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Е. В. Захарова язык и культура великобритании в условиях европейской интеграции предисловие данное учебное пособие

Вид материалаУчебное пособие
Unit v. scots – a language or a dialect ?
Ii. vocabulary focus
Iii. interpretation
Iv. speaking personally
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UNIT V. SCOTS – A LANGUAGE OR A DIALECT ?



I.READING COMPREHENSION


A. Pre-reading Task. Answer the questions:


1) Do you agree that some languages are more prestigious than others?

2) What makes a language prestigious?


B. Now read and translate the text. You may make use of the following words and word-combinations:

Descend – происходить

Decline – упадок

Crown – корона

Abolition – упразднение

Reject – отвергать

Backwardness – отсталость

Purge – очистить

Remnants – остатки

Tongue – язык

Lallan, Lallans – лалланс, диалект южной части Шотландии

Peasantry – крестьянство

Artificial – искусственный

Misconception – неправильное представление
notion – понятие, представление

Inflected – изменяемый грамматически

census – перепись населения

given – принимая во внимание, с учетом ч-л

compete – конкурировать

value – ценить

confer – даровать, присуждать

cult – культ

grant – дарить, жаловать

vogue – популярность, известность

be at odds – не соответствовать, находиться в противоречии

shrinking - сокращающийся

impoverished – лишенный важнейших качеств, свойств, истощенный

articulate – формулировать

dismiss – отвергать, отбрасывать

seek – стремиться к ч-л

autonomous – автономный

resurrected – возрожденный

slovenly – небрежный

reluctant – делающий ч-л с неохотой

valid – действительный, имеющий силу

vulgar – простонародный

pejorative – уничижительный


One of the most interesting British languages, precisely because of the debate as to whether it is a distinct language or merely a dialect is Scots. Scots is descended from the Northumbrian dialect of Old English, and at one time forms of the language existed in all the non-Gaelic regions of Scotland, including the remote Shetland and Orkney Islands. By the sixteenth century one particular form of Scots supported a highly developed cultural and political tradition entirely separate from England. At that time, however, a number of factors combined to force Scots into decline, the most important of which was the union of the Scottish and the English crowns in 1603.After the abolition of the Scottish parliament in 1707, Scots began to be rejected as a sign of cultural backwardness, and the ruling classes attempted to purge their speech of any remnants of the old Scots tongue .Despite interest in what came to be known as ‘Lallans’ (Scots for ‘Lowlands’) , as opposed to the mostly Gaelic-speaking Highlands) amongst some poets and novelists of the eighteenth century, the language survived only among the peasantry and, after the industrialization of Scotland during the nineteenth century, among the urban working class. Scots was under constant threat throughout the twentieth century because, unlike Scottish Gaelic, most people do not regard it as a separate language but a deformed version of English, or as an artificial dialect invented by the romantic writers of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Both of these misconceptions add to the stereotypical notion of Scots that tends to be reproduced in the popular imagination as the sign of Scottishness – words such as ‘wee’ (small), ‘braw’ (fine, good) and so on , as well as a heavily inflected accent when speaking English.

Scots received little constitutional support in the 1990s. It is not recognized for census purposes, and, given the success of Welsh and Scottish Gaelic in competing for what funds are available from central government and the BBC , this situation is unlikely to change in the near future. As with the Gaelic language in the Republic of Ireland, it is only amongst a relatively small number of historians, critics and writers that Scots is still valued, this intellectual support confers on Scots a sort of cult status, granting the language a vogue somewhat at odds with its shrinking working-class base .The familiar argument is that, despite its impoverished condition, the language articulates a way of life, a way of thinking about the world, a way of being Scottish, that cannot be adequately expressed in English.

This argument is rejected by many, however, and not only by those ’Unionists’ who maintain that Scotland’s future depends on remaining an English-speaking region of the United Kingdom. The revival of Scots is also dismissed by many nationalists (seeking separate national sovereign status for Scotland) and devolutionists (seeking an autonomous Scottish parliament while remaining part of the United Kingdom) who feel that, given its history of strong cultural and political independence, Scotland does not need the support of an artificially resurrected language.

As it was already said, Scots is frequently seen as slovenly and does not enjoy high overt prestige. While the language is undoubtedly widely used, social pressures against it are so strong that many people are reluctant to use it or have actively rejected it.

While this statement is valid, it is also necessary to note that there are several different types of Scots, each with a different status and prestige. The variety so often and so subjectively regarded as vulgar is urban working class Scots; considerably more positive are the often romanticized rural dialects; a third type is literary Scots (sometimes termed Lallans, ‘Lowlands’). This final variety is also sometimes pejoratively referred to as synthetic Scots because it represents an artificial effort to re-establish a form of Scots as the national language of Scotland and as a language for Scottish literature (much as was the case before the union of the crowns in 1603, when James YI of Scotland became James I of England, which eventually resulted in a linguistic reorientation of Scotland towards England).


C. Make up 10 questions covering the contents of the text.


II. VOCABULARY FOCUS


A. Translate the following word-combinations into Russian:


To be subjectively regarded; romanticized rural dialects; the union of the crowns; to result in smth; precisely; merely; entirely separate; to force smth into decline; as opposed to smth; a deformed version.


Reproduce the situations in the text in which they are given.


B. Find the English equivalents in the text:


Необходимо отметить; ряд факторов; признак культурной отсталости; правящие классы; интерес к ч-л; искусственно возрожденный язык; поэты и романисты; конституционная поддержка; получить конституционную поддержку; в ближайшем будущем.


Use them in sentences of your own.


C. Match the words which collocate with each other:

1. overt a. classes

2. cultural b. status

3. constitutional c. prestige

4. ruling d. backwardness

5. sovereign e. support


D. Match the words which are close in their meaning:

1. decline a. slack

2. artificial b. self-determining

3. slovenly c. diminishing

4. abolition d. annihilation

5. autonomous e. sham


E. Match the words having the opposing meaning:

1. abolition a. genuine

2. autonomous b. rise

3. artificial c. ordered

4. decline d. dependent

5. slovenly e. establishment


F. Match the words and their definitions:

1) a reduction in the amount or quality of something
a. purge

2) not to agree to an offer, proposal or request
b. notion

3) to remove a bad or unpleasant condition or feeling from smb or smth
c. remnants

4) small remaining parts of smth
d. decline

5) an opinion or belief, especially one that is wrong
e. reject


G. Translate the following sentences into Russian:


1) Thankfully, this is a desease that is now on the decline

2) The court rejected the argument and found the dependant not guilty.

3) They were unable to purge the mistakes from the computer system.

4) The towers were the last remnants of the famous castle.

5) Employment decisions shouldn’t be based on misconceived notions about age.


H. Insert prepositions where necessary (under; on; to; from; at; in):

1. to descend __ smth 6. to confer smth __ smb

2. including __ smth 7. to be ___ odds

3. to be opposed __ smth 8. to depend __ smth

4. despite __ smth 9. to result __ smth

5. to be __ threat 10. to refer __ smth


I. Complete the sentences using the words in the box:

tongue census prestige slovenly

dialect perjoratively remnants purge

descended



1) Scots is frequently seen as __ and does not enjoy high overt ___.

2) This final variety is also sometimes __ referred to as synthetic Scots.

3) It was not recognized for __ purposes.

4) Scots is __ from the Northumbrian __ of Old English.

5) The ruling classes attempted to __ their speech of any __ of the old Scots __.


J. In which meanings are the following words used in the text:


1) To descend

a. to go down a mountain or slope, or to go downstairs

b. to become lower

c. to develop from smth that happened or existed earlier


2) to dismiss

a. to refuse to accept that smth might be true or important

b. to force smb to leave their job

c. to officially tell people that they can leave a place


3) to confer

a. to discuss smth with other people in order to reach a decision

b. to give smth, such as authority, a legal right, or an honour, to smb.


III. INTERPRETATION


A. Paraphrase the following statements and comment on them:


1) By the sixteenth century one particular form of Scots supported a highly developed cultural and political tradition entirely separate from England.

2) As with the Gaelic language in the Republic of Ireland, it is only amongst a relatively small number of historians, critics and writers that Scots in still valued, this intellectual support confers on Scots a sort of cult status, granting the language a vogue somewhat at odds with its shrinking working class base.


B. Answer the following questions:


1) Why do you think the union of the Scottish and the English crowns in 1603 forced Scots into decline?

2) In what way can a language be a sign of cultural backwardness?

3) What made Scots survive among the peasantry and later among the urban working class?

4) What is the stereotypical notion of Scots?

5) Why do you think some poets and novelists of the past romanticized Scots?

6) Why is Scots frequently seen as slovenly?


IV. SPEAKING PERSONALLY


Discuss with your partner the following statement:


‘Despite its impoverished condition, the language articulates a way of life, a way of thinking about the world, a way of being Scottish, that cannot be adequately expressed in English’.

Should this argument be supported or rejected?