University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

"""When I'm with my girls"": Identity and ideology in Black women's talk about language and cultural borders"

Scott, Karla Danette

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/20399

Description

Title
"""When I'm with my girls"": Identity and ideology in Black women's talk about language and cultural borders"
Author(s)
Scott, Karla Danette
Issue Date
1995
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Kramarae, Cheris
Department of Study
Communication
Discipline
Communication
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Keyword(s)
  • Black Studies
  • Women's Studies
  • Speech Communication
  • Sociology, Ethnic and Racial Studies
Language
eng
Abstract
"This study of Black women's talk about their talk focuses on the identity implications and consequences of Black women's language use across cultural borders; a phenomenon also known as code switching. This examination includes a discussion of how the women connect their talk to their identity through the use of the words ""girl"" and ""look"" which occur at the beginning of a code switch during interviews about language use. Analysis of both the style and content of the talk that occurs after the use of these two words indicates that the young women in the study see their code switching as not only a marker of identity but also as a marker of ideology. The concept of marking ideology through the use of ""voice"" is used to discuss the women's reports of when and why they ""talk like a Black woman."" Thematic analysis of the women's responses to the question ""What is talking like a Black woman?"" reveal that it is not just how something is said but rather what is said that marks identity. The responses indicate that for the women in this study the use of a Black woman's voice is a strategic move, a form of ""standing up and speaking out"" in predominantly White settings that marks one's identity as Black in an environment that has historically and traditionally marginalized this ideological perspective and this voice."
Type of Resource
text
Permalink
http://hdl.handle.net/2142/20399
Copyright and License Information
Copyright 1995 Scott, Karla Danette

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