{"id":60,"date":"2021-11-29T19:12:57","date_gmt":"2021-11-29T19:12:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/chapter\/african-american-language-is-good-english\/"},"modified":"2024-04-30T20:19:48","modified_gmt":"2024-04-30T20:19:48","slug":"african-american-language-is-good-english","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/chapter\/african-american-language-is-good-english\/","title":{"raw":"African American Language is Good English","rendered":"African American Language is Good English"},"content":{"raw":"Introduction<\/strong>\n\nLet\u2019s start off with a quick activity called \u201cSonnet or Song\u201d. All you have to do is read the following quotes and guess if it\u2019s from a Shakespearean sonnet or song.\n
    \n \t
  1. \u201cLove all, trust a few, do wrong to none.\u201d<\/li>\n \t
  2. \u201cHell is empty and all the devils are here.\u201d<\/li>\n \t
  3. \u201cAll the world's a stage, \/And all the men and women merely players;\/They have their exits and their entrances; \/And one man in his time plays many parts, \/His acts being seven ages.\u201d<\/li>\n \t
  4. \"If I told you that a flower bloomed in a dark room, would you trust it?\"<\/li>\n \t
  5. \"Every man has his own heaven\/The difference is the way that he envisions it\/So if you make your heaven pictureless\/By the time you die, you'll be drifting in an imageless field\/So fill your heaven full of blessed thoughts\/...\/I got a question: If a man can make his own heaven\/Then can he make his path to get to it too?\"<\/li>\n \t
  6. \"As a wise lady once said, love the skin you're in cause beauty has no rules. If they're tryna sell an impossible dream to a fool, then you ain't the fool to buy one.\"<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n(Answers will be found at the end of the chapter.)\n\n \n\nAfrican American Vernacular English, or AAVE, is good English. We are taught to believe that the people who use Black English are ignorant thugs and gangsters with nothing going on in their heads. The media is mostly at fault for this because of the way they portray black people. We\u2019ve all seen a show or movie where some black man\/woman gets educated and becomes a CEO or something and they talk like a straight white man or woman. Then they go home to their family of gangbangers and\/or drug dealers or talk to an old friend, who does some blue collar work, and they all use AAVE. The same principle applies to books. I\u2019m reality AAVE is a rich language parallel to English rather than a twisted sub genre. African American English is crucial to establish credibility\/ developing a rapport with the reader,\u00a0 and keeping the reader\u2019s attention.\n\nDisclaimer: From this point on the chapter will be written exclusively in\u00a0 AAVE.\n\nEstablishing Credibility and Developing rapport<\/strong>\n\nIf this whole chapter was written in the voice we\u2019re taught to write in you\u2019d probably just see me as some white boy writin\u2019 about somethin\u2019 they don\u2019t know nothin\u2019 about. You wouldn\u2019t know I\u2019m black by my name so you\u2019d just ignore this whole chapter. Rappers and black writers use this same typa\u2019 code switchin\u2019 to establish credibility with their audience. Imagine if rappers spit the way we\u2019re taught to write. It\u2019d come off as stiff and bland. They\u2019d also seem like fakes so their careers wouldn\u2019t really pop off. By using AAVE people ban show that they ain\u2019t just talkin\u2019, but in reality they actually know what they\u2019re talkin\u2019 about.\n\nThe same thing applies to writtin\u2019. No one wants to read \u2018bout quantum physics from a theater major. You wanna read about characters you can relate to, you lose that when you dismiss AAVE as \u201cBad English\u201d. Many of the depictions of black people written by white people sound like their only point of reference was Black Dynamite<\/a>.When a character say a line like, \u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 in the world get black dynamite more mad then some jive *ss sucka dealin smack to the kids!\u201d it sounds like more of a bad stereotype then anything.\n\nKeeping the Readers Attention<\/strong>\n\nWhen your telling a story the whole goal is to entertain the reader. Bland word dumps are boring and won\u2019t entertain no one. The more entertaining you can make your writing the better it will be recieved. AAVE does that by changing the way you write and addin\u2019 a lil\u2019 bit of style to it. If ya\u2019 speakin\u2019 in a way ya\u2019 comfortable with it\u2019ll be easier for you to write the way you want. Remember AAVE is a language parallel to English but still somewhat seperate, like British English<\/a>. It\u2019s like a a Puerto Rican talkin\u2019 to a Columbian, both of \u2018em speak spanish but there are slight differences between the two dialects and adjusting to those differences might be hard for some. You\u2019ve gotta put more effort into sayin\u2019 somethin\u2019 the right way instead of focusin\u2019 on what you have to say.\n\nRebuttle<\/strong>\n\nOf course there are arguments against the use of AAVE in an academic setting. The first argument that might come to mind is that \u201cIt\u2019s too hard to read or understand,\u201d but odds are if ya\u2019 made it this far you\u2019re readin\u2019 it just fine. If anything theres a short adjustment period but once you pick up on all the tricks it makes sense. AAVE has rules just like standard English, its not just a whole buncha random words thrown onto a page. Furthering this point, it is gradeable as well, contrary to popular belief. It can be broken down to basic guidelines and graded based off of how well it follows said guides. The last piece of criticism that someone could bring up is the idea that it cant be taught in schools. That idea ain\u2019t just wrong but it couldnt be further from the truth. It\u2019s already being taught, just not by teachers. Students hear and use AAVE in everyday life, they\u2019re exposed to it by their friends, families, and everyone else they talk to. They could be taught more in classrooms but that\u2019d just be to make it more consistent accross the board. That bein\u2019 said over the next couple years we will see a boom in the use of AAVE as more people are getting educated on its use.\n\nIf you made it this far, congratulations, you have learned a bit of Black English and hopefully how to use it. As a reward here are the answers to the sonnet or song questions: 1) Sonnet, Shakespeare\u2019s \u201dAll\u2019s Well That Ends Well<\/a>\u201d. 2) Sonnet, Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cThe tempest<\/a>\u201d 3) Sonnet, Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cAll the world\u2019s a stage<\/a>\u201d 4) Song, Kendrick Lamars \u201cPoetic Justice<\/a>\u201d 5) Song, Public Enemy \"Fight the Power<\/a>\" 6) Song, Skepta, \u201cSomebody's Everything<\/a>\u201d\n\nConclusion<\/strong>\n\nIt\u2019s necessary for people to learn to use AAVE right, it\u2019s a good tool for keeping peoples attention, establishing credibility and building a rapport with the readers. Even though it gets a lot of criticism in the academic world it doesn\u2019t deserve most of it. It\u2019s a versatile tool and we need further education on the subject in schools.\n\n\"And even after all my logic and my theory\/I add a \"Motherf*cker\" so you ignorant niggas hear me.\" 2Pac - \"Changes\"","rendered":"

    Introduction<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Let\u2019s start off with a quick activity called \u201cSonnet or Song\u201d. All you have to do is read the following quotes and guess if it\u2019s from a Shakespearean sonnet or song.<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. \u201cLove all, trust a few, do wrong to none.\u201d<\/li>\n
    2. \u201cHell is empty and all the devils are here.\u201d<\/li>\n
    3. \u201cAll the world’s a stage, \/And all the men and women merely players;\/They have their exits and their entrances; \/And one man in his time plays many parts, \/His acts being seven ages.\u201d<\/li>\n
    4. “If I told you that a flower bloomed in a dark room, would you trust it?”<\/li>\n
    5. “Every man has his own heaven\/The difference is the way that he envisions it\/So if you make your heaven pictureless\/By the time you die, you’ll be drifting in an imageless field\/So fill your heaven full of blessed thoughts\/…\/I got a question: If a man can make his own heaven\/Then can he make his path to get to it too?”<\/li>\n
    6. “As a wise lady once said, love the skin you’re in cause beauty has no rules. If they’re tryna sell an impossible dream to a fool, then you ain’t the fool to buy one.”<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      (Answers will be found at the end of the chapter.)<\/p>\n

       <\/p>\n

      African American Vernacular English, or AAVE, is good English. We are taught to believe that the people who use Black English are ignorant thugs and gangsters with nothing going on in their heads. The media is mostly at fault for this because of the way they portray black people. We\u2019ve all seen a show or movie where some black man\/woman gets educated and becomes a CEO or something and they talk like a straight white man or woman. Then they go home to their family of gangbangers and\/or drug dealers or talk to an old friend, who does some blue collar work, and they all use AAVE. The same principle applies to books. I\u2019m reality AAVE is a rich language parallel to English rather than a twisted sub genre. African American English is crucial to establish credibility\/ developing a rapport with the reader,\u00a0 and keeping the reader\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n

      Disclaimer: From this point on the chapter will be written exclusively in\u00a0 AAVE.<\/p>\n

      Establishing Credibility and Developing rapport<\/strong><\/p>\n

      If this whole chapter was written in the voice we\u2019re taught to write in you\u2019d probably just see me as some white boy writin\u2019 about somethin\u2019 they don\u2019t know nothin\u2019 about. You wouldn\u2019t know I\u2019m black by my name so you\u2019d just ignore this whole chapter. Rappers and black writers use this same typa\u2019 code switchin\u2019 to establish credibility with their audience. Imagine if rappers spit the way we\u2019re taught to write. It\u2019d come off as stiff and bland. They\u2019d also seem like fakes so their careers wouldn\u2019t really pop off. By using AAVE people ban show that they ain\u2019t just talkin\u2019, but in reality they actually know what they\u2019re talkin\u2019 about.<\/p>\n

      The same thing applies to writtin\u2019. No one wants to read \u2018bout quantum physics from a theater major. You wanna read about characters you can relate to, you lose that when you dismiss AAVE as \u201cBad English\u201d. Many of the depictions of black people written by white people sound like their only point of reference was Black Dynamite<\/a>.When a character say a line like, \u201cAin\u2019t nothin\u2019 in the world get black dynamite more mad then some jive *ss sucka dealin smack to the kids!\u201d it sounds like more of a bad stereotype then anything.<\/p>\n

      Keeping the Readers Attention<\/strong><\/p>\n

      When your telling a story the whole goal is to entertain the reader. Bland word dumps are boring and won\u2019t entertain no one. The more entertaining you can make your writing the better it will be recieved. AAVE does that by changing the way you write and addin\u2019 a lil\u2019 bit of style to it. If ya\u2019 speakin\u2019 in a way ya\u2019 comfortable with it\u2019ll be easier for you to write the way you want. Remember AAVE is a language parallel to English but still somewhat seperate, like British English<\/a>. It\u2019s like a a Puerto Rican talkin\u2019 to a Columbian, both of \u2018em speak spanish but there are slight differences between the two dialects and adjusting to those differences might be hard for some. You\u2019ve gotta put more effort into sayin\u2019 somethin\u2019 the right way instead of focusin\u2019 on what you have to say.<\/p>\n

      Rebuttle<\/strong><\/p>\n

      Of course there are arguments against the use of AAVE in an academic setting. The first argument that might come to mind is that \u201cIt\u2019s too hard to read or understand,\u201d but odds are if ya\u2019 made it this far you\u2019re readin\u2019 it just fine. If anything theres a short adjustment period but once you pick up on all the tricks it makes sense. AAVE has rules just like standard English, its not just a whole buncha random words thrown onto a page. Furthering this point, it is gradeable as well, contrary to popular belief. It can be broken down to basic guidelines and graded based off of how well it follows said guides. The last piece of criticism that someone could bring up is the idea that it cant be taught in schools. That idea ain\u2019t just wrong but it couldnt be further from the truth. It\u2019s already being taught, just not by teachers. Students hear and use AAVE in everyday life, they\u2019re exposed to it by their friends, families, and everyone else they talk to. They could be taught more in classrooms but that\u2019d just be to make it more consistent accross the board. That bein\u2019 said over the next couple years we will see a boom in the use of AAVE as more people are getting educated on its use.<\/p>\n

      If you made it this far, congratulations, you have learned a bit of Black English and hopefully how to use it. As a reward here are the answers to the sonnet or song questions: 1) Sonnet, Shakespeare\u2019s \u201dAll\u2019s Well That Ends Well<\/a>\u201d. 2) Sonnet, Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cThe tempest<\/a>\u201d 3) Sonnet, Shakespeare\u2019s \u201cAll the world\u2019s a stage<\/a>\u201d 4) Song, Kendrick Lamars \u201cPoetic Justice<\/a>\u201d 5) Song, Public Enemy “Fight the Power<\/a>” 6) Song, Skepta, \u201cSomebody’s Everything<\/a>\u201d<\/p>\n

      Conclusion<\/strong><\/p>\n

      It\u2019s necessary for people to learn to use AAVE right, it\u2019s a good tool for keeping peoples attention, establishing credibility and building a rapport with the readers. Even though it gets a lot of criticism in the academic world it doesn\u2019t deserve most of it. It\u2019s a versatile tool and we need further education on the subject in schools.<\/p>\n

      “And even after all my logic and my theory\/I add a “Motherf*cker” so you ignorant niggas hear me.” 2Pac – “Changes”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"menu_order":7,"template":"","meta":{"pb_show_title":"on","pb_short_title":"African American Language is Good English","pb_subtitle":"","pb_authors":["martinz"],"pb_section_license":"cc-by-nc"},"chapter-type":[],"contributor":[76],"license":[56],"class_list":["post-60","chapter","type-chapter","status-publish","hentry","contributor-martinz","license-cc-by-nc"],"part":46,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/60","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/chapter"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/60\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":61,"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/60\/revisions\/61"}],"part":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/parts\/46"}],"metadata":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapters\/60\/metadata\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=60"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"chapter-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/pressbooks\/v2\/chapter-type?post=60"},{"taxonomy":"contributor","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/contributor?post=60"},{"taxonomy":"license","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/books.chrisfriend.us\/2020\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/license?post=60"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}