1. Polish Immigrants in Ireland:
Accent and the Dynamics of Social Mobility
In public, only the standard English is considered as the valuable and culturally ‘correct’ form. Non-standard varieties are
considered to be less valuable and culturally ‘incorrect’, thus potentially exposed to cultural discrimination.
This research explores the concept of cultural discrimination by studying standard and non-standard forms of the English
accent. In particular, it focuses on the ‘non-standard’ accent of English used by Polish immigrants in Ireland.
BACKGROUND OF THE RESEARCH STUDY
Linguistic capital of British and American English based on
Bourdieu’s (1991) theory
Linguistic standardisation
Modernity for languages and cultures
 Languages have been standardised to be taught in schools and
used in formal places.
Social ideology of standard language (of any language)
The linguistic capital of British and American English has been constructed as
a valuable resource allowing its speakers to turn it into a structural position.
Accent globalisation
Standard British and American English in the world:
 Considered as the most powerful accents.
 Perceived as the most valuable capital (Nestor et al 2012;
Waniek-Klimczak et al 2015).
 Constantly strengthened and portrayed as more significant. This
view is supported by:
- media outlets (CNN, BBC World, etc.),
- Hollywood,
- business,
- advertising (Phillipson 2001).
Irish-English in the world
 Perceived as less valuable and an inferior variety of English.
 Stigmatised and treated as a peripheral rather a legitimate
language (Nestor et al 2012).
CONCLUSION
 Globalisation means that standard English is becoming even more powerful –
if accent is being used as a simple way to differentiate and so discriminate,
how can certain populations ever gain access to top levels of social ladder?
 Linguistic and cultural colonialism of minds?
Global perspective
 The proponents of accent globalization are mostly:
National perspective - Ireland
 Standard Irish-English - a dominant accent and valuable capital.
 An indicator of identification with the dominant group.
 Lack of ability to speak standard Irish-English can be a factor
contributing to discrimination.
PROPOSED RESEARCH
STUDY
 Standard languages have begun to:
- serve communicative function,
- be the symbol of national identity (Graddol
2006),
- be the means for economic, cultural and
political unification (Fairclough 2001).
 Social creation supported by influenced people.
 A standard language created as the ‘right’ and non-standard
as the ‘wrong’ (Lippi-Green 1994) .
Results:
 Division of societies into the ‘better’ and the ‘worse’,
 Striving by many to speak ‘the better’ variant.
An accent – social creation
What is an accent?
 A way of speaking of a particular community or nation.
 An integrated part of the group’s culture.
 An indicator of belonging to a particular group and culture and
identity.
 It can be the vehicle for discrimination different social or cultural
groups, especially those groups which are generally perceived as
having lower status or value.
- people belonging to the accent dominant group,
- people striving to join the accent dominant group.
 The ability to speak the standard British or American accent can be:
- an indicator of identification with the dominant group
- the prerequisite to join the accent dominant group
(referring to the accent out-group).
 Lack of ability to speak standard English can be a factor
contributing to discrimination.
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
Main Research Aims
 To understand and explore the attitudes of Polish immigrants
speaking Polish-accented English towards both standard English
and Polish-accented English.
 To assess participant’s perceptions of the value/capital of these
accents.
Research Objectives
To examine:
 The attitudes of Polish non-standard English speakers towards
their Polish accented English.
 Which variety of standard English is perceived by Polish
immigrants in Ireland as the most valuable accent.
 Whether or not there are any signs of discrimination towards
Polish immigrants in Ireland based on their Polish-accented
English.
 Whether or not there is a glass ceiling in relation to career
opportunities for immigrants speaking ‘Polglish’ in Ireland.
Irish-English in Ireland
 The Celtic Tiger period which led to immigration influx
into Ireland turned Irish-English into a more attractive
accent.
 The possession of competence in dominant Irish-
English has begun to be seen for many as a valuable
accent capital.
METHODOLOGY
Poster presented by: Ewa Malczuk email: ewamalczuk@op.pl Supervisors: Dr. Jill M. O'Mahony, Dr.Tom Boland