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Lesson1READINGSELECTIONAWorldEnglish:ABlessingoraCurse?UniversallanguageByTomMcArthur[1]Intheyear2000,thelanguagescholarGlanvillePrice,aWelshman,madethefollowingassertionaseditorofthebookLanguagesinBritainandIreland:ForEnglishisakiller.ItisEnglishthathaskilledoffCumbric,Cornish,NornandManx.TherearestillpartsoftheseislandswheresizeablecommunitiesspeaklanguagesthatweretherebeforeEnglish.YetEnglishiseverywhereineverydayuseandunderstoodbyallorvirtuallyall,constitutingsuchathreattothethreeremainingCelticlanguages,Irish,ScottishGaelic,andWelsh...thattheirlong-termfuturemustbeconsidered...verygreatlyatrisk.(p141)Someyearsearlier,in1992,RobertPhillipson,EnglishacademicwhocurrentlyworksinDenmark,publishedwithOxfordabookentitledLinguisticImperialism.Init,hearguedthatthemajorEnglish-speakingcountries,theworldwideEnglish-languageteachingindustry,andnotablytheBritishCouncilpursuepoliciesoflinguisticaggrandisement.Healsoassociatedsuchpolicieswithaprejudicewhichhecallslinguicism(aconditionparallelto(equalto/similarto)racismandsexism).AsPhillipsonseesit,leadinginstitutionsandindividualswithinthepredominantlywhiteEnglish-speakingworld,have[bydesign(=deliberate)ordefault(=mistake)]encouragedoratleasttolerated—andcertainlyhavenotopposed—thehegemonicspreadofEnglish,aspreadwhichbegansomethreecenturiesagoaseconomicandcolonialexpansion.[2]PhillipsonhimselfworkedforsomeyearsfortheBritishCouncil,andheisnotaloneamongAnglophoneacademicswhohavesoughttopointupthedangersofEnglishasaworldlanguage.TheinternationalizationofEnglishhasinthelastfewdecadesbeenwidelydiscussedintermsofthreegroups:first,theENLcountries,whereEnglishisanativelanguage(thisgroupalsobeingknownastheinnercircle);second,theESLcountries,whereEnglishisasecondlanguage(theoutercircle);andthird,theEFLcountries,whereEnglishisaforeignlanguage(theexpandingcircle).Sincethe1980s,whensuchtermsbecamecommon,thisthirdcirclehasinfactexpandedtotakeintheentireplanet.[3]Forgoodorforill,therehasneverbeenalanguagequitelikeEnglish.Therehavebeenmanyworldlanguages,suchasArabic,Chinese,Greek,Latin,andSanskrit.Byandlarge,wenowviewthemasmoreorlessbenign,andoftentalkwithadmirationandappreciationabouttheculturesassociatedwiththemandwhattheyhavegiventotheworld.Anditisfairlysafetodothis,becausenoneofthemnowposesmuchofathreat.[4]Englishhoweverisprobablytoocloseforustobeabletoanalyzeandjudgeitasdispassionately,aswemaynowdiscusstheinfluenceofClassicalChineseonEastAsiaorofClassicalLatinonWesternEurope.ThejuryisstilloutinthetrialoftheEnglishlanguage,andmaytakeseveralcenturiestoproduceitsverdict,butevensowecanask,inthisEuropeanYearofLanguages,whetherPriceandPhillipsonarerighttowarnusallaboutthelanguagethatIamusingatthisverymoment.[5]Itcertainlyisn'thardtolookforsituationswherepeoplemightcallEnglishacurse.AnexampleisAustralia,whichisroutinelyregardedasastraightforwardEnglish-speakingcountry.ThefirstEuropeanswhowentthereoftenusedLatintodescribeanddiscusstheplace.ThewordAustraliaitselfisLatin;evidentlynooneatthetimethoughtofsimplycallingitSouthland(whichiswhatAustraliameans).Inaddition,inSouthAustraliathereisawidestretchoflandcalledtheNullarborPlains,thefirstwordofwhichsoundsAboriginal,butnullarborisLatinandmeansnotrees.Andmostsignificantlyofall,theearlysettlerscalledthecontinentaterranullius.AccordingtotheEncartaWorldEnglishDictionary(1999)theLatinphraseterranulliusmeans:...theideaandlegalconceptthatwhenthefirstEuropeansarrivedinAustraliathelandwasownedbynooneandthereforeopentosettlement.Ithasbeenjudgednottobelegallyvalid.Butthatjudgmentwasmadeonlyrecently.WhentheEuropeansarrived,Australiawasthinlypopulated—butpopulatednonetheless—fromcoasttocoastineverydirection.Therewerehundredsofcommunitiesandlanguages.Manyoftheselanguageshavediedout,manymoreareintheprocessofdyingout,andthesedeadanddyinglanguageshavebeenlargelyreplacedbyeitherkindsofpidginEnglishorgeneralAustralianEnglish.Dependingonyourpointofview,thisiseitheratragiclossorthepriceofprogress.[6]Atthesametime,however,cantheblamefortheextinctionofAboriginallanguagesbelaidspecificallyatthedoorofEnglish?ThefirstEuropeanstodiscoverAustraliawereDutch,andtheirlanguagemighthavebecomethelanguageofcolonizationandsettlement.Anysettlerlanguagecouldhavehadthesameeffect.IfforexampletheMongolshadsustainedtheirvastEurasianempire,MongolianmighthavebecomeaworldlanguageandgonetoAustralia.Again,ifhistoryhadbeensomewhatdifferent,today'sworldlanguagemighthavebeenArabic,apowerfullanguageinWestAsiaandNorthAfricathatcurrentlyaffectsmanysmallerlanguages,includingCopticandBerber.Spanishhasadverselyaffectedindigenouslanguagesinso-calledLatinAmerica,andRussianhasspreadfromEuropetotheSiberianPacific.IfEnglishisacurseandakiller,itmayonlybesointhesensethatanylargelanguageislikelytoinfluenceandendangersmallerlanguages.[7]YetmanypeopleseeEnglishasablessing.Letmeleaveasideheretheobviousadvantagespossessedbyanyworldlanguage,suchasalargecommunicativenetwork,astrongliteraryandmediacomplex,andapowerfulculturalandeducationalapparatus.Letusinsteadlookatsomethingratherdifferent:theissueofpolitics