African American Slang Essay -- Communication Language Essays

Afri terminate American Slang African American Slang has had many other names Ebonics, Jive, blackened English, and more than. The Oxford English mental lexicon defines slang (in reference to language) in three different ways 1) the excess vocabulary used by any set of persons of a beginning or disreputable character language of a low and vulgar shell 2) the special vocabulary or phraseology of a particular avocation or profession the cant or jargon of a veritable class or period 3) language of a highly informal type, considered as below the level of standard educated speech, and consisting either of unseasoned words or of current words employed in about special sense. Whatever ones perspective on slang, it is a natural and inevitable part of language. In this paper I leave alone discuss examples of current slang being used that some wad may not understand.The African influence of American English can be found as far back as the ordinal century. Although its influe nce may have began that far back, the influence of African American slang has arguably reached its peak (so far) in the last half on the 20th century. Evidence of this can be seen in magazines, music, television, and films. Perhaps more importantly, evidence can be seen in the way that people of social groups, other than African American, have changed their speech due to this influence. The Equal Rights front lead to a paradigm shift in African American linguistic consciousness due to dumb intellectuals, scholars, activists, artists, and writers deliberately engaging in a search for a way to express Black identity element and the particular circumstances of African American life. Although there had been strides in Black pride in the past, this was the first one to call for linguistic Black p... ...at this is a desired result. Ebonics is a fun variation on the standard, and as stated in the beginning of this paper, Ebonics has an influence many would say a positive one, on the m ainstream dialect. Works CitedGreen, Jonathon. The Cassell mental lexicon of Slang. London Cassell, 1998.Klein, Ernest. A universal Etymological vocabulary of the English Language.Volume 1 A-K.Amsterdam Elsevier Publishing Company, 1966.Major, Clarence. Dictionary of Afro-American Slang.New York International Publishers, 1970. New York- - -. Juba to Jive A Dictionary of African American Slang. London Penguin Books, 2000.Oxford English Dictionary Online. second ed. whitethorn 2001. http//www.oed.comScotti, Anna and Paul Young. Buzz Words New York St. Martins Press, 1997.Smitherman, Geneva. Black Talk. 2nd ed.Boston Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000.