Sandoval Oscar Sandoval November 16, 2012 English 1102 Perkins The Inevitable Change in Speech

Many people may find that their speech differs depending on the people or situation they find themselves in. Most of the time it may seem like a conscious effort to change your whole vocabulary and speaking style to fit in with a group or to make yourself seem well spoken in a social or academic situation. The more you adjust your language the more second nature it becomes. There is nothing wrong with doing so and it is a vital part of communication. It allows the speaker or writer to voice their thoughts to appeal to several different people. By slightly changing the words or phrases they already use, the speaker is able to simplify to fit informal situation, and enhance it to make it fit a formal one. Changing your speech to fit a discourse shouldnt be seen as a negative it is a talent that language provides us. Certain situations require a very formal way of speaking; such as speaking to a professional. Even if you think you are lesser than this professional, you may be capable of proving yourself if you are well spoken. Eloquence is highly important in the professional world; it is an art form within language. In contrast informality is also very important. With certain people you may need to simplify your speech and add some contemporary terms to provide a connection with the other individuals. For example taking a plain sentence like I dont like olives, could be changed to I do not care for olives or Olives taste like shit. Each could be used in different situations with different people. This adjustment seems very unconscious while performing it in daily life but observed closely it is quite technical.

Sandoval Some people see the changing of speech to be fake or untrue to themselves, a study by James Paul Gee led to some interesting results. Jane claimed that she herself did not shift her language when speaking to different people, but, rather, was consistent from context to context.

In fact to do otherwise, she said would be hypocritical, a failure to be oneself. (87-88) This subject has a close mindset of what language is. To Jane, you have one language/one form of speech and that is how you must speak all the time. But this was immediately proved not to be the case, as she was observed to use two completely contrasting forms of speech to speak to her parents and then to her boyfriend. To her parents she was formal; thought about what she wanted to say and had stronger word choice such as most offensive, callous, and professed. To her boyfriend, Jane just spoke what was on her mind and used words like ass, you know, and never. This is a key example that change in speech is inevitable, she wasnt even aware of how different she spoke to her boyfriend in comparison to her parents. But Jane could use this change in her language to help her grow and expand her vocabulary instead of feeling the change is a negative thing. I associate with many different groups, and feel like they have all provided me with something to take away from the group. Words or phrases that I now can use and implement into my many other discourses. For me these terms tend to be technical terms or slang that may not mean much to most, but they are very prevalent in my form of speech especially outside of school. Words like hella, tru, Gucci provide my speech with a zing, which I think is imperative sometimes to liven up the conversation or just as a key aspect of it. Im hella bored Whats Gucci?, highly simple but can still be used normally. I believe all of us have terms that we use just for the fun of it, and language should be about having choices in word choice, choosing fun combinations of words. Language is art. Everything one says is connected and

Sandoval forms a web of language amongst us and lets us communicate and interact more freely. Using new words outside of your discourse allows a bridge into other communities.