A Brief Introduction to Slang’s past and present

Abstract:Slang is a very special language variation commonly used among particular groups of people.`It’s usually not accepted in serious speeches,writings or other formal occasions owing to its informality and impoliteness.This paper will focus on the evolution,language features and main components of English slang as well as the culture mirrored from some slangs.

Key words:Slang;evolution;special language features;composition;culture connotations

1.Introduction

1.1 The definition of slang

There is no explicit and unified definition of the concept of slang till now.Different ideas about the notion of slang are developed by various people.Some define it as highly colloquial and informal words and expressions while some others perceive it as a vulgar language only used among certain groups of people.And an authoritative dictionary Oxford Advanced Learner’s English-Chinese Dictionary gives it a definition as…very informal words and expressions that are more common in spoken language,especially used by a particular group of people,for example,children,criminals,soldiers,etc.An Israeli professor Bernard Spolsky once interpreted slang as a kind of jargon marked by its rejection of formal rules,its comparative freshness and its common ephemerality,and its marked use to claim solidarity.(2000)From these notions,we can find out that slang is a kind of language that is quite informal and conversational,and it’s usually used among a particular group of people who want to express themselves in a more special and novel way.

2.Slang’s past and present

2.1The histories and origins of slang

There is no specific date when slang was born can be determined.It’s rumored that slang was first issued in papers as a record of the jargons of London criminals.However,you can be sure that slang must has been there as long as we had the language.People use slang to express their strong emotions,to curse or mock up someone,and those vulgar words and expressions adorn their lives.

After the division of labor was developed,many new trades and workers who worked in those industries appeared.Out the need of convenient communication in work and the necessity of keeping the technique secrets,workers engaging in different trades developed their own languages which were hardly understandable to those laymen,and those languages were one of the original slangs.The expression‘Davy Jones’locker’is an example which means the deep underwater to those sailors.Meanwhile,pirates,mafias and gangsters who earn their livings by robberies,extortions and drug dealings are also groups of people who use jargons very often,so there is no wonder that many slangs are of nasty lineage.

Specific historical events and periods promote slangs,too.During the America westward movement in the 1900s,many Americans moved to the western US with their slangs,then,slangs from different areas met and many new slangs were created-some words like ‘digger’and ‘cradler’were exactly the products of this period and all these have contributed to the diversity of American slangs.In the 20th century,American slangs had an another enrichment-owing to a variety of history events and social phenomena such as world war II,the Vietnam war,civil rights movement and sexual revolution,the beat generation and hippies jumped into American history and created slangs of their own.Those slangs had a strong relation with drugs,sex and were thought as taboos at that time.In other places,things were getting quite same as States.Take colonial Australia for example,during that period,the British government banished a large amount of convicts to this new land,and many expressions describing those settlers such as’patriots’,’legitimate’,’pioneers’and’first family’were formed.Those words all have a sense of irony or sneer as well as a mark of the time.Since the 80s and 90s of the 21st century,various new kinds of such slangs as internet slangs and campus slangs have been added into this language which shows the development of technology and the change of our society.

2.2 Modern slang

Nowadays,slangs are just not used as jargons of specific industries or argots used by mobsters.It has been accepted by more people from different classes as a fashion,witty and expressive way to speak.And the slang-creating groups are expanded,no matter which social stratum you belong to,you’re welcomed to use slangs.Therefore,slangs are now widely spoken down to these tramps,paupers and up to those politicians,columnists and other notables.And it’s never weird to catch slangs in newspapers’ headlines,biographies,news programs even Mr.Obama’s formal speeches nowadays.As a matter of fact,slangs are no longer held by those subculture groups and slang itself has become a mainstream language and many slangs have stayed in the language for a long time and become a part of the common language.

Generally speaking,many slangs have been elevated from the status of informal and vulgar expressions to the core of language.Popular as they are,they play a role of great importance in people’s speaking and writing these days.

3.The stylistic and rhetoric features of slang

Slangs are informal in two aspects,they are,the language logic and spelling.On one hand,slangs appear to be illogical mostly which lead to the confusion when you take it literally.For instance,you may interpret an expression ‘apple-polisher’ wrong if you don’t know the fact that it means flatterer as a slang.On the other hand,slangs are usually spelled in an uncommon way since most of them are invented freshly.And another reason for this appearance is that foreign immigrants and the underprivileged make up a large part of slang creators,especially those in US.Thus,slangs spoken by those non-English speakers and ghetto people commonly disobey English grammars and seems very informal in spelling which explains the existence of slangs such as ‘kooky’,‘biggie’,‘hacktivism’and ‘abosobloodylutely’.

The degree of vulgarity is one vital benchmark that distinguishes slangs from colloquialisms.Though many slangs have been elevated to the category of common language,most slangs still remain coarse as a birthmark of ghettos,underworld and bottom strata.And those obscene slangs are the proofs.

4.Conclusion

As time goes by,many slang words stay in the language for a long time while others disappear and new ones come into language.Either newly invented words or old words taking on new meanings.However,nowadays,those slangs have come out to the stage and are used in conversations and writings quite often.According to a research,most Americans have a vocabulary of 10 thousand to 20 thousand that is commonly used in daily life while slangs make up 10% of this list and these 2000 words at a high frequency.

Reference

［1］ Dumas,B.K.&Jonathan L.Is slang a word for linguistics American Speech,1978

［2］ Chapman,R.L.American Slang.New York:Harper and Row Publishers,1986