OU Degree 5th Sem English – What’s the Language of the Future? Questions and Answers & Summary
Comprehension-I. (Short Answer Question)
Question 1.
What is the status of English In the twenty-first century?
Answer:
In the twenty-first century, the world is becoming more urban and more middle class, and the adoption of English is a symptom of this, for increasingly English serves as the lingua franca of business and popular culture. It is dominant or at least very prominent in other areas such as shipping, diplomacy, computing, medicine and education.
Question 2.
What are the Arabic and English languages associated with the UAE?
Answer:
According to the author, a recent study has suggested that among students in the United Arab Emirates “Arabic is associated with tradition, home, religion, culture, school, arts and social sciences,” whereas English “is symbolic of modernity, work, higher education, commerce, economics and science and technology.” In Arabic-speaking countries, science subjects are often taught in English because excellent textbooks and other educational resources are readily available in English.
Question 3.
What helped the spread of the English language in the past and what helps it spread in the present?
Answer:
According to the author, English has spread because of British colonialism, the technological advances of the Industrial Revolution, American economic and political ascendancy, and further (mostly American) technological developments in the second half of the twentieth century.
Its rise has been assisted by the massive exportation of English as a second language, as well as by the growth of an English-language mass media. Hitchings opines that today it is English that is the world’s auxiliary tongue. There are more people who use English as a second language than there are native speakers.
Estimates of the numbers vary, but even the most guarded view is that English has 500 million second- language speakers. Far more of the world’s citizens are eagerly jumping on board than trying to resist its progress. In some cases the devotion appears religious and can involve what to outsiders looks a lot like self-mortification.
Question 4.
What example does the author cite to show the craze for English in Korea?
Answer:
The author cites the example given by Mark Abley of the lengths people will go to in order to learn English, seduced by the belief that linguistic capital equals economic capital. According to Abley, some rich Koreans pay for their children to have an operation that lengthens the tongue because it helps them speak English convincingly. The suggestion is that it enables them to produce r and l sounds, although the evidence of the many proficient English-speakers among Korean immigrants in America and Britain makes one wonder whether the procedure is either necessary or useful.
Question 5.
Which two languages may appear to pose a challenge to English in the twenty-first century? What are their strengths and weaknesses?
Answer:
According to the author, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese are the two languages that may appear to pose a challenge to the position of English as the dominant world language in the twenty-first century. Hitchings opines that both the languages have more first-language users than English.
However, at present neither of the two languages is much used as a lingua franca, i.e., a connecting language among different language groups. The majority of speakers of Mandarin Chinese live in one country, and, excepting Spain, most Spanish- speakers are in the North and South Americas.
Question 6.
What does the author mean when he says that the main challenge to English may come from ‘within’?
Answer:
Henry Hitchings explains that the main challenges to English may come from ‘within’. There is a long history of people using the language for anti-English ends-of creative artists and political figures asserting in English their distance from Englishness or Britishness or Americanness.
For instance, many writers whose first language has not been English have infused their English writing with foreign flavours; this has enabled them to parade their heritage while working in a medium that has made it possible for them to reach a wide audience.
Question 7.
Which two countries are mentioned as potential sites of challenge to the English language?
Answer:
The author mentioned India and China as potential sites of challenge to the English language.
Question 8.
Why are the Chinese learning English in large numbers? Which unconventional method of teaching English in China does the author mention?
Answer:
In his essay, Henry Hitchings explained the reason why the Chines are learning English in large numbers. According to him, the entrepreneur Li Yang has developed Crazy English, an unorthodox teaching method. It involves a lot of shouting. This, Li explains, is the way for Chinese to activate their “international muscles.” His agenda is patriotic.
Kingsley Bolton, head of the English department at the City University of Hong Kong, calls this “huckster nationalism.” It certainly has a flamboyant quality; one of Li’s slogans is “Conquer English to Make China Strong.” A few dissenting voices suggest that he is encouraging racism, but the enthusiasm for his populist approach is in no doubt, and it is a symptom of China’s English Fever: the ardent conviction that learning English is the essential skill for surviving in the modern world.
Question 9.
What is the result of the two most populous countries adopting the English language? How does it affect the native speakers of the language?
Answer:
Henry Hitchings opines that due the embrace of English in India and China, the English language is changing. Some of the changes are likely to prove disconcerting for its native speakers. The “English-ness” of English is being diluted. English’s centre of gravity is moving; in fact, in the twenty-first century the language has many centres.
The author feels that as this continues, native English speakers may find themselves at a disadvantage. At the same time, native speakers of English tend to assume that their command over English makes it unimportant to learn other languages.
Moreover, there is a chance that a command of English will within twenty or thirty years be regarded as a basic skill for business, and native speakers of the language will no longer enjoy any competitive advantage. The reality is different. British companies often miss out on export opportunities because of a lack of relevant language skills.
Question 10.
What disadvantages are the native speakers likely to face for knowing only English?
Answer:
The author shows that English is both ‘pushed’ and is equally ‘pulled’. He explains that large companies such as British Petroleum (now BP Amoco) have worked with the British Council, set up in 1934 as an “international cultural relations body”, funding educational schemes to encourage foreign nationals to learn English.
The author feels that this is not exactly an act of altruism but for what Robert Phillipson says, “English for business is business for English.” The British Council tries to promote or ‘push’ the British English – for protecting both ‘cultural’ and ‘corporate’ interests. However, the english is the most attractive language in the world today that people are attracted or ‘pulled’ towards learning it
Question 11.
How does the author show that English is both ‘pushed’ and ‘pulled’?
Answer:
According to the author, the result of English spreading to different places is complex. Even as vast amounts are spent on spreading British English, the reality is that English is taking on more and more local colour in the different places where it is used. Accordingly, while the number of languages in the world is diminishing, the number of English is increasing.
Comprehension II. (Essay Type Question)
Question 1.
Explain the main argument of the essay?
Answer:
Henry Hitchings (born 1974) is an author and critic specializing in language and cultural history. The present essay, “What’s the Language of the Future?” is an excerpt from his book The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2001).
The essay outlines the factors that helped the spread of English in the past, the reasons for the ‘English Fever’ in the present and the challenges that English is likely to face in the near future. Presently, English serves as the lingua franca (link language) business and popular culture.
In the countries like, the UAE, English “is symbolic of modernity, work, higher education, commerce, economics, and science and technology.” The spread of English has a business or monetary purpose because excellent books are available in English. According to Sir Richard Francis, the Director General of the British Council, “Britain’s black gold is not North Sea oil, but the English Language.”
Hence the propagation of English is an industry, not a happy accident. The spread of English is for the benefit of the British corporate interests. It is not an act of altruism-welfare of others. As Robert Phillipson says, “English for business is business for English.”
Hitchings feels that there are challenges to the position of English in the 21st century. The main challenges are from Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. Both have more first- language users. But they are not used as lingua franca (link language) and limited to a specific geographical areas.
According the author, the main challenge to English may come from within. Due to the embrace of English by Indians and Chinese, the language is changing. Hitchings feels that English’s centre of gravity is moving. In the 21st century, there are many centres. This leads to the creation of many “Englishes”. Increasingly, English is taking more local colour in different places where it is used.
Hence the number of Englishes is increasing. The non native speakers of English, especially creative artists and political figures, are now using the English language for anti-English ends by distancing themselves from Englishness or Britishness or American-ness. Hence, the “English-ness” or “American-ness” of English is being diluted. As a result, the native speakers of English may find themselves at a disadvantage. The number of non-natives speakers increases, the competitive advantage the native speakers enjoy decreases.
Question 2.
Discuss the current status of English as a global language.
Answer:
Henry Hitchings (born 1974) is an author and critic specializing in language and cultural history. The present, essay, “What’s the Language of the Future?” is an excerpt from his book The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2001). The essay outlines the factors that helped the spread of English in the past, the reasons for the ‘English Fever’ in the present and the challenges that English is likely to face in the near future.
In the twenty-first century, the world is becoming more urban and more middle class, and the adoption of English is a symptom of this, for increasingly English serves as the lingua franca of business and popular culture. It is dominant or at least very prominent in other areas such as shipping, diplomacy, computing, medicine and education.
According to the author, English has spread because of British colonialism, the technological advances of the Industrial Revolution, American economic and political ascendancy, and further (mostly American) technological developments in the second half of the twentieth century. Hitchings opines that today it is English that is the world’s auxiliary tongue.
There are more people who use English as a second language than there are native speakers. Estimates of the numbers vary, but even the most guarded view is that English has 500 million second-language speakers.
The author cites the example given by Mark Abley of the lengths people will go to in order to learn English, seduced by the belief that linguistic capital equals economic capital.According to Abley, some rich Koreans pay for their children to have an operation that lengthens the tongue because it helps them speak English convincingly.
The suggestion is that it enables them to produce r and l sounds, although the evidence of the many proucient English-speakers among Korean immigrants in America and Britain makes one wonder whether the procedure is either necessary or useful. In this way, the devotion crazy towards learning English in the 21st century appears to be religious and can involve what to outsiders looks a lot like self-mortiucation.
Question 3.
Describe the image and the advantages that English has vis-a-vis the other languages mentioned in the essay.
Answer:
Henry Hitchings (born 1974) is an author and critic specializing in language and cultural history. The present essay, “What’s the Language of the Future?” is an excerpt from his book The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2001). The essay outlines the factors that helped the spread of English in the past, the -reasons for the ‘English Fever’ in the present and the challenges that English is likely to face in the near future.
According to the author, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese are the two languages that may-appear to pose a challengeto the position of English as the dominant world language in the twenty-first century. Hitchings opines that both the languages have more first-language users than English. However, at present neither of the two languages is much used as a lingua franca, i.e., a connecting language among different language groups. The majority of speakers of Mandarin Chinese live in one country, and, excepting Spain, most Spanish-speakers are in the North and South Americas.
However, Henry Hitchings explains that the main challenges to English may come from ‘within’. There is a long history of people using the language for anti-English ends – of creative artists and political ugures asserting in English their distance from Englishness or Britishness or American-ness. According to the author, the English language has advantages over Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. Presently, English serves as the lingua franca (link language) business and popular culture. Moreover, more people in the world are now attracted or ‘pulled’ towards learning English.
Question 4.
According to the propagation of English is neither ‘a happy accident” nor “an act of altruism”.
Answer:
Henry Hitchings (born 1974) is an author and critic specializing in language and cultural history. The present essay, “What’s the Language of the Future?” is an excerpt from his book The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2001).
The essay outlines the factors that helped the spread of English in the past, the reasons for the ‘English Fever’ in the present and the challenges that English is likely to face in the near future.The author explains how the number of people who can speak English around the world is increasing.
He presents the figures from a survey of 2005 which reveals that more than 80 per cent of people in the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden claimed to be able to speak English. The ugure was around 60 per cent in Finland, 50 per cent in Germany, 30 per cent in France and Italy, and 20 percent in Spain and Turkey.
The author feels that propagation of English around the World isneither ‘a happy accident” nor “an act of altruism’The author explains that the spread of English is actually done for what Robert Phillipson says, “English for business is business for English.” The author explains that large companies such as British Petroleum (now BP Amoco) have worked with the British Council, set up in 1934 as an “international cultural relations body”, funding educational schemes to encourage foreign nationals to leam English.
The author explains that the British Council tries to promote or ‘push’ the British English for protecting both ‘cultural’ and ‘corporate’ interests. However, the English is the most attractive language in the world today that people are attracted or ‘pulled’ towards learning it
Question 5.
What, according to Hitchings, is the likely impact of the “centre of gravity of English” moving?
Answer:
Henry Hitchings (born 1974) is an author and critic specializing in language and cultural history. The present essay, “What’s the Language of the Future?” is an excerpt from his book The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2001). The essay outlines the factors that helped the spread of English in the past, the reasons for the ‘English Fever’ in the present and the challenges that English is likely to face in the near future.
Henry Hitchings opines that due the embrace of English in India and China, the English language is changing. Some of the changes are likely to prove disconcerting for its native speakers. The “English-ness” of English is being diluted. The ‘centre of gravity of English’ is moving; in fact, in the twenty-first century the language has ‘many centres’.
The author feels that as this continues, native English-speakers may and themselves at a disadvantage. At the same time, native speakers of English tend to assume that their command over English makes it unimportant to learn other languages. Moreover, there is a chance that a command of English will within twenty or thirty years be regarded as a basic skill for business, and native speakers of the language will no longer enjoy any competitive advantage.
The reality is different. British companies often miss out on export opportunities because of a lack of relevant language skills. As the result of shifting centre of gravity of English, the English language is taking on more and more local colour in the different parts of the world where it is used. Accordingly, while the number of languages in the world is diminishing, the number of English is increasing.
What’s the Language of the Future Poem Summary in English
Henry Hitchings (born 1974) is an author and critic specializing in language and cultural history. Henry Hitchings was born in 1974. He is the author of Dr Johnson’s Dictionary: The Extraordinary Story of the Book that Defined the World (2005), The Secret Life of Words: How English Became English (2008), Who’s Afraid of Jane Austen?: How toReally Talk About Books You Haven’t Read(2008), The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2011), Sorry!
The English and their Manners (2013), and has recently edited a collection of essays Browse: The World in Bookshops.He has contributed to many newspapers and magazines and is the theatre critic for the London Evening Standard. He became a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2015
.
The present essay, “What’s the Language of the Future?” is an excerpt from his book The Language Wars: A History of Proper English (2001). The essay outlines the factors that helped the spread of English in the past, the reasons for the ‘English Fever’ in the present and the challenges that English is likely to face in the near future.
Presently, English serves as the lingua franca (link language) business and popular culture. In the countries like, the UAE, English “is symbolic of modernity, work, higher education, commerce, economics, and science and technology.” The spread of English has a business or monetary purpose because excellent books are available in English.
According to Sir Richard Francis, the Director General of the British Council, “Britain’s black gold is not North Sea oil, but the English Language.” Hence the propagation of English is an industry, not a happy accident. The spread of English is for the benefit of the British corporate interests. It is not an act of altruism- welfare of others. As Robert Phillipson says, “English for business is business for English.”
Hitchings feels that there are challenges to the position of English in the 21st century. The main challenges are from Spanish and Mandarin Chinese. Both have more first- language users. But they are not used as lingua franca (link language) and limited to a specific geographical area. According the author, the main challenge to English may come from within. Due to the embrace of English by Indians and Chinese, the language is changing. Hitchings feels that English’s centre of gravity is moving.
In the 21st century, there are many centres. This leads to the creation of many “Englishes”. Increasingly,English is taking more local colour in different places where it is used. Hence the number of Englishes is increasing. The non-native speakers of English, especially creative artists and political figures, are now using the English language for anti-English ends by distancing themselves from Englishness or Britishness or American-ness.
Hence, the “English-ness” or “American-ness” of English is being diluted. As a result, the native speakers of English may find themselves at a disadvantage. The number of non-natives speakers increases, the competitive advantage the native speakers enjoy decreases.
What’s the Language of the Future Poem Summary in Telugu
హెద్రీ హిచింగ్స్ (జననం 1974) భాష మరియు సాంస్ృతిక చరిత్రలో ప్రత్యేకత కలిగిన రచయిత మరియు విమర్శకుడు. హెన్రీ హిచింగ్స్ 1974 లో జన్మించారు. అతను డా. జాన్సన్ డిక్షనరీ: ది ఎక్స్టటరర్డినరీ స్టోరీ ఆఫ్ ది బుక్ డిఫైన్డ్ ది వరల్డ్ (2005), ది సీక్రెట్ లైఫ్ ఆఫ్ వర్స్: హౌ ఇంగ్లీష్ బీమ్ ఇంగ్లీష్ (2008), జేన్ ఆస్టెన్కి ఎవరు భయపడ్డారు : మీరు చదవని పుస్తకాల గురించి నిజంగా ఎలా మాట్లాడాలి (2008), భాషా యుద్ధాలు: సరైన ఇంగ్లీష్ చరిత్ర (2011), క్షమించండి!
ఇంగ్లీష్ మరియు వారి మర్యాదలు (2013), మరియు ఇటీవల బ్రౌజ్: ది వరల్డ్ ఇన్ బుక్ షాప్స్ అనే వ్యాసాల సేకరణను సవరించారు. అతను అనేక వార్తాపత్రికలు మరియు మ్యాగజైన్లకు సహకరించాడు మరియు లండన్ ఈవెనింగ్ స్టాండర్డ్ కోసం థియేటర్ విమర్శకుడు. అతను 2015 లో రాయల్ సొసైటీ ఆఫ్ లిటరేచర్లో ఫెలో అయ్యాడు.
ప్రస్తుత వ్యాసం, “భవిష్యత్ భాష ఏమిది?” అనేది అతని పస్తకం ది లాంగ్వేజ్ వార్స్: ఎ హిస్టరీ ఆఫ్ ప్రాపర్ ఇంగ్లీష్ (2001). ఈ వ్యాసం గతంలో ఆంగ్ల వ్యాప్తికి దోహదపడిన అంశాలు, వర్తమానంలో ‘ఇంగ్లీష్ ఫీవర్’ కారణాలు మరియు సమీప భవిష్యత్తులో ఇంగ్లీష్ ఎదుర్కొనే సవాళ్లను వివరిస్తుంది. ప్రస్తుతం, ఇంగ్లీష్ లింగువా ఫ్రాంకా (లింక్ లాంగ్వేజ్) వ్యాపారం మరియు ప్రముఖ సంస్తృిిగా పనిచేస్తోంది. యుఎఇ వంటి దేశాలలో, ఇంగ్లీష్ “ఆధునికత, పని, ఉన్నత విద్య, వాణిజ్యం, ఆర్థిక శాస్తం మరియు సైన్స్ అండ్ టెక్నాలజీకి ప్రతీక.”
ఆంగ్ల వ్యాప్తికి వ్యాపారం లేదా ద్రవ్య ప్రయోజనం ఉంది ఎందుకంటే అద్భుతమైన పుస్తకాలు ఆంగ్లంలో అందుబాటులో ఉన్నాయి. బ్రిటిష్ కౌన్సిల్ డైరెక్టర్ జనరల్ సర్ రిచర్డ్ ఫాన్సిస్ ప్రకారం, “బ్రిటన్ యొక్క నల్ల బంగారం ఉత్తర సముద్రపు నూనె కాదు, ఆంగ్ల భాష.” అందువల్ల ఇంగ్లీష్ ప్రచారం ఒక పరిశ్రమ, సంతోషకరమైన ప్రమాదం కాదు. ఇంగ్లీష్ వ్యాప్తి బ్రిటీష్ కార్పొరేట్ ప్రయోజనాల ప్రయోజనం కోసం. ఇది పరోపకార చర్య కాదు- ఇతరుల సంక్షేమం. రాబర్ట్ ఫిలిప్సన్ చెప్పినట్లుగా, “వ్యాపారం కోసం ఇంగ్లీష్ అనేది ఆంగ్లానికి వ్యాపారం.”
21 వ శతాబ్దంలో ఇంగ్లీష్ స్థానానికి సవాళ్లు ఉన్నాయని హిచింగ్స్ భావిస్తున్నారు. ప్రధాన సవాళ్లు స్పానిష్ మరియు మాండరిన్ చైనీస్ నుండి. ఇద్దరికీ మొదటి భాష వాడుకదారులు ఎక్కువ. కానీ అవి భాషా ఫ్రాంకా (లింక్ లాంగ్వేజ్) గా ఉపయోగించబడవు మరియు నిర్దిష్ట భౌగోళిక ప్రాంతాలకు పరిమితం చేయబడ్డాయి. రచయిత ప్రకారం, ఆంగ్లానికి ప్రధాన సవాలు లోపల నుండి రావచ్చు.
భారతీయులు మరియు చైనీయులు ఇంగ్లీషును ఆలింగనం చేసుకోవడం వలన, భాష మారుతోంది. ఆంగ్ల గురుత్వాకర్షణ కేంద్రం కదులుతున్నట్లు హిచింగ్స్ భావిస్తున్నారు. 21 వ శతాబ్దంలో, అనేక కేంద్రాలు ఉన్నాయి. ఇది అనేక “ఇంగ్లీష్ల” సృష్టికి దారితీస్తుంది. పెరుగుతున్న కొద్దీ, ఆంగ్లం ఉపయోగించబడే వివిధ ప్రదేశాలలో మరింత స్థానిక రంగును పొందుతోంది.
అందువల్ల ఇంగ్లీషుల సంఖ్య పెరుగుతోంది. ఆంగ్లంలో స్థానికేతరులు, ప్ర్యేకించి సృజనాత్మక కళాకారులు మరియు రాజకీయ ప్రముఖులు, ఇంగ్లీషు లేదా బ్రిటీష్నెస్ లేదా అమెరికన్-నెస్ నుండి తమను దూరం చేయడం ద్వారా ఆంగ్ల వ్లతిరేక చివరల కోసం ఇప్పుడు ఆంగ్ల భాషను ఉపయోగిస్తున్నారు. అందువల్ల, ఇంగ్లీష్ యొక్క “ఇంగ్లీష్-నెస్” లేదా “అమెరికన్-నెస్” పలుచన చేయబడుతున్నాయి. ఫలితంగా, ఇంగ్లీషు మాతృభాష మాట్లాడేవారు తమను తాము నష్ట్రోవచ్చు. స్థానికేతరుల మాట్లాడేవారి సంఖ్య పెరుగుతుంది, స్థానిక మాట్లాడేవారు అనుభవించే పోటీ ప్రయోజనం తగ్గుతుంది.
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