity Yesterday was the hot ………day of the year. Ibrahim has stop ………. . smoking. Jaya got tired of wait ………and left. The baby is already walk…………… That’s the sad……. news I have ever heard Smoking is not permit………… in the college. The earthquake happen ………. . in the evening. He has commit ………a serious crime. She explain……. . the begin……. Of the story to them. The culprit was adequately punish……….