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Assignment Code: MEG – 04 / TMA /2020-2021

Q.1. Discuss Indianization of English, citing examples of some major features of Indian language.

Introduction

English being the first language of the British, was spread across the globe during Imperial rule under
Queen Victoria. The period between 1887 to 1897 saw English colonizing many parts of the world.
Thus, the spread of English language was vast in the non-native English speaking countries. This
included Africans, Chinese, Malays and Indians too. English became the defacto international
language for the third world countries, spreading onto four continents namely Asia, Africa, America
and the vast ocean basin of the Pacific. This accounted for some 34 countries, from islands as far as
Jamaica and Singapore to states ranging from Sierra Leone to the vast sub-continent of India.

English language in India

In 1600, East India Company ventured in to the Indian subcontinent for the purpose of trade and
tried to create a foothold of its empire in India. They established themselves in the city of Madras,
Calcutta and Bombay, and spread themselves across the nation. To make a common ground of
understanding, there had to be a common language to communicate, or at least a translator needs
to be there. Initially the English language was used as a medium to interact for the trading purpose.
Over a period, India became keystone of an English speaking empire by 1813. During 1835, traces of
Bilingualism were observed. It was a period where Historian Thomas Macaulay proposed for the
creation of ‘a class of interpreters’ between the English administrators and Indian public. He
proposed for a class of people who are Indian in blood and colour but English in their taste, opinion,
morals and intellects. At this point, English became the language of government, education and
advancement. In the year 1857, India saw the emergence of English speaking universities at Bombay,
Calcutta, Madras.

Indianization of English highlighting the features

Indianization of English is referred as a process where the language English is merged with the local
language of India to make it acceptable and usable in the non-native English speaking country India.
Initially the Indianization of English started as a matter of convenience, however soon it became an
independent process with other purposes reflecting on the change in social, cultural and moral
values. The change in communicative form was reflected in Oral and written communications. The
oral change was dominantly portrayed in the change in pronunciation and accents, mainly
influenced by regional dialects. The following features highlights the Indianization of English.

1. Language of the country / Borrowing – The major influence or highlighting feature

contributing to Indianization of English is the local language of India. Indian English has many
words picked or borrowed from the native language. For example, words like Satyagrah,
Pundit, Bandh, Dharna, Dhoti, Bungalow, Rajah, Curry have now been included in the English
glossary.
2. Translation – Translation refers to establishing an equivalent meaning of the message from
one language to the other language. Translation of Indian language to English and vice versa
 resulted in Indianization of English. For example, salt-spoiler and god-love can be translated
to namak-haram and ishwar-prem respectively.
3. Borrowing – Shift or borrowing do not emphasis on creating an equivalence in the meaning
of the message from one language to the other. The shifting words refers to the adaptation
of an underlying formal item of an Indian language that provides it source. Generally, the
underlying source item for a shift is a fixed collocation of an Indian language. Borrowing of
words from the native language resulted in a blend of expressions. For example, ‘lathi-
charge’ has Indianised element with the word ‘lathi’.
The following formations with Indian characteristics may be reflected in an Indian English
collocation.
a. Deviate grammatically from American and British English formations
b. Involve loan shifts from Indian languages
c. Formally non-deviant but contextually deviant
4. Impact of Socio Cultural Norms – Features of the English language in India is greatly
influenced by Socio-cultural norms that stipulates rule by which word symbols are related to
each other to transmit message. Indian English is very different from native English and
differ in the choice of words whether oral or written. Native speakers of the language have
close associations with certain items and these associations are common in the Indian
English. For example the ‘Swastika’, is one of the most sacred symbols, and ‘Namaskar’, the
way of greeting.
5. Reduction of Incongruence or misfit – The daily use of Indian English consequently led to
simplified understanding of the context, making the language more adaptable, highly
effective, simple and easy to speak, write and understand.

Conclusion

Over a period, English has evolved in India and with influence of the local and regional languages and
culture, Indianization of English has made it easy for the people to read, write, speak and understand
the foreign language.

Q.2. Give a complete description of the consonants of English.

Consonant Definition

As defined in the Cambridge dictionary, a consonant is letter of alphabets that are pronounced by
stopping the air from flowing through the mouth, especially by closing the lips or touching the teeth
with tongue. Linguistically, any letter that is not A, E, I, O, U is known as a consonant.

Consonant Sounds

There are 24 consonant sounds in phonetics and is classified as follows:

DRAW TABLE

According to the manner of Articulation According to the place of Articulation

Plosives – 6 Bilabial - 3

Affricates – 2 Labio-dental - 2

Nasals – 3 Dental - 2
Fricatives -9 Alveolar - 6

Lateral approximant – 1 Post-alveolar – 4

Approximant (Semi-vowels) – 3 Retroflex - 1

Palatal – 1

Velar – 4

Glottal – 1

ACCORDING TO MANNER OF ARTICULATION

Classifying consonants in the manner of articulation refers to the manner in which the
pulmonic air (the air used to form speech sounds) escapes from the mouth. With some
sounds, the air is completely blocked, with some, it escapes with difficulty through the
mouth, and with others, it escape through the nostrils.

1. Plosives – There are six plosive consonant sounds or phonemes /p,b,t,d,k,g/, created when
the flow of air is completely blocked as it leaves the body , normally followed by releasing
the air.
Example, /p/:Pen /b/:Bat /t/:Tap /d/:Dog /k/:Kite
/g/:Gone
2. Affricates – There are two affricate phonemes /tʃ/ and /dʒ/, created by starting with a
plosive (full block of air) and immediately blending into a fricative (partial block).
Example,
/tʃ/ - cheese, catch, digestion, gesture. This consonant sound is voiceless, created by
using the release of air.
/dʒ/ - agenda, jar, hedge. This consonant sound is voiced, created by the vibration of the
vocal cords.
3. Nasals – There are three nasal phonemes /m,n, ŋ/, created by blocking air in the mouth
and releasing sound through the nose.
Example, /m/: Monk, same /n/: Neck, sin / ŋ/: Song, think
4. Fricatives – There are nine fricative phonemes /f,v,θ,ð,s,z,ʃ,ʒ,h/, created by squeezing air
between a small gap as it leaves the body.
/v,ð,z,ʒ/ are voiced fricative consonants created with vibration in the vocal cords
/f,θ,s,ʃ,h/ are voiceless fricative sounds created only with air.
Example,
/f/: Fun /v/: Van /θ/: Think /ð/: These /s/: Sun /z/: Zoo
/ʃ/: Ship /ʒ/: Beige /h/: Hut
5. Lateral approximant – There is only one lateral approximant /l/, created by releasing air
past the sides of the tongue whilst making a block in the middle.
Example, /l/: Lamp
There is a variation or allophone with the use of two ‘l’, creating sound /ɫ/ in the same
way at the front of the mouth with the tongue raised at the back of the mouth.
Example, /ɫ/: Hall
6. Approximants (Semi-vowels) – There are three approximant phonemes /w,r,j/, created
by bringing two articulators close together without them touching as sound leaves the
body, resulting in a vowel sound. These phonemes are voiced where the vocal cords
vibrate as the sound is produced.
Example, /w/: well /r/: rent /j/: yawn, fuel
 ACCORDING TO PLACE OF ARTICULATION

Classifying consonants in reference to the place of articulation, means the speech organs
that are involved in the production of the consonant in question. Some sounds are produced
with the two lips, some with the tongue and teeth, the tongue and alveolar ridge.

1. Bilabial Sounds – There are three bilabial sounds that involves both lips as the articulators.
(p,b,m)
2. Labio Dental Sounds – There are two labio-dental sounds created with lower lip and upper
front teeth (f,v)
3. Dental Sounds – There are two dental sounds created with the contact of the tip of the
tongue and the upper front teeth /θ//ð/
4. Alveolar Sounds – There are six alveolar sounds created with the contact of the tip of the
tongue and the alveolar ridge (t,d,n,s,z,l)
5. Post Alveolar Sound – There are four post-alveolar sound. The sound involves the area just
behind the alveolar ridge as the passive articulator. The active articulator may be either the
tongue tip or (usually) the tongue blade [tʃ] [dʒ] [ʃ] [ʒ]
6. Palatal Sounds – There is only one palatal sound created with the contact of the blade of the
tongue and the hard palate /j/
7. Velar Sounds – There are three velar sounds created with the contact of the back of the
tongue and the soft palate /k/ /g/ /ŋ/ ; Velar approximant /w/
8. Glottal Sounds – There is only one glottal sound created in the larynx /h/
9. Retroflex – There is one retroflex sound created by curling of the tongue tip backward in the
mouth. The tongue tip is curled up towards the postalveolar region. [ɹ]

Q.3. What in your view are the most important learner variables in the learning of a second
language? Explain.

A person using any language other than his/her first or native language is referred to as a Second
Language. As defined by linguists, the first language is mentioned as L1 and the second language is
mentioned as L2. For example, for an Indian, Hindi will be L1 and English will be L2. There are
multiple learner variables that influence the learning or acquiring of a second language.

1. Personal Factors: Considering the Personal Factors, Age and Sex are the learner variables for
acquiring L2. However, there are a few researches that talk about sex being one of the
learner variable, reflecting that girls are a better learner vis a vis boys in acquiring L2.

Age: Age is one of the most important learner variables. Many researches have stated that kids who
start learning early has better grasp and conduct over L2, as compared to adults. The linguists and
psychologists have echoed the same. Lenneberg (1968) have stated that age between two years and
puberty is a critical period for language acquisition due to biological development. Oyama (1976)
states that learners who start learning L2 as children achieve a more native like accent than those
who start as an adolescent or adult, and they are better in acquisition of grammar (Patkowski, 1980,
p.1990). On the contrary, many researchers have stated that adults are better learners than children
are. Ellis (1985) mentioned that acquiring second language is not influenced by the starting age, but
there is a relationship between the rate of learning and the age of the learners. Adolescents learn
faster than adults and children as far as grammar and vocabulary is concerned. Young children are
exposed to longer duration of learning vis a vis the older ones, resulting in a more overall success
rate as compared to adults.

2. Cognitive Factors: Cognitive factors in acquiring second language refers to the ability to
learn in an individual. Characteristics like intelligence and aptitude defines ones performance
while learning the language. These factors include cognitive functions like attention, memory
and reasoning that modulates improve or decline in performance.

Intelligence: Intelligence reflects on one’s ability to understand, learn and think about things quickly,
when compared with other people. This will include verbal ability, reasoning ability, concept
formation ability, critical thinking ability, logical mathematical abilities. Intelligence can be measured
with IQ tests and has been observed; learners with high IQ scores tend to learn L2 better and quickly.

Aptitude: Aptitude refers to specific ability of a learner to learn quickly and easily and do it a task or
a particular job well. With respect to acquiring L2 it is the natural ability to learn the language.
Language aptitude is a combination of various abilities like identifying sound pattern, ability to
recognise different grammatical functions of words and sentences in the language.

3. Attitude:
In the words of Allport (1954), attitude is defined as ‘a mental and neural state of readiness
organised through experience, exerting a directive or dynamic influence upon the
individual’s response to all objects and situations with which it is related’. As learner of the
L2, attitude is a set of belief pertaining to the target culture and language, and own culture
and language. Language attitudes are the perceptions what the learner has towards other
languages and own language. There can be expressions of positive and negative feelings
towards L2. These expressions define the linguistic difficulty and simplicity, ease or difficulty
of acquiring the language.

Lambert and Gardener shared their findings and classified attitude as follows:
 Attitude towards community and people who speak L2
 Attitude towards learning and language concerned
 Attitude towards languages and language learning in general
Learners with positive attitude will learn more, but also learners who learn well acquire
positive attitudes.

4. Motivation:
Motivation is a key driver in acquiring second language. It is the desire to do something. In
the words of Gardener (1985) motivation as a learning variable refers to the extent to which
the individual works or strives to learn the language because of the desire to do so and the
satisfaction experienced in this activity. Motivation can be divided as integrative motivation
and instrumental motivation. Both motivation influences the learner to acquire second
language.
 Integrative Motivation – When the learner is eager to learn the language to
communicate with people from different culture as he/she has a keen interest to
know about different cultures. The motivation to learn second language for the
purpose of interest is defined as integrative motivation.
 Instrumental Motivation – When the motivation for a learner to learn second
language is a functional purpose, example for acquiring a job overseas, or for
 clearing IELTS test to pursue graduation from international college, it is called
instrumental motivation.

5. Personality:
Personality can be described as a set of features that characterize an individual. Studies
which investigate personality traits are based on the belief that learners bring to the
classroom not only their cognitive abilities but also affective states which influence the
way they acquire a language. Some of them have been found as benefits while the others as
an obstacle in learning a second language. The most important personality factors are
introversion/extroversion, self-esteem, inhibition, risk-taking, anxiety and empathy. An
individual who is an extrovert, flexible , tolerant to ambiguity tends to be a better learner
than an individual who is an introvert, low on self-confidence, timid and rigid.

Conclusion

There are varied factors that influence second language acquisition. The variables like
personality, aptitude, attitude, motivation and personal factors influence a learner in
mastering the second language. In a learning process these variables form play a vital role
and can distinguish between the success and failure of a learner in acquiring second
language.

Q.4. What do you understand by ‘foregrounding’? Discuss with suitable examples.

https://www.ukessays.com/essays/english-language/study-of-the-foregrounding-theory-english-
language-essay.php

INTRODUCTION

Foregrounding is one of the renowned theories and principles in the distinguished branch of literary
criticism known as Stylistics. The authors style was the major theme of this field of study which a
focus on the meaning and effects of the literary texts. The theory of Foregrounding branch into
specific linguistic devices called deviation and parallelism devices, which are used in literary texts in a
functional and condensed way. They support the possible meaning of the text, in addition
providing readers with the possibility of aesthetic knowledge. It breaks up the reader’s
routine behaviour: commonplace views and perspectives are replaced with new and
unexpected insights and sensations. In this method literature keeps or makes individuals
conscious of their automatized actions and preconceptions.

HISTORY

The roots of Foregrounding theory can be traced to the Greek Antiquity specifically, to the
great philosopher Aristotle who emphasized the use of devices and its importance. Aristotle
(ca. 335 BCE, cited in van Peer and Hakemulder, 2006) argues that literary work should be
distinguished from other works through the use of strange words, metaphors and unfamiliar
terms. Thus, foregrounding started basically as a theory of literature in the Greek philosophy.
Later on, Russian Formalists and Czech Structuralists emphasized the importance of
foregrounding in literature. Name of Prague scholar Jan Mukarovsky is highlighted for
devising Foregrounding and Paul Gravin of the Czech for the English translation.
PRINCIPLES of Foregrounding

Following are the basic principles and assumptions of the theory of Foregrounding.

1. Foregrounding and strikingness

Foregrounding causes defamiliarization. In literary texts defamiliarization strike the readers
as they find it unexpected. Thus, capturing their mind and triggering attention.

2. Foregrounding is affective

Besides inducing strikingness, defamiliarization helps to evoke the feelings of

the reader. Once a reader encounters an unfamiliar text, special area in the
mind which is responsible for affect is intensified.

3. Foregrounding and time

Since foregrounding texts are striking and evocative, they take longer time for
processing and comprehension. The use of figurative devices such as
metaphors and similes trigger the reader’s imagination and intensifies their
feeling. At this stage, the reader will resort to other similar texts or experiences
he has encountered in his life which, in turn, prolong the process of reading.

4. Foregrounding is universal

Foregrounding effects are present among different readers irrespective of

literary background. Readers with general linguistics skills and backgrounds
will find foregrounding texts striking, affective and challenging. Such effects
will be higher with people of higher literary background.

FOREGROUNDING DEVICES

Linguistic devices are the main pillars of foregrounding theory. These devices help the writer
to express his ideas in a special way, adding some music to his words or giving an image that
stimulates the imagination of the reader. Literary text can provide meaning, when some pieces of
information are given prominence in relation to other information. This linguistic indication of
prominence can be achieved in the following ways:

 The creation of rhythmic patterns (parallelisms)

 The use of irregularity in language use, or deviation from the accepted norms of grammar,
lexis, phonology (deviation)

Parallelism and deviation aids in memorizing and invites interpretation.

(Draw chart)

1. Foregrounding through parallelism

Parallelism can be defined as unexpected regularity. These are relative concepts and can be
unexpected regular within a particular context. In parallel construction, one structure seems
to be equivalent or parallel to another. It is the match of two or more phrases or clauses
 with similar grammatical structure or with similar rhymes. They are further classified as
follows:
 Grammatical Parallelism – When two or more ideas are expressed in a writing or a
poem, and there is parallel grammatical structure, which makes it easier to grasp.
This is referred as grammatical parallelism.
For example, “I kiss’d thee e’re I kill’d thee” – (Shakespeare: Othello)
In this statement, the words kiss’d and kill’d are similar in structure with only one consonant
different ‘s’ and ‘l’. Also, the words ‘kiss’ and ‘kill’ are opposed in meaning. The use of
grammatical and phonetic parallelism, however the act of kissing and the act of killing
appear to Othello’s tortured mind at that moment as being identical. He cannot live with the
kind of love he has: death is the only way out.
 Phonological Parallelism – When two or more ideas are expressed in a writing or a
poem, and there is parallelism at the level of sound, which attracts the attention of
the reader and makes it easier to grasp, is called phonological parallelism. There are
mainly two types of phonological parallelism –
o Rhyme – Eg Twinkle Twinkle litte star, how I wonder what you are?
In the above nursery rhyme, the last word of firt sentence ‘star’ rhymes with the last word of
the second entence ‘are’. These two words ‘star’ and ‘are’ rhyme together to attract the
attention of the readers, bringing in phonological parallelism.
o Alliteration – Eg The fair breeze blew, the white foam flew – (Coleridge: The
Ancient Mariner)
In this example, the consonant sounds /f/ in the words fair, foam and flew and sound /b/ in
the words breeze and blew are repeated. Also, in the words blew and flew, the sound /u/ is
identical to attract the attention of the readers.
2. Foregrounding through Deviation
When the writer or poet goes against the rules of normal language, i.e. deviates from the
accepted norms of grammar, lexis or phonology to attract attention, it is called
foregrounding through deviation. The writer or poet manipulate words or sentences to be
put in such a way that may seem grammatically incorrect however attracting attention. The
tools used are Metaphor, Simile, Oxymoron and Paradox
Eg. ‘A grief ago’ – (Dylan Thomas)
When Dylan Thomas use the word ‘grief’, along with word ‘ago’, ‘grief’ depicts time period.
Mostly in accepted norms of English grammar, it is ‘a long time ago’ or ‘a month ago’,
however here Dylan Thomas recreates the meaning of ‘grief’ as time period, making the
statement stand out and be more powerful.

CONCLUSION
Foregrounding is the powerful theory that is striking, affective, time consuming and
universal. It surprises the reader by violating the rules. Devices of deviation and parallelism
are crux of the Foregrounding theory that captures interest of the readers and also
highlights important parts of the text.

Q.5. Write short notes on the following:

a) The function of intonation

In linguistics, intonation is referred to as melody in a sentence and considered as a powerful tool
which is created by variations in tone and pitch of voice, word or sentence stress and rhythm. The
use of intonation helps distinguish meaning of words and sentences. The different intonation
patterns in a word or sentence distinguishes the meaning of the said words. The intonation patterns
are as follows:

Rising tone

Falling tone

Rising – falling tone

Falling – rising tone

Flat tone

High tone

Low tone

The most common patterns followed are rising, falling, rising – falling and falling – rising. Flat, high
and low intonations do not have too much usage. These patterns define the function of intonation.

Function of intonation

Intonation has several functions. They distinguish the meaning of the said words. With the change in
intonation, the meaning also changes. For example, the simple question “Do you need some help?”
can have different meanings with the change in intonation. It can be a simple question where one is
asking to help. It can be expressed as a rhetorical question where one thinks that a person do not
need help but one wants to be polite. The question can portray annoyance, express sarcasm and
surprise.

On a broader perspective, intonation serves the following functions:

1. Grammatical Function
a. It helps to distinguish a statement from a question when two statements are
grammatically identical.
b. It helps to distinguish a command from a request when two statements are
grammatically identical.
2. Accentual Function – The accentual function of intonation enables a speaker to focus the
listener’s attention on aspects of the message that are most important.
3. Attitudinal Function – The attitudinal function conveys attitudes and emotions of the speaker
by the use of tone.

The function of intonation is flexible. The same intonation can mean different in different situations.

1. State whether sentence is complete or incomplete.

Falling tone reflects, end of a sentence.

Eg. I live in Madrid.

Rising tone reflect that sentence is not finished yet.

Eg. I live in Madrid, but I was born in Canada.

If the rising and falling tones are not used appropriately, people might not understand if the
sentence is complete or not.

2. Seek whether information is old or new.

In a conversation, or stating any statement rising and falling intonations can identify whether the
information is old or new. Falling intonation is used to show information is new. Rising
intonation reflects information in the sentence is old.

3. Asking questions

Questions are mostly asked to find new information. Intonation plays an important role while
asking questions. Intonation of a sentence can change depending on the situation.

When one do not know the answer to the question, falling tone is used while speaking. For
example, where did you go for vacation?

When one has an idea about the answer, rising tone is used to confirm the response. For
example, you got back yesterday, right?

4. Making comment

Mostly questions are asked to seek new information. However, questions can be asked to
communicate various other ideas too. Comments can be made while asking questions with a
falling tone. For example, Why would you say that? Or Doesn’t he look smart? Isn’t it great?

5. Criticizing comment

While criticizing or disagreeing with someone, rising tone is used in the statement. For example,
Have you lost your mind? Why would you do that? Are you that stupid?

6. Giving suggestions

While giving suggestions, falling tone is used in the statement. For example, Why don’t you call
and ask what is happening? Intonation is flexible. Rising tone can also be used to make
suggestions. For example, How about we just go home?

Suggestion with a rising tone sounds like a real question because it sounds more indirect and
hesitant. Whereas, suggestion with a falling tone is more direct and sounds more confident and
does not sound like a question.

7. Express different emotions

Intonations can be used to express varied emotions like excitement, annoyance, surprised,
doubt, and sarcasm. For example, one word ‘Really’ can be used as follows:

Rising-falling tone (higher tone): Excitement

Rising-falling tone (lower tone): Annoyed

Rising-falling tone (longer tone): Surprised

Rising tone: Doubt

Falling tone: Sarcastic

In spoken English, controlling of intonation is very important. It breaks the monotony of a sentence
or word and helps in better understanding of the meaning.

b) Conversion as a morphological device

Morphology is the study of the structure and form of words in language or a language including
inflection, derivation and the formation of compounds. In linguistics, conversion is the word
formation process in which a word of one grammatical form becomes word of another grammatical
form without any change in the spelling or pronunciation. It is also known a Zero derivation or Null
derivation.

Conversion when used as a morphological device is a process of a single word being changed into
another form without there being any actual or real change in the original word, i.e. when a word is
curated and used in a sentence from a current word without the expansion and use of prefixes and
suffixes. This component is significant and explains morphological transformation being called as
zero induction. These conversions result in the change of form (parts of speech) of the word, without
any change in the spelling or pronunciation. These changes are as follows:

1. Noun form to Verb form

My name is Cathy
To name a few cities, I have a travelled to Ambala, Bhatinda, Chandigarh and Delhi.
Huge vessels were used to ship the containers
The ship can carry a million passengers.
2. Verb form to Noun form
They were first to clone a sheep from adult cells.
Dolly the sheep was the first successful mammal clone.
3. Adjective form to Verb form
The team was mesmerised by the green fields.
Martha was green and credulous during her internship.
4. Verb form to Adjective form
5. Preposition form to Noun form
6. Conjunction form to Noun form

Conversion being a creative and an ordinary tool in word creation is a result of people talking and
using words a lot. Citing an example with a very common word ‘Google’. The induction of the word
‘to google’ in the English language has aroused in the recent times from the word ‘Google’. The
original word Google refers to the webpage, which is used by almost everyone on a daily basis. The
word Google is used in Noun form. In the current scenario, internet has become a vital part of our
lives. Typing something to the address bar works the same as Google search but people tend to go
on to webpage and search for something. It was only a matter of time, the noun google turned into
the verb ‘google’ meaning to look for something through google. It kept evolving from there. Now
the verb google is inferred as a search activity on the web. People google things on internet to seek
information. Conversion has pushed meaning away from the source, but we still can see the path it
took.