To Kill a Mockingbird
Student Activity
#7
Exploring Language and Dialect
When literature is set in a particular
region, authors sometimes try to re-create the language of the region
through the characters' dialogue and narrative. This use of regional
language is called dialect and helps lend realism and local color to
the literature. Some famous examples of the use of dialect in
literature include Mark Twain's The
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and
Emily Bronte's Wuthering
Heights.
Reading dialect can be challenging,
especially if you are not from the region or time period of the
literature. But every community has its own kind of dialect. Even
when communities share the same language, they may use language
differently--for example, using distinct pronunciations or special
slang expressions, called idioms.
In these activities, you will:
* Use the Web to learn
different idiomatic expressions
* Use the Web to listen to an example of
Australian idioms & dialect
* Explore language use within your own
language community
* Examine the use of dialect in To Kill
a Mockingbird
Playing
Around with Idioms Activity
Expressions particular to a culture are
called idioms. An idiom is a word, phrase, or expression that is used
by a language community in a particular way. The idiom may be
accepted by one community but not understood by another set of
language users.
In this activity, you will use the
following Web site to locate idiomatic expressions, then test your
familiarity with idioms through an on-line word game.
Instructions:
1) Use the following Web
site to find a host of Idioms. Once you access the site, select a
letter of the alphabet to locate a series of idioms. Which Idioms are
you familiar with? On a separate sheet of paper, make a list of at
least 5 idioms you have learned in this activity (choose more than 1
letter of the alphabet if necessary).
2) Use the following Web site to play an
on-line exercise to test your familiarity with Idioms. When you have
finished, click your browser's Print button to record
your results on paper.
Learning Australian Idioms Activity
English is the official national
language of both the United States and Australia. But "Australian
English" does not always sound like "American English," and many of
the slang expressions, or idioms, are different. In this activity,
you will review examples of Australian idioms, then record your
responses to the exercise on a separate sheet of paper.
Instructions:
1). After reviewing the
examples of Australian idioms, choose one response from this list
(Not at all, Somewhat, Mostly, Completely) to describe how familiar
you were with Australian English and mark it on the paper.
2). List 3 of your favorite Australian
idioms in one column. In a second column next to it, list an idiom
from your own language community that expresses the same
idea.
3). Make a list of words that might be
pronounced differently from what you are used to.
4). How was the use of English different
from your own use of language?
Recording Your Local Idioms Activity
Everyone belongs to a language
community, and many people belong to more than one. Even if you
communicate in only one language, you probably belong to several
language communities. For example, you may use language differently
at school than you do at home, or you may use language differently
with your friends than with your family.
Your hometown, home region, and school
are examples of different language communities which may use language
differently than other towns, regions, or schools--even in the same
country. In the U.S., for instance, the tool for cooking eggs on the
stove top might be called a frying pan or a skillet, depending on the
language user's home region.
Instructions:
Work with a partner to compile a list of
at least 5 idiomatic expressions unique to your hometown or
region and 5 idiomatic
expressions unique to your school. Record your responses to the
exercise on a separate sheet of paper. List the idioms in one column
and in another column write a brief definition of what the idioms
mean in standard English. Idioms and definitions must be appropriate
for sharing in class!
* Share examples from each
pair's list. Select at least one idiom from each pair's list that
does not appear on any other list. Use these unique idioms to create
a poster for display in class.
* From this list of idioms, make an
audio recording pronouncing and explaining the idiomatic expressions
in standard English.
* Challenge Step: Use Netscape Composer
or another Web creation tool to post your list of idioms on the Web
to share your idioms with other students from different
communities.
To
Kill a Mockingbird Dialect Activity
In addition to differences between
regional language, historical eras have also used language in
distinctive ways. During the 1930's, for instance, a popular slang
expression to convey amazement was "Jeepers!" (like you might say
"Wow!" or "Awesome!" today).
To Kill a Mockingbird is both regional and historical in its setting.
Through the characters' dialogue and narrative, Harper Lee conveys
how some Southerners may have used language during the Depression.
She also suggests differences in language use depending on a
character's role in the community. To
Kill a Mockingbird shows how, even
within the same town, a variety of language communities
exist.
In this exercise, you will examine
passages of To Kill a
Mockingbird to reflect on the use of
language differences and dialect in literature. Record your responses
to the exercise on a separate sheet of paper.
Instructions:
1) In Chapter 12 of
To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout and Jem attend church with Calpurnia. They
notice that she uses language differently at church than she does in
their home. Scout describes Calpurnia as "having command of two
languages."
Use your text to examine the
conversation between Jem, Scout, and Calpurnia at the end of Chapter
12. Respond to the following questions, using quotes from the novel
to help explain your responses.
a) How do Scout and Jem
describe the way Calpurnia uses language in church?
b) What explanation does Calpurnia give
for using language differently at church than in the Finch's
home?
c) Do you think Calpurnia's way of
speaking at church is right or wrong? Do you think the way she speaks
in the Finch's home is right or wrong? Explain your
answers.
2) Examine these short passages of
characters' speech from To Kill a
Mockingbird. Identify techniques
such as spelling and punctuation that Harper Lee uses to recreate
dialect or regional speech. Respond to the 3 sets of questions which
follow the quotes.
* Calpurnia's
son Zeebo at church:
"Mister Jem, we're mighty glad to have
you all here. Don't pay no 'tention to Lula, she's contentious
because Reverend Sykes threatened to church her."
* Walter Cunningham passing the Radley
Place with Scout and Jem:
"Almost died first year I come to school
and et them pecans--folks say he pizened 'em and put 'em over on the
school side of the fence."
* Aunt Alexandra discussing Scout's
choice of friends:
"I still say that Jean Louise will not
invite Walter Cunningham to this house. If he were her double first
cousin once removed he would still not be received in this house
unless he comes to see Atticus on business."
*
Jem describing his adventures with the
Radleys to Atticus:
"Mr. Nathan put cement in that tree,
Atticus, an' he did it to stop us findin' things-he's crazy, I
reckon, like they say, but Atticus, I sweat to God he ain't ever
harmed us, he ain't ever hurt us, he coulda cut my throat from ear to
ear that night but he tried to mend my pants instead...."
a) Choose two of the passages to
compare. Identify the characters speaking, the role each character
has in the community, and any special aspects of his/her speech. In
what ways are the characters' use of language similar or different?
Explain your answers.
b) Read one passage aloud. How did your
understanding of the character's language use change when you heard
it aloud compared to reading it silently? Explain your
answers.
c) Revise Jem's description of his
adventures with Boo Radley into "proper" written English, then read
the revised passage aloud. What written changes did you make? How
does the revised passage sound when spoken? When you hear the
passages read, do you prefer the original or your revised version?
Explain your answers.
Challenge Activity Options:
* Select a passage of
dialogue from To Kill a
Mockingbird and perform it for the
class, using the dialect of the characters.
* Select a passage of dialogue from
To Kill a Mockingbird and make an audio recording to play for the class,
using the dialect of the characters.
* Make a videotape performing a passage
of dialogue from To Kill a
Mockingbird using the dialect of the
characters, then play the tape for the class.
* Research idiomatic expressions of the
1930's and create a Glossary of language use during the Depression
era. Post your Glossary on the Web to help other students understand
idioms from the Depression.
* Research idiomatic expressions from
the American South and create a Glossary of language use for the
region. Post your Glossary on the Web to help other students
understand idioms from the Southern United States.
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