Relationship between Language, Identity and Culture - Report Example

Self Study (Name) (University) Contents 1.0 Introduction 3 2.0 Relationship between Language, Identity and Culture 3 2.1 Language and Culture 4 2.2 Language and Identity 4 2.3 Identity and Cultural Differences 5 2.4 Illustration of the Connection 7 3.0 Conclusion 11 4.0 References 13 1.0 Introduction Studies relating to language, identity and culture have increased in the past decades with particular importance being given to the relationship that exists between the three concepts (Hall, 2013). This interrelationship is still under research to prove the importance of all the three concepts to each other, their interdependence and whether it is possible for one to exist without the other. Culture is defined as a multifaceted phenomenon with a dynamic perspective, shared values, authenticity and socio-economic aspects that provide a history and a norm to a particular group of people (Moran, et al., 2014). Identity, on the other hand, is the distinctiveness attributed to an individual or society (Ikaheimo, 2017) while language is primarily defined as a medium of communication that is used in different contexts (Leech, 2016). This retro respect paper, therefore, discusses language, identity and cultural difference using Stuart Hall’s notion of representation and further connects his ideas to other studies and individual experiences related to the three concepts. 2.0 Relationship between Language, Identity and Culture The phenomenon surrounding language, identity and cultural difference is best interpreted through an analysis of the relationship existing between each of the two. The link between language and cultural differences is very close. Hall (1997) begins by explaining that a culture produces meanings that can be shared. These shared meanings create and emphasise the idea of the difference in culture. The applicable instance is that two individuals who are from the same culture see the world in generally the same ways and that their expressions, their thinking and their feelings about their surrounding can be interpreted similarly by each other. 2.1 Language and Culture Language is subsequently defined as a phenomenon that symbolises differences in culture. Hall purports that “language is a practice that is suggestive of the idea of belonging to a regional culture”. Hall finally insists that the context of culture provides “meaning to the things that are connected to it as opposed to having meaning by itself”. Hall employs the stone as an example where the stone has different meanings depending on how it is used such as a weapon, used for art or used to make fire. He, therefore, implies that we assign our meaning to objects which give them meaning in turn. This shows the communication of culture through language. From Hall’s explanation therefore, “representation is inclusive of practices of culture that carry the significance and worth for us, which then need to be significantly interpreted by others for their operation to be effective”. Furthermore, when culture is shared, there is the potential of and evolution and renewal of the language. Hall moreover mentions that “meaning is also generated when individuals make use of culture through expression, consumption or general use of the cultural thing”. The close relationship that exists between language and culture enhances the attachment to cultural learning. 2.2 Language and Identity The contact that occurs between language and identity is evidently seen in Hall’s article. Language creates and provides identity. Hall suggests that “when we attribute meaning to something which is relevant to us, then that meaning provides a sense of our identity’. Identity relatively encompasses our being; who we are, and where as well as with whom we belong. Hall puts it down to a simple expression such as facial expressions which can describe a person thus personal identity and the community to which one belongs thus the cultural identity. Furthermore, Hall reiterates that “various modes of communication aid in generating meaning including print media and other technological media”. Meanings that are generated from language have aided and still help in putting up rules, norms and regulations that set how the society should go about. This provides evidence that language is not inert but actually helps in the shaping of the society. The importance of language, identity and cultural differences is therefore seen in the effect upon the world, on our individual selves, upon interaction with others and conformation to the norms set by the society. Moreover, the speaker of a language may choose to change their language based on factors such as varying situations. Hall states that perception is in continuous generation during every encounter that an individual partakes. 2.3 Identity and Cultural Differences The connection between identity and cultural differences is close as well. Foremost, cultural differences provide different distinctiveness. This means that culture can influence an individual and that the individual can find their uniqueness from the culture that they belong to. Hall (1986) pursues that “culture is defined as the uniqueness found in the style of living of a particular people or society”. On the other hand, culture can also be used to describe the “values and norms that are shared by a particular group of people”. The function of the difference in culture is thus observed in the distinction among different groups of people where it helps in the preservation of the identity of the group. Moreover, individuals possessing the same identity share the same distinctive way of life. Similar to Hall’s belief, members belonging to the same culture have to share the same codes for their way life. The interconnection therefore between significance, language, identity and culture is comprehended by the idea of a culture that is circuitous. The question of significance comes up based on the myriad routines in the cultural cycles of individuals. This cultural circuit, therefore, involves the creation of identity and the generation of the differences in the identity through the making of norms and the use of norms as well as the direction of the conduct required in the society. Additionally, the privileged media used is language. The idea of the circuit emphasises the interactive character of this network that provides meaning. In a summative form, therefore, language generates a particular identity for individuals and provides significance to the aspect of belonging to a way of life or upholds distinctiveness within a society. Similar to Hall, “members belonging to the same culture have to share concepts and ideas that are similar and which give them the chance to perceive the world and therefore construe the world in ways that are approximately similar”. They must, therefore, share the same codes for their way life. Hall deems that “identification of the relationship between language, identity and the differences in culture is of high significance”. He purports that “we cannot comprehend one single concept without the inclusion and the relation to other concepts”. The understanding of a single concept provides an incomplete view and therefore needs the backup of the other concepts. The significance between language and culture for instance is described by Hall as “language being the essential medium where the senses of things are made”. He further says that “language can be perceived as means through which individuals create familiarity and knowledge of themselves and the society”. As such, the cultural sense is achieved through the inquiry of how significance is realised representatively in language as a system with meaning. Hall additionally believes that in the absence of these meaningful systems then individuals would not have identities or be able to maintain their way of life, otherwise known as culture. 2.4 Illustration of the Connection The interrelationship between language, cultural identity and cultural difference are witnessed in various contexts in our daily lives. Different phenomena can be evaluated through looking at these relationships between the three concepts. One morning while getting out of the house with my cat my next door neighbour saw us and immediately turned back towards her door. Being that she was at all times friendly and always greeted me on sight made me wonder on her sudden behaviour. I, therefore, decided to inquire after her, but she would not let me in as long as I had my cat with me. After convincing her that I no longer had my cat, she let me in. It is then that I learnt that where she comes from in Kenya, it is bad luck to see a black cat in the morning and that this signifies a bad omen. This was why she had to quickly turn back to try and avoid seeing the cat. I had heard of omens being attached to animals but was yet to experience the belief thus got shocked upon learning this. On doing further research into the same, I realised that there are different signs associated with the sight and sounds of animals all over the globe but the beliefs are still strong in African countries. Based on Hall’s explanation of language working through representation, this experience shows language expressed in the body language where my neighbour quickly turned on seeing my black cat. The turning away represents language as it communicates dislike, fear and avoidance. The experience clearly showed the difference in our cultures as I given that most people in my family adore cats while my neighbour saw the cat and associated it with something bad. Our identities stood out as well with one showing a particular fondness to cats while the other was averse. The association between production and consumption was clear in that our dispositions towards the cat were completely different. Varying cultures result in the different elucidation of similar aspects among different people. The interconnection of the three aspects is clearly seen in the body language that expresses fear of the black cat as an omen which is part of the culture that the individual comes from and identifies the individual as being from a culture that does not appreciate seeing a cat as the first thing in the morning. One other different experience related to language, identity and cultural difference was with my present friend who comes from Spain. We met while looking for our one of our classes and introduced ourselves. The following day on meeting my friend gave me a hug. It was totally unexpected as this was the second time we were meeting, therefore, we had not known each other for that long. A handshake would have been enough for me for quite a while, but this was not to be the case. From this experience, I realised that there is a great difference in greeting between the Spanish and Australians. People from Spain are more friendly compared to Australians and do not shy away from giving an embrace as a way of greeting. The greeting is a universal form of language that takes different cues in different cultures. This experience showed greeting as a language which was exposed in two different cultures. While both of us identified with the aspect of greeting, our cultural differences made the expressions different as I was comfortable with shaking hands as opposed to embracing. Kramsch (1993) identifies the language as the primary means through which we conduct our social lives. There are different contexts through which language occurs that mainly expresses the reality of an individual’s culture. The greeting experience of an embrace shows the Spanish culture where friendliness is more open (Ayyildiz and Turna, 2013) as compared to other cultures where greetings take place through nodding of heads, smiles or handshakes. The language signifies the identity of a particular society as explained by Kramsch. In the Islam community, for instance, body contact between different genders in the form of greeting is not allowed (Al Kaysi, 2015). It is equally offensive for a woman to look at a man in the eye. In comparison with the western culture, most people, especially in business, will shake hands as a form of greeting or to seal a deal. Additionally, it is considered rude not to look at someone while addressing them thus showing the cultural differences interconnected with language and identity. Using Emily Dickinson’s poem to elaborate on the connection between nature language and culture, Kramsch describes how culture brings about order and certainty into the use of language by individuals. The aspects of culture identified include the fact that culture is always the effect of human intervention upon nature. It, therefore, takes a human hand to influence culture. Culture has two opposing effects of giving freedom and denying it. It provides freedom through creating an order through the randomness of nature while at the same time provides a system where the potential meanings that can be created are restricted. Culture is a result of historical and social communities that have been imagined to a large extent and culture is continuously changing. She additionally identifies that there are different communities who use language and that the attitudes, beliefs and practices of communities such as religious and political communities are best interpreted through language. This therefore explains the idea of the speech community which uses the same language code to meet the social needs of the group. Woodward (1997) explains that identity is marked out by difference and that it is associated with symbols. She suggests that the generation of identity is both a symbolic and a social process. She additionally asserts that identities are neither integrated nor fixed. Basing on the greeting experience mentioned above, the symbolic nature of the identity if Spaniards are seen through their openness in greeting and the fact that they do not limit their friendliness to a nod of the head or a handshake. They rather go all out and give an embrace. This is more of a national identity as the friendly culture has been present over time thus making part of their history. The identity takes an essentialist approach as well as the friendliness has not altered over time as well as other Spanish related cultures. Woodward foremost describes representation as practices and symbolic systems that are significant in the production of meanings. Representation is subsequently recognised as a cultural process that institutes the establishments of individual identities and collective identities and generation of systems that are symbolic. The structures of representation allow for the creation of spaces and places from which individuals can establish their positions and speak out. Woodward also identifies the aspect of identity crises which has been brought about by different factors most of which include global changes and social changes. The causes engineering these factors include globalisation, political upheavals, the contesting of histories, and socio-cultural interaction. In the first experience mentioned above, the difference in culture regarding the black cat could be attributed to socio-cultural changes in the western world where superstitions are not adhered to compared to previous centuries where the ownership of a black cat could have a specific meaning. Faced with such an experience, an individual is bound to research on their previous culture, and the knowledge that the culture has been deserted may lead to an identity crisis. Identity goes hand in hand with a difference. As Woodward explains it, identity is forged when differences are marked. The differences can be marked through systems of representations that are symbolic. Additionally, these differences can be through social exclusion. An instance is a social disadvantage that homosexual people go through as they are identified with a cultural practice that has been deemed immoral for a long time. Similarly, the experience mentioned before of the black cat shows a culture that would socially exclude members of the society who are identified with keeping of animals that could bring a bad omen. 3.0 Conclusion This paper has summarized Hall’s representation of language, identity and cultural differences. The discussion equally includes an illustration of personal experiences related to language, identity and cultural differences. Studies by Kramsch and Woodward have been used to elaborate further on identity and difference and language and culture. As evidently seen from the paper, the interconnection found in language, identity and cultural differences is dense such that one cannot work without the other. From Hall’s description, language has been there from the early ages. It cannot be restricted to speech. Language embodies speech, actions, written words, feelings and reactions that communicated. Hall further emphasises that “language is the cultural space that is shared and one through which the creation of meaning takes place”. Culture is explained as the greatest achievement known to humanity otherwise referred to as shared values or the way of life of certain people. Hall, however, examines culture more particularly thus establishing the processes and practices in the society that establish and communicate meaning. He explains that the primary concern of culture is to create and exchange meaning between and within the members of society. Culture is emphasised as the solid ritual of practices, communication media, customs and representations of a given society. Language is subsequently defined as a phenomenon that symbolizes differences in culture. Hall purports that language is practice that is suggestive of the idea of belonging to a regional culture. Language creates and provides identity. Hall suggests that when we attribute meaning to something which is relevant to us, then that meaning provides a sense of our identity. Identity relatively encompasses our being; who we are, and where as well as with whom we belong. The importance of language, identity and cultural differences is therefore seen in the effect upon the world, on our individual selves, upon interaction with others and conformation to the norms set by the society. The cultural circuit, therefore, involves the creation of identity and the generation of the differences in the identity through the making of norms and the use of norms as well as the direction of the conduct required in the society. The privileged media used is language. The idea of the circuit emphasises the interactive character of this network that provides meaning. In summative form, therefore, language generates a particular identity for individuals and provides significance to the aspect of belonging to a way of life or upholds distinctiveness within a society. The paper is backed up by Woodward’s a Kramsch’s discussions of identity and difference as well language and culture. Kramsch defines language and points out several characteristics of culture while Woodward recognises identity and explains the differences that mark out an identity. 4.0 References Ayyildiz, H., & Turna, G. B. (2013). Perceived image of Spain and Germany as a tourist destination for Dutch travellers. Education, 35(39), 1-10. Al-Kaysi, M. (2015). Morals and manners in Islam: A Guide to Islamic Adab. Kube Publishing Ltd. Hall, S. (1986). Gramsci's Relevance for the Study of Race and Ethnicity. Journal of communication inquiry, 10(2), 5-27. Hall, S. (1997). Representation: Cultural representations and signifying practices (Vol. 2). Sage. In association with the Open University Hall, J. K. (2013). Teaching and Researching: Language and culture. Routledge. Ikäheimo, H. (2017). Recognition, Identity and Subjectivity. In The Palgrave Handbook of Critical Theory (pp. 567-585). Palgrave Macmillan US. Kramsch, C. (1993). Context and culture in language teaching. Oxford University Press. Leech, G. N. (2016). Principles of pragmatics. Routledge. Moran, R. T., Abramson, N. R., & Moran, S. V. (2014). Managing cultural differences. Routledge. Woodward, K. (1997). Identity and difference (Vol. 3). Sage. Read More