Sources

"Rful Southern." Do you speak American. 2005. 2 Oct. 2008.

My Research Survey

When surveying people, I will give them a chart with a list of common slang words used in the South. They will fill it out according to how often they use the slang words. They will have the option to check off "often, sometimes, or never." By checking off one of the boxes, that will indicate how commonly used each word is. This survey will be handed out to ten boys and ten girls, all students at Decatur High School.This will help further my research by proving which words are used more in the south than in the north.

Summary of Article

Reading the article,"Rful South", by John Fought, taught me a lot about language. The main point of this article was to further educate readers on the specific differences of the northern and southern dialects. This article states many things I've noticed before but never really related to the southern dialect in particular. These unique changes in language include dropping "y" sounds and replacing them for flat "a"s. These subtle changes are the reason the southern and northern dialects are so segregated.

My Research Plan

While doing my research, I plan on using many resources. I plan on using the internet and my peers to answer my research questions. I hope to find people my age that notice a difference in language and have traveled a lot. This way, they have been around the world and have experienced all kinds of different languages. If I am so lucky to find people who have traveled a lot, I plan on using them as subjects to survey to further my research.

My Research Questions

Why does language change? How do people adapt to different dialects in language? Do some parts of the U.S. believe that their language is better than another? What major differences are there between the northern and southern dialects? Did these dialects originate from any other countries? Can people usually tell where a person is from based on their dialect?

My Research Goals

Why? That is the question many people find themselves asking about ten times a day. That's just one of the many questions I have about language. Why does language differentiate around the world? The fact that everyones language is different is something I can't wrap my head around. It's so unattainable that a person's language and dialect can change just because of the people and places they're around. After moving from the north to the south, I have noticed small changes in my language in only justs a few weeks. They're small differences no matter where you go and I still find that radical. So, why does language change? After all of my research is done, I hope to know more about the difference in language based on location. I hope to know so much, I can educate anyone who is confused about it.

My Language Beleifs

For the past few weeks, I've learned a lot about language. Some of the things I've learned stick with me each and everyday. One of the most important things that I've learned is that language isn't just words. Many people don't realize that the way they talk defines them, in a way. Often times, people can identify where a person is from just by the way they talk. Also, many times people don't even notice their own accent because they're so used to it. Language follows people everywhere we go. Language is the one thing all humans have in common, we all communicate and talk. I am thankful that everyones language is different, without that, the world would be boring. In class, we learned from a guest speaker about two young boys from Africa. They had been made fun of by the way they talk. They were used to using Standard Edited English in their everyday life. The kids in their class didn't understand because it was something they weren't used to.