Science Leadership Academy

Mackenzie Drust
Iron Stream
Language autobiography

    When it really comes down to it, language and speech are very important to the way that you live, and the way that people are looked at as a human beings. As people get older they start to understand the importance of language. When some people are young they will talk the same way to everyone. When you are older and more mature you begin to understand the importance of “friend talk/ home talk” and “public speech”. When you are in high school, and you are talking to your friends it will be a lot different than if you are talking to your teachers, or other superiors like that. Language and dialect affects one’s entire life.
    “Stop mumbling you sound thuggish!” said my mom. “umm okay” said Mackenzie. “Stop, Mackenzie! Is that how your going to talk when you have a boss?” said my mom. “Maybe it is” said Mackenzie. “Well good luck succeeding at a job when you talk like a white trashy east falls kid”. Said my mom. “I don’t sound like an east falls kid, that’s just the way I talk deal with it, I was kidding I’m not actually going to talk to a boss like that.”  Said Mackenzie. This conversation occurred between my mom and me about two weeks ago. I chose to use this because I think it shows how people judge you by your dialect/speech. I am positive this is exactly the way it went to because I remember her calling me a trashy east falls kid, and that stuck in my head. Even though she sounds like she is angry in the dialogue she wasn’t, but she is right about how talking to a boss that way would be stupid. Talking that way to a superior is like demeaning yourself.  
    Language affects somebody’s power over a situation more than anything. Who are people going to listen to? The guy who talks like he is at home? Or the guy with the professional look and speech? People are going to listen to the more professional person. And in some cases it could be really bad if it is over something important. In today’s world if you are at work, or if you are at school or anything like that, you have to use a professional voice around your superiors. It is okay if you talk regularly around your friends at work or if you’re joking. But when things get serious you have to try your best to cover up your dialect and speak clearly.
    Your stereotype is very important, because weather you like it or not people are going to stereotype you. Your stereotype especially in high school is very important because it spreads so fast. If somebody asks someone else about you, they are not going to say that’s the really smart kid. They are going to say hey, that’s the white kid who tries to act like he’s black, Or something along those lines. So speech is very important and it affects the way that people classify you. I have been classified by the way I talk before; people have called me the “wigger” kid before. I only talk that way because I grew up around some white trashy people and that is how I came to talk. But if you really know me that stereotype is so far off, its ridiculous. If I talked more grammatically correct and didn’t use as much slang people would give me a stereotype that maybe actually suits me.
    Language tells other people who you are, especially when it somebody’s first impression of you. The way somebody speaks is the first thing that comes out of their mouth. It is not so much the actual tone of your voice, but it is more about dialect, if you have a noticeable dialect people will notice your dialect, and a lot of the time they will stereotype you because of the way you talk until they know you on a deeper level. Until that happens it is possible to lose power over certain situations because of your speech. In a country where the powerful leaders in the government believe that there is one correct way to speak English. If we do not speak their “correct” way how can we expect to have power.