Role of Standard of English

Role of Standard of English

Apparently, you can get to the very heart—whatever that means—of the English Language only with a slight detour via the native speaker's head. As you may readily appreciate, this is not such good news for non-native speakers of English. The trouble is, it seems, that since non-native speakers of English—such as most English teachers and translators/interpreters—have to make do, like it or not, with heads of their own. Thus they cannot possibly achieve fluency in English: no native-speaker head, no access to the heart of the English language and therefore no fluency—or so goes the verdict by implication in the DELC info.

There is nothing very much to have a native-speaker-head-envy about, judging by the cultural content of the DELC. All the same, this predicament of not having the right sort of head is no small matter, to say the least. It has many implications concerning the "mystique of the native speaker" (Ferguson & Kachru, 1982). One is professional: teachers or translators without native-speaker head cannot really be top quality however well qualified and experienced. As one of the respondents (non-native) of my survey put it with impeccable (native-like?!) English, which paradox demonstrates in itself the absurdity of the mystique: "At best, I can be second best." (Ardó, 1992)

Another implication is economic: gatekeepers are conveniently confirmed and happily justified to continue discriminating in favour of native heads. "I am afraid we have to insist that all our teachers are native speakers of English. Our students do not travel half-way round the world only to be taught by a non-native speaker (however good that person's English may be)." (Illés, 1991; italics mine). It is however, the psychological implication which may be the most destructive of all. This is a predicament which is biologically fixed—it cannot be resolved (unless with a head transplant?), and in effect is fatal. Fatal, since it seems to be a genetic deformity, a "birth deficiency" stigma for all non-native speakers of English. The students of these poor invalids obviously cannot but be hit even harder.

Unless those of us not blessed with a native-speaker head, or even the Native-Speaker head, rush out and put ourselves, at an arguably modest expense, on the life-support system of the Longman DELC! Then, with enlightenment on the current (and not so current) trivia of British and American life, with luck, we may be able to ...