The 9th International Conference on English Language Teaching (ELT) In China (ELT2020)

432 / 2020-02-28 22:44:00

“In China, you should speak Chinese if you are Chinese”: Language Use, Identity, and Language Ideology in Online Interaction

language ideology,indexicality,identity,China,stancetaking,social media

Sociolinguistics > Sociolinguistics

This study investigates how local identities of Chinese are discursively constructed and how language ideologies concerning Chinese and English are manifested in the process in online discussion. I examine dynamics of identity work by drawing from discourse on video website regarding two celebrities in a Chinese reality show. In the comments of this reality show, the nationality, ethnicity, and controversial linguistic performance of the Chinese-Canadian and Chinese-American celebrities are discussed heated online. We look into the role language plays in these online debates and explore how social media serve as an important site for ideological contestation and identity construction. Specifically, I discuss (1) how viewers discursively construct these two Chinese Canadian and Chinese American as two outgroup members through identity labels, such as “ banana people” and “ABC”, and (2) how various language ideologies are manifested through the aforementioned process of identity construction.