What's wrong with "Ebonics"?

Because ebonics is slang. Slang is not proper, thus, slang should not be standardized.

Simple, well put...and to the point....

Ebonics:

I know I'm fixing to crank it up a bit but an honest question deserves an honest answer.

Ebonics is something that should be kept in the home or among others that know what the "slang" in the speech paterens of Ebonics means.

Ebonics is not a problem in every day conversation in an enviroment that is not buisness like or professional in any other way.

I think it is not proper to speak ebonics in a work setting. The only way a person should speak in a work enviroment in the U.S. is true English. It even upsets me when someone says (often) with the T pronounced when any teacher from the 70's would have had a heart attack over it.

Ebonics is nothing more than a discrace of the English spoken in schools for the last hundred years. It boils down to the thinking "If you cant beet them (educate them), join them. Ebonics is not the way to go. If you came to me looking for a job I would look at you like you were an idiot if you spoke Ebonics to me at the interview.

Ebonics is not English. It is slang and should be used as such, nothing more. If you dont know how to speak properly then stay out of the work place or any other situation that calls upon you to interact with other people.

Crank it up!

Thank you Gazrok.

I dont care what kind of speech you chose, theres a standard.

Speak whatever to your friends, but when youre looking for work, you had best ditch the stoner/ebonics/obscenities/hillbilly speak and reserve that for your friends, cuz in the working world, that # shouldnt fly.

We learned proper english in school, and spoke whatever form of english we chose around our familiars.

So, if u wanna speak ebonics, thats find, but dont cry when people think youre a retard and wont give u a job.

They would do the same to me if i walked into an inetrview and said, whats up dude. #in a, i want a job man, becuz workin is really cool, ya know, dude, far out./

If you want people to think you smart and capable, you should speak like it.

So what do you guys think about caribbean english? Worldwatcher has already mentioned it, but she calls differently. we call it pidgeon english or bad english. But it's still the way we speak, it's our dialect and and sometimes it can sound a little like ebonics. It's spoken mostly by the black people in the caribbean.

Caribbean english: So wha goin on boo, ye aight?

english: How are you, good?

Caribbean english: I just buy a brand new pc!!!! It nice and thing, and it fast too. It goin work good with me dsl connection, so we goin be pumpin sweet tunes online like we don't kno wha!!!

english: I just bought a brand new pc. It's very nice and very fast. It will work very well with my dsl connection, so we will be streaming great music online.

I see nothing wrong with ebonics if it's what the person grew up with and actually speaks at home. The problem is that people who are alien to it will try to speak it in order to sound "cool" (mainly because it's mainstream now and that the media is pawning them as usual).

Jamaican english is even more broken up. Sometimes I can't understand them when they speak fast.

Originally posted by J0HNSmith

I think people in general have a problem speaking english (like bush for instance, but I understand he has brain damage to his language center so I don't fault him for sounding like an idiot) I don't see the point in ebonics or a southern CA accent, aren't there better things people can learn than how to sound ignorant?

Have you ever heard caribbean people speak english? At first thought you will think that they sound primitive and ignorant. But that's hardly ever the case. That's the way they speak and what they grew up with. Most are able to speak "proper" english. There are even those (caribbean) people that want to ignore and bring down their native english in favor of the more "proper" American or British english. They sound like fools when they talk.

Same with lots of african-americans and ebonics.

What a sad life it would be if you worried about what people thought of you? People are idiots. Most of folk don't even like themselves. What makes you think that if you talk a certain way they are going to throw roses at your feet? That's not reality.

I'm comfortable with me and that makes others comfortable with me. That's my personal experience, but I'm sure its different from place to place. It's probably more about the people that I work with than me but my ego is too big to admit that.

Really, if folk don't respect my work because I don't fit in to their box of professionalism then that's their issue not mine. I have yet to run up against that, though. I can't really say what I would do if my boss pulled me aside and told me to "speak properly", but knowing my attitude, I'd probably put in my two weeks right then and there. I don't want to work for a company with an intolerant culture. I didn't go into debt to pay for my education so I could subject myself to the oppression of my spirit.

Everyone has their opinion of what is proper and what isn't. I suppose we're all right in a way. I just can't see being something I'm not to make other people happy. I wasn't raised that way.

Originally posted by Thomas Crowne
They do want to learn, Mad Man, as most every human does. The problem is that the direction of learning is counter-culture. When one intentionally snubs the mainstream culture and concentrates on a counter-culture to the point that the national culture is seen as bad, there is little chance of succeeding economically. Furthermore, it damages the mainstream culture without offering remedy or adding national value. All the way around, everyone suffers.
Valley Girls SUCK! So does ebonics. Let's not forget two-syllable one syllable word speakers!

I have to totally agree with Saphronia here. People ARE idiots for the most part. The problem with mainstream culture is that it tends to demand that everybody look, talk, and yes, even THINK alike. And if you don't ? Well, these kind loving, tolerant folks are just gonna refuse to give you a job.

That's right. Be yourself, do what makes you happy and they'll try to force you to change and when that doesn't work, rob you of your livelihood.

Mainstream culture DOES seem bad to me, because it's never done a single positive thing in my life except threaten me for not conforming to the status quo. Mainstream culture can kiss my white ass.

No offense, by the way to Thomas Crowne. I just feel very strongly on the issue of individuality and freedom of expression and it struck me that you implied that we should all live in a cookie-cutter existance, so I had to speak my mind.

I'm not black so I probably have no clue, but I DO think Saphronia is in the right here. I think ebonics is cool sounding and I would talk like that sometimes if I didn't sound like an idiot because I'm white.

She has every right to speak the way that feels most natural to her and nobody has the right to deny anyone a job simply because of the way they choose to speak. You wouldn't tell a mexican or indian that they couldn't speak spanish or punjabi at work, would you ? How is this any different.

Originally posted by cargo

Actually I dont believe that is correct. American English evolved out of a need to spell things phonetically, simplifying the English words.

"Armour" becomes American "Armor".
"Cheque" becomes American "Check".
"Catalogue" becomes American "Catalog".
"Jewellery" becomes American "Jewelry"
"Centre" becomes American "Center"
"Draught" becomes American "Draft"

Also "ise" words such as "Rationalise" becomes American "Rationalize".

It's pretty clear the need to simplify was the motivating factor.

Not to mention eliminating superfluous letters

(the tongue is for my husband Pisky who is always taking the piss out of me for my american spelling. My turn honey ! )

At certain times slang such as ebonics can be tolerated. Let's say you are going into a job interview and you want to come off as an intelligent person.. Surely ebonics wouldn't be the right way to go about it.

Originally posted by Saphronia
What a sad life it would be if you worried about what people thought of you?

Really, if folk don't respect my work because I don't fit in to their box of professionalism then that's their issue not mine. I have yet to run up against that, though. I can't really say what I would do if my boss pulled me aside and told me to "speak properly", but knowing my attitude, I'd probably put in my two weeks right then and there.

Well seeing as you feel that this particular "speaking correctly" controversy is trivial and doesn't apply to people like yourself how about this. For the next month at work only talk in ebonics. Than see how far "being comfortable with yourself" gets you. I think what you're saying sounds good but I don't think it's applicable in the real world.

"I have to totally agree with Saphronia here. People ARE idiots for the most part."
Kay, I am in total agreement with that as well, and the older I get the more certain I am this is true.

No use making life more difficult by sounding less intelligent. On the other hand, doens't it really anger you when you talk to someone and they sound smart only for you to learn later that the person is an idiot that happens to speak properly?

I don't really care how people speak as long as I can understand them when they are talking to me.
If you speak Ebonics to me, don't be surprised when I ask you to repeat what you have said. The reason is quite simply because I don't speak Ebonics. I don't speak to you in Cornish because you may not understand it, so in return, please don't speak to me in a dialect that I don't understand.

We do need a standardised language that everyone can understand purely in order to get along. Otherwise we would spend all of our time learning hundreds of languages 'just in case'. Or need to hire interpreters

I still think Esperanto is bollocks though - It was not a naturally evolving language but a designed one that never really took off.

I think its stupid to establish Ebonics as a "language", its slang. But it doesnt bother me if I hear people talking like that. Thats they're right. Whatever floats your boat.